DOCUMENTS BEARING ON THE TEEATY OF GHENT, 1814. 245 



With regard to the alteration proposed in the 1st article, whereby 

 the occupation of the Islands in Passamaquoddy Bay may be reserved 

 to us, there is no objection to the proposition contained in the Amer- 

 ican note, except so far as relates to the surrender of such islands to 

 the United States, if no decision shall have been agreed upon, within 

 a given number of years. This stipulation might give to the United 

 States an interest to postpone any decision on the subject. 



There would be no objection to a stipulation by which it should be 

 provided that the right to the islands in Passamaquoddy Bay should 

 be that point of reference on which the Commissioners should be re- 

 quired first to consider and decide. 



With respect to the discussion which has grown out of the latter 

 part of the 8th article, the Prince Regent regrets to find that there 

 does not appear any prospect of being able to arrive at such an ar- 

 rangement with regard to the fisheries, as would have the effect of 

 coming to a full and satisfactory explanation on that subject. 



As this appears however, now to be the only remaining point on 

 \yhich any difficulty exists, he is unwilling to protract by a prolonga- 

 tion of the discussion the period, when the war between His Majesty 

 and the United States may be happily terminated. 



You will therefore present a note in which, after referring to the 

 language held by you on this subject, from the very commencement 

 of the negotiation, in which you stated explicitly, that the British 

 Commissioners did not intend to grant gratuitously to the United 

 States the privileges formerly granted by Treaty to them of fishing 

 within the limits of the British sovereignty, and of using the shores 

 of the British territories for purposes connected with the fisheries, 

 you will state that, as there does not appear any prospect of agreeing 

 upon an article, wherein that question may be satisfactorily adjusted, 

 you are authorised to accept the proposition, which the Commissioners 

 of the United States proposed in the Protocol of the 9th December, 

 wherein they expressed their readiness to omit the Eighth article 

 altogether. 



It will not be necessary for you to insist on the article entitled 

 " An Article relative to the Right of preventing Suits in the Courts 

 of Justice," as we rely on the courts of justice being open in the 

 United States, by which the just claims of British subjects may be 

 fairly prosecuted. 



I am, &c. BATHURST. 



No. 24. 1814, December 2%: Extract from Reply of British Plenipo- 

 tentiaries to American Ministers. 



******* 



So far as regards the substitut ; on proposed by the undersigned for 

 the last clause of the 8th article, as it was offered solely with the hope 

 of attaining the object of the amendment tendered by the American 

 plenipotentiaries at the conference of the 1st instant, no difficulty 

 will be made in withdrawing it. 



The undersigned, returning to the declarat ; on made by them at 

 the conference of the 8th of August, that the privileges of fishing 

 within the limits of the British sovereignty, and of using the British 



92909 S. Doc. 870, 61-3, vol 7 21 



