160 The Frederick Gerring, Jr. 



sions between the United States and Great Britain, or that her 

 seizure and condemnation were justified by the letter or spirit of 

 that compact. That the equities of the case leaned strongly in 

 favor of the inculpated vessel is obvious on the high authority 

 of the Chief Justice and an Associate Justice of the Supreme 

 Court of Canada. Nevertheless, believing at the time that the 

 measure of clemency offered by Her Majesty's authorities of the 

 Dominion of Canada would aft'ord adequate relief and reduce the 

 loss of the owner of the vessel to a minimum sum which might be 

 conveniently disregarded, this government hastened to accept the 

 tendered settlement without, however, yielding its conviction as 

 to the doubtful character of the proceedings upon which the orig- 

 inal penalty was founded. The object of this present note is not 

 to re-open the case but to call the attention of Her Majesty's 

 government to the facts now represented which deprive the gra- 

 ciously tendered reparation of a large part if not of all of its suffi- 

 ciency, so that the outcome leaves the owner of the Frederick 

 Gerring, Jr., as much a sufferer by the actual loss of his catch, 

 or its value, and the virtual loss of his vessel as though the orig- 

 inal penalty of confiscation had been carried out. That the order 

 of restitution of the vessel necessarily involved the moral obliga- 

 tion to return it in substantially the same condition as that in which 

 it was seized, is a proposition which I venture to believe is not 

 open to disagreement and I further think the sale of the seined fish 

 and the appropriation of the proceeds may admittedly be regarded 

 as a proceeding contrary to the spirit in which the offer of clem- 

 ency was made and accepted. 



I trust, therefore, that these circumstances may be taken into 

 account by Her Majesty's Government in that large spirit of justice 

 which properly animates the ti'eatment of international incidents 

 of this character, and with a view to such examination and dis- 

 position of the subject I address this friendly note to you instead 

 of making the matter the occasion of an instruction to the United 

 States Ambassador at London. I am the more disposed to adopt 

 this comparatively informal manner of treating the question in 

 view of the previous correspondence had with Your Excellency on 

 the subject. 



I have the honor to be, etc., etc., etc., 



John Sherman. 



