738 APPENDIX TO BRITISH CASE. 



or crews, of the most favoured nation, or unjustly vexed or harassed in respect 

 of the same, or unjustly vexed or harassed therein by the authorities thereof, 

 then, and in either or all of such cases, it shall be lawful, and it shall be the 

 duty of the President of the United States, in his discretion, by proclamation 

 to that effect, to deny vessels, their masters and crews, of the British dominions 

 of North America, any entrance into the waters, ports, or places of, or within 

 the United States, (with such exceptions in regard to vessels in distress, stress 

 of weather, or needing supplies as to the President shall seem proper), whether 

 such vessels shall have come directly from said dominions on such destined 



voyage or by way of some port or place in such destined voyage else- 

 442 where; and also, to deny entry into any port or place of the United 



States of fresh fish or salt fish or any other product of said dominions, 

 or other goods coming from said dominions to the United States. The Presi- 

 dent may, in his discretion, apply such proclamation to any part or to all of 

 the foregoing-named subjects, and may revoke, qualify, limit, and renew such 

 proclamation from time to time as he may deem necessary to the full and just 

 execution of the purposes of this Act. Every violation of any such proclama- 

 tion, or any part thereof, is hereby declared illegal, and all vessels and goods 

 so coming or being within the waters, ports or places of the United States con- 

 trary to such proclamation shall be forfeited to the United States; and such 

 forfeiture shall be enforced and proceeded upon in the same manner and with 

 the same effect as in the case of vessels or goods whose importation or coming 

 to or being in the waters or ports of the United States contrary to law may now 

 be enforced and proceeded upon. Every person who shall violate any of the 

 provisions of this Act, or such proclamation of the President made in pursuance 

 hereof, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction thereof, 

 shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars, or by imprison- 

 ment for a term not exceeding two years, or by both said punishments, in the 

 discretion of the court. 

 Approved, March 3, 1887. 



So far as is known to the committee, no step whatever was taken 

 by the President to put this law into execution, but negotiations were 

 initiated and continued, to the apparent end of accomplishing, what 

 Congress had thought it unfit to undertake in such way, an adjust- 

 ment of these difficulties by the diplomatic course of securing a part 

 of American rights at the expense of yielding other and the most 

 fundamental and important of them. 



These negotiations culminated in the appointment by the President, 

 during the recess of the Senate, on the 22d of November, 1887, only 

 ten days before the meeting of Congress, of three " plenipotentiaries," 

 to consider, with like plenipotentiaries appointed by Her Majesty, 

 the whole subject, with a view of coming to a solution thereof. 



These plenipotentiaries, thus created, began their real work at 

 Washington while both Houses of Congress were sitting, and without 

 any communication by the President in his annual message on the 

 meeting of Congress, or otherwise, of the fact that such important 

 and extraordinary operations were in progress, or that very grave 

 interests of the United States had been placed in the custody of gen- 

 tlemen whose names had not even been communicated to it. 



These " plenipotentiaries " came to a conclusion of their labours 

 on the 15th of February, 1888, and the offices of " plenipotentiaries 31 

 terminated, and the result was reached without the advice and consent 

 of the Senate having been asked or taken concerning the selection of 

 these public Ministers, and without any communication to either 

 House of Congress concerning this most important subject. 



It is not difficult to see that, in evil times, when the President of 

 the United States may be under influence of foreign and adverse 

 interests, such a course of procedure might result in great disaster to 

 the interests and even the safety of our Government and people. 



