404 AVES ISLAND. 



and so we declare it." (Law 1st, tit. Ist^ book 3d of Compilation of 

 Indies, still in force.) 



If such strong foundations were lost sight of by a distinguished 

 statesman, which is excusable in the hasty proceedings for the sub- 

 stantiation of a claim, it is to be hoped they will bring irresistible 

 conviction to the just administration now ruling in the United States, 

 where the question must be finally decided. 



It then appears as absolutely untenable that Sj^ain has ever sponta- 

 neously and tacitly renounced the possession of, or has she alienated 

 Isla de Aves, without those previous express acts in virtue of which 

 she has from imperious political circumstances, given up some of her 

 American colonies. 



It has already been proved that Spain did possess Isla de Aves up 

 to the time when it became the property of the Venezuelan nation, for 

 the reasons manifested in the following — 



PROPOSITION SECOND. 



Isla de Aves the property of Venezuela as succeeding to the rights of 

 Spain. — With pain indeed does Venezuela disinter from dusty archives 

 her title of property over Isla de Aves, in order to free herself from the 

 indemnity demanded by fillibusterism repelled from a territory where 

 the rightful owner has but exercised acts of sovereignty, for which no 

 accountability is incurred if better title is not produced. 



The representative of the United States at Caraccas, Mr. Eames, in 

 an official note of 31st March, 1856, has acknowledged the followifig: 



"All of the territory of these continental governments formed orig- 

 inally part of the jurisdiction of the government of St. Domingo, and 

 were successively excinded out of it. But besides that vast continen- 

 tal territory, the government of St. Domingo, as appears in the 

 'Leyes de Indias,' published at Madrid in 1786, lib. 11, tit. 15, com- 

 prehended also all the Windward Islands, as we have seen the Aves 

 in question is found, and this group of islands was never taken out of 

 the jurisdiction by Spain, or assigned to the jurisdiction of any of her 

 continental governments, and least of all to Venezuela, which was at 

 first a dependency of the vice royalty of New Granada, and so con- 

 tinued till 1751." 



It is therefore acknowledged that Isla de Aves was never taken out 

 of the jurisdiction of Spain. Although the adverb never is a surplus 

 word, for the reason further on to be explained, it is important how- 

 ever to remark that Mr. Eames agrees to Isla de Aves having never 

 been abandoned, and consequently he has thus left the claim without 

 even the ground upon which he thought to be able to establish it. 

 Nor is this the only contradiction incurred by Mr. Eames; but they 

 cannot be pointed out, as it is not the purpose of this memoir to enter 

 into any other expositions than such as directly and substantially 

 relate to the question. 



Mr. Eames, we have seen, agrees that Isla de Aves was owned by 

 Spain, but does not admit her having been assigned to the captain- 

 generalship of Venezuela. The contrary is proved in this manner. 



In 1526 all the Windward Islands (Aves included) and those of 



