DIPLOMATIC CORRESPONDENCE. 



341 



her Majesty's Government to make the strongest re- 

 monstrances against the fitting out in the ports of the 

 United States of vessels with an intent to prey upon 

 British commerce not, however, in the barbarous and 

 illegal manner shown to have been practised by No. 

 290, but subject to the forms of ultimate adjudication 

 equally recognized by all civilized nations. And they 

 went the further length of urging the acknowledgment 

 of the principle of compensation in damages for the 

 consequences of not preventing the departure of such 

 vessels. That principle was formally recognized as 

 valid by both parties in the seventh article of the 

 treaty of the 19th November, 1794 ; and, accordingly, 

 all cases of damage previously done by capture of 

 British vessels or merchandise by vessels originally 

 fitted out in the ports of the United States were there- 

 in agreed to be referred to a commission provided for 

 by that treaty to award the necessary sums for full 

 compensation. 



I am well aware that the provisions of that treaty 

 are no longer in force ; and that even if they were, 

 they bound only the United States to make good the 

 damage done in the precise contingency then occur- 

 ring. But I cannot for a moment permit myself to 

 suppose that her Majesty's Government, by the very 

 act of pressing for the recognition of the principle in 

 a treaty, when it applied for its own benefit, did not 

 mean to be understood as equally ready to sustain it, 

 at any and all times, when it might be justly applied 

 to the omission to prevent similar action of British 

 subjects within its own jurisdiction toward the peo- 

 ple of the United States. 



But I would beg further to call your lordship's atten- 

 tion to the circumstance that there is the strongest 

 reason to believe that the claim for compensation in 

 cases of this kind was not pressed by her Majesty's 

 Government merely in connection with the obtaining 

 a formal recognition of the principle in an express 

 contract. This seems to have been but a later step, 

 and one growing out of a previous advance of a simi- 

 lar demand, based only on general principles of equity, 

 that should prevail at all times between nations. Here 

 again it appears that the Government of the United 

 States, having admitted a failure down to a certain 

 date in taking efficient steps to prevent the outfit in 

 their ports of cruisers against the vessels of Great 

 Britain, with whom they were at peace, recognized 

 the validity of the claim advanced by Mr. Hammond, 

 his Majesty's minister plenipotentiary at Philadelphia, 

 for captures of British vessels subsequently made by 

 those cruisers even on the high seas. This principle 

 will be found acknowledged in its full length in the 

 reply* of Mr. Jefferson, then Secretary of State of the 



* The following is the letter referred to : 



" Mr. Jefferson to Mr. Hammond. 



September 5, 1793. 



" SIR, I am honoured with yours of August 30th. Mine 

 of the 7th of that month assured you that measures were 

 taking for excluding from all further asylum in our ports of 

 vessels armed in them to cruise on nations with which we 

 are at peace, and for the restoration of the prizes the Lovely 

 Lass, Prince William Henry, and the -lane, of Dublin; and 

 that, should the measures of restitution fail in the effect, the 

 President considers it as incumbent on the United States to 

 make compensation for the vessels. 



" We are bound by our treaties with three of the bellig- 

 erent nations by all the means in our power to protect and 

 defend their vessels and effects in our ports or waters, or on 

 the seas near our shores, and to recover and restore the same 

 to the right owners when taken from them. If all the means 

 in our power are used and fail in this effect, we are not bound 

 by onr treaties with those nations to make compensation. 



''Though we have, no similar treaty with Great Britain, it 

 was the opinion of the President that we should use toward 

 that nation the same rule which, under this article, was to 

 govern us with other nations, and even to extend it to the 

 captures made on the high seas and brought into our ports, 

 if done by vessels which had been armed within them. 



" Having for particular reasons forborne to use all the means 

 in our power for the restitution of the throe vessels men- 

 tioned in my letter of August 7th, the President thought it 

 incumbent on the United States to make compensation for 

 them ; and though nothing was said in that letter of other 



United States, dated 5th September, 1793, to a letter 

 from Mr. Hammond of the 30th August preceding a 

 copy of which is unfortunately not in my possession 

 but which, from the tenor of the answer, I must pre- 

 sume to have itself distinctly' presented the admitted 

 ground of the claim. 



Armed by the authority of such a precedent, having 

 done all in my power to apprise her Majesty's Govern- 

 ment of the illegal enterprise in ample season for ef- 

 fecting its prevention, and being now enabled to show 

 the injurious consequences to innocent parties relying 

 upon the security of their commerce from any danger 

 through British sources ensuing from the omission of 

 her Majesty's Government, however little designed, to 

 apply the proper prevention in due season, I have the 

 honor to inform vour lordship of the directions which 

 I have received from my Government to solicit redress 

 for the national and private injuries already thus sus- 

 tained, as well as a more effective prevention of any 

 repetition of such lawless and injurious proceedings in 

 her Majesty's ports hereafter. 



CHARLES FRANCIS ADAMS. 



Right Honorable EARL RUSSELL, &c., &c. 



On the 19th of Decemher Earl Russell re- 

 plied, stating summarily the contents of Mr. 

 Adams' letter, and proceeding as follows : 



Earl Russell to Mr. Adams. 



You finally state that you have been instructed to 

 solicit redress for the national and private injuries 

 sustained by the proceedings of this vessel as well as 

 a more effective prevention of any repetition of them 

 in British ports hereafter. 



Before I proceed to examine the justice of these de- 

 mands, it will be convenient that I should advert to 

 the circumstances to which you call my attention as 

 having occurred soon after the breaking out of the 

 French revolutionary war. You observe that on that 

 occasion remonstrances were addressed by the British 

 Government to that of the United States respecting 

 the fitting out of privateers in United States ports 

 with an intent to prey upon British commerce, and 

 that the demands of the British Government were ad- 

 mitted by the United States, and were formally recog- 

 nized in the seventh article of the treaty between the 

 two countries of the 19th of November, 1794. 



vessels taken under like circumstances and brought in after 

 the 5th of June, and before the date of that letter, yet, where 

 the same forbearance had taken place, it was and is his opin- 

 ion that compensation would be equally due. 



"As to prizes made under the same circumstances and 

 Drought in after the date of that letter, the President deter- 

 mined that all the means in our power should be used for 

 their restitution. If these fail, as we should not be bound 

 by our treaties to make compensation to the otheY powers 

 in the analogous case, he did not mean to eive an opinion 

 that it ought to be done to Great Britain. But still, if any 

 cases shall arise subsequent to that date, the circumstances 

 of which shall place them on similar ground with those 

 before it, the President would think compensation equally 

 incumbent on the United States. 



" Instructions are given to the governors of the different 

 States to use all the means in their power for restoring 

 prizes of this last description found within their ports. 

 Though they will, of course, take measures to be informed 

 of them, and the General Government has given them the 

 aid of the custom house officers for this purpose, yet you 

 will be sensible of the importance of multiplying the chan- 

 nels of their information, as far as shall depend on yourself 

 or any persons under your direction, in order that the gov- 

 ernors may use the means in their power for making resti- 

 tution. Without knowledge of the capture they "cannot 

 restore it. It will always bo best to give the notice to them 

 directly, but any information which you should be pleased 

 to send to me also, at any time, shall bo forwarded to them 

 as quickly as possible. 



" Hence you will perceive, sir, that the President contem- 



?lates restitution or compensation in the cases before the 

 th of August, and after that date restitution if it can be 

 effected by any means in our power, and that it will be im- 

 portant that you should substantiate the fact that sucn prizes 

 are in our ports or waters. 



" Your list of the privateers illicitly armed in our ports is, 

 I believe, correct." 



