JURISDICTIONAL EIGHTS IN BERING SEA. 277 



beyond all manner ofdouht, the pi-iuciple that beyond 59" 30' no foreij^n vessel can 

 approach her coasts and her islands, nor fish nor hunt within the distance of two 

 niaiine leagues. This will not jirevent the reception of foreign vessels which have 

 been damaged or beaten by storm. 



The course pursued by Mr. Adams, after the Eussian note had been 

 submitted to him, is fully told in his diary, from which I again quote : 



I told Baron Tuyl that we should be disposed to do everything to accommodate the 

 views of his Government that was in our power, but that a modification of the con- 

 vention coidd be made no otherwise than by a new convention, and that the con- 

 struction of the convention as concluded belonged to other departments of the Gov- 

 ernment, for which the Executive had no authority to stipulate. * * * j added 

 that the convention would be submitted immediately to the Senate; that if anything 

 affecting its construction, or, still more, modifying its uieaniug, were to be i)Tesented 

 on the part of the Russian Government before or at the exchange of the ratifica- 

 tions, it must be laid before the Senate, and could have no other possible effect than 

 of startiug doubts, and, perhaps, hesitation, in that body, and of favoring the views 

 of those, if snch there were, who nught wish to defeat tlie ratification itself of the 

 convention. * * * If^ tlierefore, he would permit me to suggest to him what I 

 thought would be his best course, it would be to wait for the exchange of the ratifi- 

 cations, and make it purely and simply; that afterwards, if the instructions of his 

 Government were imperative, he might present the note, to whicli I now informed him 

 what w onld be, in substance, ray answer. It necessarily could not be otherwise. 

 But, if his instructions left it discretionary with him, he would do still better to 

 inform his Government of the state of things here, of the purport of our conference, 

 and of wdiat my answ^er must be if he should present the note. I beli»ived his Court 

 would then deem it best that he should not present the note at all. Their apprehen- 

 sion had hcen exciled by an interest, not very frieiully to the good nnderstandiiuj hetween 

 the United States and Enssia. Our merchants icouJd not go to trouble the Russians on the 

 coast of Siberia, or north of the ffty-sevfuth degree of latitude, and it was wisest not to 

 jtnt such fancies into their heads. At least the Imperial Government might wait to see 

 the ojieration of the convention before taking any further step, and I was confident 

 they would hear no complaint resulting from it. If they should, then would be the 

 time for adjusting the construction or negotiating a modification of the conven- 

 tion, f * * 



The Eussian Minister was deeply impressed by what Mr. Adams had 

 said. He had not before clearly perceived the inevitable effect if he 

 should insist on presenting the note in the form of a demand. He was 

 not i^repared for so serious a result as the destruction or the indefinite 

 l)ostponement of the treaty between Eussia and the United States, and 

 Mr. Adams readily convinced him that at the exchange of ratifications 

 no modification of the treaty could be made. The only two courses 

 open were, first, to ratify; or, second, to refuse, and annul the treaty. 

 Mr. Adams reports the words of the minister in reply: 



The Baron said that these ideas had occurred to himself; that he had made tliis 

 application in pursuance of his instructions, but he was aware of tlie distribution of 

 powers in our Constitution and of the incompetency of the Executive to adjust such 

 questions. He would therefore wait for tlie exchange of the ratifications without 

 presenting his note, and reserve for future consideration wdiether to pi-escnt it shortly 

 afterwards or to inform his Court of wha t he has done and ask their further instruc- 

 tions upon what he shall definitely do on the subject. * * * 



As Baron Tuyl surrendered his opinions to the superior judgment of 

 Mr. Adams, the ratifications of the treaty were exchanged on the 11th 

 day of January, and on the following day the treaty was formally ]»ro- 

 claimed. A fortnight later, on January 25, 1825, Baron Tuyl, following 

 the instructioiis of his Government, filed his note in the Dejiartment of 

 State. Of course, his act at that time did not affect the text of the 

 treaty; but it placed in the hands of the Government of the United 

 States an unofficial note which significantly told what Eussia's con- 

 struction of the treaty would be if, unhappily, any difference as to its 

 meaning should arise between the two governments. But Mr. Adams's 

 friendly intimation removed all danger of dispute, for it conveyed to 

 Eussia the assurance that the treaty, as negotiated, contained, in effect, 



