34 COUNTER-CASE OF GREAT BRITAIN. 



friendly to the good iinderstaudiug between the United States and 

 Russia. Onr merchants would not go to trouble the Russians on the 

 coast of Siberia, or north of the 57th degree of latitude, and it was 

 wisest not to put such fancies into their heads. At least, the Imperial 

 Government might wait to see the operation of the Convention before 

 taking any further step, and I was coulideut they would hear no com- 

 plaint resulting from it. If they should, then would be the time for 

 adjusting the construction or negotiating a modification of t'.ie Con- 

 vention; and whoever might be at the head of the Administration of 

 the United States, he might be assured that every disposition would be 

 cherished to remove all causes of dissatisfaction, and to accommodate 

 the wishes and the just policy of the Empert)r. 



The Baron said that these ideas had occurred to himself; that 



37 he had made this application in pur.suauce of his instructions; 

 but he was aware of the distribution of powers in our Consti- 

 tution, and of the incompetency of the Executive to adjust such 

 questions. He would therefore wait for the exchange of the ratifica- 

 tions W' ithout presenting liis note, and reserve for future consideration 

 whether to present it shortly afterwards, or to inform his Court of 

 Avhat lie has done, and ask their further instructions upon what he 

 shall definitely do on the subject. He therefore requested me to con- 

 sider what had now passed between us as if it had not taken place 

 ("non avcnu"), to which I readily assented, assuring him, as I had 

 done heretofore, that the President had the highest personal confidence 

 in him, and in his exertions to foster tlie harirony Itetween the tv/o 

 countries. I reported immediately to the President the substance of 

 this conversation, and he concurred in the propriety of the Baron's 

 linal determination. 



As will be seen from the above account of the neg'otia- 

 tions, no note whatever was presented by Baron Tuyll. 

 In point of fact, it is not clear that any note was ever writ- 

 ten. The docnment produced by the United States, and 

 purporting to be a copy of the note, is headed " IsTote ex- 

 plicative a, presenter," and would appear to be nothing 

 more than a draft Minute of a note. The following is the 

 text of this draft note : ; 



Appendix, vol. Note explicative a pr>^senter an Gouverneraent des Etats-Unis lors de 

 '' P' ^"^ I'dchange des ralificatious dans le but d'ecarter d'autaut plus sfire- 



ment tout motif de discussions futures, au moyen de laquelle note 

 on reconnoitroit positivement exceptees de la libert;"? de chasse, de 

 peche, et de commerce, stii>ulce on faveur des citoyens des jStats- 

 Unis pour dix ans, les lies Alcntiennes, les cotes de la Sibe'rie, et en 

 general les possessions Blisses stir la cote nord-ouest de I'Amerlqiie jus- 

 qn'aivSO'^ 30' de latitude nord. 



II paralt que ceci n'est qu'une consequence naturelle des stipulations 

 arreti5es, car les cntvs de la Sibe'rie sout baignt'^es par la Mer d'Ochotsk, 

 la Mer de Kamtschatka, et ia Mer Glaciale, et uon par la Mer du Sud 

 mentionn(?e dans I'Article T'' de la Convention du 5 (17) Avril. C"est 

 aussi par la Mer du Kamtschatka ou I'Ocean du Xord, que sent baiguees 

 les lies Aleutiennes. 



L'intention de la Russie n'est point d'entraver la libre navigation de 

 rOceau Pacifique. Elle se bornerait a faire reconnoitre comme bien 

 entendu et plac6 a I'abri de toute espece de doute le principe, que 

 depuis le 59° 30' aucun vaisseau (^tranger no pourrait apjirocher de ses 

 cotes et ses iles, ni y faire la chasse ou la peche qu'a la distance de 2 

 lieues marines. Ce qui n'empcchera pas d'accueillir les batimens 

 strangers avaries ou battus par la tempcto. 



It is stated in Mr. Blaine's despatch of the 17th 



38 December, 1890, that this Minute or Memorandum 

 was not presented at the time of the exchange of 



ratifications, but was communicated a fortnight afterwards. 

 It does not ap])ear to have received any acknowledgment 

 or reply, and the whole proceedings seem to have been 

 entirely informal. 



