STATE” PAPER'S. 
potentiary, do not permit him to 
-doupt, that they will see in its 
true jight this measure, as far as it 
may concern the United States ; 
and that they will also feel, that it 
is diated by imperious circum- 
stances, and approved by justices 
Great Britain daring the war she 
has carried on against ihe republic; 
has not ceased using every means 
in her power to add to that scourge, 
scourges still more terr'ble. She 
has used the well-known liberality 
of the French nation to the detri- 
ment of that nation. Knowing how 
faithful France has always been in 
the observance of her treaties; 
knowing that it was a principle of 
the republic to respect the flags of 
all nations, the British government, 
from the beginning of the war, 
has caused neutral vessels, and in 
particular American vessels, to be 
detained, taking them into their 
ports, and dragged from them 
Frenchmen and French~ property. 
France bound by a treaty with the 
United States, could find only a 
real disadvantage in the articles of 
that treaty, which caused to be 
respected as Amefican pfoperty 
English property found on board 
American vessels. They had a 
right, under this consideration, to 
expect that America would take 
steps in favour of her violated neu- 
the undersigned, in July 1793, ap- 
ied on this subject to the go- 
ronment of the United States; 
ut he was not successful. Never- 
heless the national convention, 
0, by their decree of the gth of 
May, 1793, had ordered the sci. 
ure of enemy’s property on board 
eutral vessels, declaring, at the 
ame time, that the measure should 
se when the English should re. 
pect negtral flags, had excepted, on 
Vor, XXXVIII. 
trality. One of the predecessors of - 
[305 
the 23d of the same month, the 
Americans from the operation of 
this general order. But the, con- 
vention was obliged. soon to repeal 
the law which contained this ex. 
ception so favourable to Americans ; 
the manner in which the English 
conducied themselves, the mani- 
fest intention they had to stop the 
exportation of provision from Ame. 
rica to France, rendered it una. 
voidable. 
The national coriventioti by this 
had restored the equilibrium of 
neutrality which England had de- 
stroyed ; had discharged their duty 
if a manner justified by a thou- 
sand past examples, as well as by 
the necessity of the then existing 
moment; They might, therefore, 
to recall the orders they had given 
‘to seize the enemy’s property on 
board American vessels, have wait- 
ed till the British government. had 
first definitively revoked the same 
order, a suspension only of which 
was produced by the embargo laid 
by Congress the 26th of March, . 
1794. But as soon as they were 
informed that, under orders of the 
government of the United States, 
Mr. Jay was direéted to remonstrate 
against the vexatious measures of 
the English, they gave orders, by 
the law of the 13th Nivose, 3d 
year, to the ships of war of the 
republic to respeét American ves. 
sels ; and the committee of public 
safety, in their explanatory resolve 
of the 14th of the same month, 
hastened to sanction the same prin~ 
ciples. The national convention 
and the committee of public safety 
had every reason to believe, that 
this open and liberal conduct would 
determine the United States to use 
every effort to put a stop to the — 
vexations imposed upon their com. 
merce, to the injury of the French 
republic ; 
