348 APPENDIX TO CASE OF GREAT BRITAIN, 
[Inclosure in No. 226.—Personal.] 
Mr. Edwardes to Mr. Blaine. 
WASHINGTON, September 12, 1889. 
My Drar Mr. Braine: I should be very much obliged if you would kindly let me 
know when I may expect an answer to the request of Her Majesty’s Government, 
which Ihad the honour of communicating to you in my note of the 24th August, that 
instructions may besent to Alaska to prevent the possibility of the seizure of British 
ships in Behring’s Sea. Her Majesty’s Government are earnestly awaiting the 
314 reply of the United States Government on this subject, as the recent reports of 
seizures haying taken place are causing much excitement both in England and 
in Canada. 
I have, &e. 
(Signed) H. G. EDWARDEs. 
No. 227. 
Mr. Edwardes to the Marquis of Salishury.—( Received September 30.) 
WASHINGTON, September 19, 1889. 
My Lorp: With reference to my despatch of the 17th instant, I have 
the honour to inclose herewith to your Lordship a copy of a note which 
I have received from the Secretary of State in reply to my personal note 
of the 12th instant, in which [ inquired of him when [ might expect an 
answer to the request of Her Majesty’s Government that instructions 
may be sent to Alaska to prevent the possibility of the seizure of British 
ships in Behring’s Sea. 
Mr. Blaine states that he had supposed that his note of the 24th 
August, copy of which was inclosed in my despatch of the 26th August, 
would satisfy Her Majesty’s Government that the President was earn- 
estly desirous of coming to afriendly agreement on all matters at issue 
between the two Governments in relation to the Behring’s Sea, and that 
he had further supposed that my mention to him that Sir Julian Paunce- 
fote would be officially instructed to proceed, on his return to Washing- 
ton, to a full discussion of the question removed all necessity of a 
preliminary correspondence touching its merits. 
Mr. Blaine then goes on to say that, with reference more particularly 
to the question to which I had informed him Her Majesty’s Govern- 
ment were expecting a reply, a categorical response would have been 
and still is impracticable, unjust to the United States Government, and 
misleading to Her Majesty’s Government, and that it was therefore the 
judgment of the President that the whole question could more wisely 
be remanded to the formal discussion so near at hand, which Her 
Majesty’s Government have proposed, and to which the United States 
Government have cordially assented. 
The Secretary of State concludes by stating that he considers it 
proper to add that any instruction sent to Behring’s Sea at the time of 
my original request, namely, the 24th August, would have failed to reach 
those waters before the proposed departure of the vessels of the United 
States. 
I have, &e. 
(Signed) H. G. EDWARDES. 
