necessity of it. It cannot, therefore, be too earnestly recommended to all the States to concur with the State of New York in giving to Congress full power to make treaties of commerce, and, in short, to govern all our external commerce; for I really believe it must come to that; whether prohibitions or high duties will be most politic is a great question. Duties may be laid which will give a clear advantage to our navigation and seamen, and these would be laid by the States upon the recommendations of Congress, no doubt, as soon as the principle is admitted that it is necessary that our foreign commerce should be under one direction. You will easily infer from all this that I have no hopes of a treaty before next spring; nor then, without the most unanimous concurrence of all our States in vigorous measures, which shall put out of all doubt their power and their will to retaliate.

With great esteem, I am, &c.,

JOHN ADAMS.

Sir,

FROM JOHN ADAMS TO JOHN JAY.

Grosvenor Square, Westminster, July 29, 1785.

I have the honor to enclose a copy of a letter to the Marquis of Caermarthen, of the 14th July, (another of the 27th,) with a project of a declaration concerning the construction of an armistice; and another of this date, with a project of a treaty of commerce. It is high time something should be done to turn the attention of the Administration to the relation between this country and the United States; and it seemed most advisable to lay the project of a treaty directly before the Ministry, rather than first negotiate the appointment of any other Minister to treat with me than the Marquis of Caermarthen himself. If I had first proposed the appointment of a Minister, they would have procrastinated the business for six months, and perhaps twelve, before I could have communicated anything to them; now they can have no excuse. The offer is made, and hereafter they may repent of their error if they do not accept it, or something nearly like it immediately. I am very sensible it will greatly embarrass the Administration, because most of them, I believe, are sensible that some such treaty must be one day agreed to, and that it would be wise to agree to it now; but they are afraid of

oppositions from many quarters. I must not, however, disguise my real sentiments. The present Ministry are too much under the influence of Chalmers and Smith, and others of that stamp, and have been artfully drawn into so many manifestations of a determination to maintain their navigation laws relative to the United States, and of a jealousy of our naval powers, small as it is, that I fear they have committed themselves too far to recede. Their Newfoundland act, as well as their proclamations, and the fourth of their Irish propositions, are in this style. I have no expectation that the proposed treaty will be soon agreed to, nor that I shall have any counter project, or indeed any answer for a long time. It is very apparent that we shall never have a satisfactory arrangement with this country until Congress shall be made, by the States, supreme in matters of foreign commerce, and treaties of commerce, and until Congress shall have exerted that supremacy with a decent firm

ness.

I am, with great esteem, &c.,

JOHN ADAMS.

FROM JOHN ADAMS TO LORD CAERMARTHEN.

Grosvenor Square, July 14, 1785.

My Lord, The twenty-second article of the preliminary treaty of peace between Great Britain and France, signed on the 20th of January, 1783, is in these words, viz: "In order to prevent all causes of 'complaint and dispute which may arise on account of prizes that 'may be taken at sea, after the signing of these preliminary articles, it is reciprocally agreed, that the vessels and effects which may be 'taken in the channel and in the north seas, after the space of twelve 'days, to be computed from the ratification of those preliminary 'articles, shall be restored on each side. That the term shall be one 'month from the channel and the north seas, as far as the Canary ‹ Islands, inclusively, whether in the ocean or in the Mediterranean; 'two months from the said Canary Islands, as far as the said 'equinoctial line or equator; and, lastly, five months in all other 'parts of the world, without any exception or any other distinction 'more particular of time and place."

In the preliminary articles of peace between Great Britain and Spain, a cessation of hostilities was stipulated in the same manner. VOL. II.-26

On the same twentieth of January, it was agreed between the Minister Plenipotentiary of his Britannic Majesty on the one part, and the Ministers Plenipotentiary of the United States of America on the other, that the subjects, citizens, and possessions of both Powers should be comprised in the suspension of arms abovementioned, and that they should consequently enjoy the benefits of the cessation of hostilities at the same periods, and in the same manner, as the three crowns aforesaid, and their subjects and possessions respectively. It appears, however, that many vessels which were taken after the expiration of one month from the 3d of February, 1783, the day of the ratification of the said preliminary articles, within that part of the ocean which lies between the channel and north seas and the Canary Islands, have not been restored; but, on the contrary, in some instances, such vessels have been condemned as lawful prizes upon an opinion that the words "as far as," said to be used in the preliminary articles, meant the distance from Paris to the southernmost parts of the Canaries.

