340 



APPENDIX TO COUNTER-CASE OF GREAT BRITAIN. 



sions our Colonies will acquire new 

 strength. This Act may be looked 

 upon as the beginning of the polit- 

 ical existence and safety of the 

 Colonies, since their relation to 

 foreign Powers has been for the 

 first time acknowledged and made 

 patent to the world. The impor- 

 tance of this is evident, and the 

 members of your Board will doubt- 

 less realize to its fullest extent this 

 new great benefit bestowed upon 

 them by their highest Protector, 

 who, never losing sight of the true 

 interests of his beloved subjects, 

 has thus by a stroke of his pen 

 fixed their honourable status not 

 only within his own dominions, but 

 also in the eyes of all foreign Pow- 

 ers, and started you in the race of 

 prosperity with all other nations 

 of the civilized world. 



I have the honour to be, with the 

 greatest respect, and with the best 

 intentions, your humble servant, 



(Signed) Count Nesselrode. 



by means of it our Colonies are the 

 greater gainers. It is in a certain 

 sense the commencement of their 

 political existence and safety, inas- 

 much as now, for the first time, are 

 determined their relations to for- 

 eign States. The imj^ortance of 

 this is evident, and the members 

 of the Russian- American Company 

 will undoubtedly appreciate in the 

 fullestmeasure this new great bene- 

 faction of their august Patron, who 

 so indefatigably labours for their 

 good by protecting the rights of 

 his beloved Kussian subjects not 

 only with all the might of our 

 Empire, but by, perhaps, for him 

 more precious power, that of re- 

 si^ect and confidence which the 

 undeviating course of his jiolicy 

 serves to instil into all Govern- 

 ments and nations of the civilized 

 world. 



I have the honour to be, with per- 

 fect respect and similar devotion, 

 your high Excelleucys obedient 

 servant. 



The original is signed by — 



Count Nesselrode. 



xlPRiL 11, 1824. 



No. 13. 



No. 13. 



Letter from the Minister of Finance 

 to the Board of Administration 

 of the Russian ■ American Com- 

 pany. Written from 8t. Peters- 

 burg, September 4, 1824. 



The letter transmitted to me on 

 the 12th June by the Directors of 

 the Company, containing their re- 

 marks on the possible consequences 

 of the Convention concluded on the 

 5th April of this year, between our 

 Coiirt and the North-American Ee- 

 ]»ublic, I have submitted to the 

 Minister of Foreign Affairs in the 

 original. I have now received from 

 him in reply a copy of the j)roceed- 

 ings of a Special Committee ap- 

 pointed to consider the subject. 

 The proceedings of this Committee 

 have received the most gracious 

 ai^proval of His Imx)erial Majesty, 



Letter from Minister of Finance to 

 the Board of Administration of 

 the Russian- American Company. 

 Written from St. Petersburg, Sep- 

 tember 4, 1624. 



The communication of the 12th 

 June, 1824, presented to me by the 

 Directors of the Company, contain- 

 ing their remarks on the conse- 

 quences which may result from the 

 ratification of the Convention con- 

 cluded 5th April, 1824, between our 

 Court and the North American Ee- 

 j)ublic, was communicated by me 

 at that time in the original to the 

 Minister in charge of the Ministry 

 of Foreign Affairs. Having now 

 received from him the information 

 that the recorded Protocol of the 

 proceedings of the Special Com- 

 mittee which examiuecl this subject 