It must be obvious to your Lordship, that this construction is extremely foreign from the intention of the contracting parties, who never had Paris in contemplation as a boundary of the region of one month, nor as any limit of a measure of distance. The channel and north seas being expressly marked as the northern boundary, and the southernmost Canary as the southern, and every part of the ocean from the channel and north seas up to the Canary Islands, inclusively, is comprehended.

Indeed, the words "as far as" are scarcely a proper translation of the words "jusqu'aux" in the article of treaty. The original words are "depuis la manche et les mers du nord jusqu'aux Isle Canaries," and not "depuis Paris jusqu'aux Isle," &c., &c.

The intention of the contracting parties is so clear, and their expression so plain, that it is not easy to account for the misinterpretation of them; but as many law-suits are depending upon the point, and several Americans are now in London waiting the decision of them, I do myself the honor to propose to your Lordship a particular convention to determine all those controversies on both sides, by inserting the words "jusqu'à la latitude des Isles Canaries," instead of "jusqu'aux Isles Canaries;" and also the words "depuis la latitude des dites Isles Canaries," instead of "des dites Isles Canaries," it being apparent from the mention of Mediterranean,

as in the same stage of one month between the channel and north seas on the north, and the Canaries on the south, and the equinoctial line as the next stage, that the line of latitude of the southern Canary was intended.

I have the honor to be, &c.,

JOHN ADAMS.

FROM JOHN ADAMS TO LORD CAERMARTHEN.

My Lord,

Grosvenor Square, July 27, 1785.

Since the letter which I did myself the honor to write to your Lordship, relative to the construction of the armistice, I have received further information from America, which I beg leave to communicate to your Lordship.

The first judgment rendered on a mistaken interpretation of the armistice appears to have been at New York, where all American vessels taken within the second month were condemned as lawful prize by the Judge of the Admiralty. The fame of these decrees having reached Connecticut and Rhode Island, it is said that similar decrees were rendered by the inferior Courts of Admiralty there against British vessels. There is, my Lord, a Court of Admiralty in each of the United States, but by our Constitution an appeal lies from all of them to a court appointed by the United States in Congress assembled, for receiving and determining finally appeals in all cases of capture.

If the parties interested in the decrees in Connecticut and Rhode Island had appealed to the Supreme Court, those decrees would certainly have been reversed; because every cause which ever came before that court upon the point in question has been decided in favor of the British owner of the vessel; and should a declaration be now made of the true intention of the contracting parties, the British owners, against whom the decrees were rendered in Connecticut and Rhode Island, may still appeal and have justice, if the time limited is not passed; if it is, by an application to the Legislatures of those States, there is no doubt to be made that an appeal would be granted under the present circumstances, notwithstanding the lapse of time.

The decisions in the Court of Admiralty of Massachusetts and all other States have been conformable to the judgment of the Supreme

Court of Appeals; that is to say, conformable to the true intention of the armistice; and it is with pleasure that I add, the judgments of his Majesty's Court of Admiralty at Halifax have been the same

way.

The words of the armistice are supposed to be the same which have been constantly used in every treaty of peace for the last hundred years, and it is not known that there ever was before any doubt or difference of opinion concerning the construction of them. In order to establish confidence between the two countries, my Lord, it is necessary there should be mutual confidence in each other's tribunals of justice, which can hardly exist while such various interpretations are given of so plain a point by different courts in each nation.

In order to settle all disputes upon this subject upon one principle, I have the honor to propose to your Lordship that a declaration should be made in the form enclosed, or to the same effect in any other form which to your Lordship may appear more proper. With great respect, &c., JOHN ADAMS.

DECLARATION.

Whereas, by the first article of the Preliminary Treaty of Peace between the Crown of Great Britain and the Crown of France, signed at Versailles, on the twentieth of January, 1783, it was stipulated in these words, viz:

"As soon as the preliminaries shall be signed and ratified, sincere friendship shall be reëstablished between his most Christian Majesty ' and his Britannic Majesty, their Kingdoms, States, and subjects, by sea and by land, in all parts of the world. Orders shall be sent to 'the armies and squadrons, as well as to the subjects of the two 'Powers, to stop all hostilities, and to live in the most perfect union; 'to forget the past, their sovereigns showing the example, and for the 'execution of this article sea-passes shall be given on each side for 'the ships which shall be dispatched to carry the news of it to the 'possessions of the said Powers."

And by the 22d article of the same treaty it was stipulated in these words:

"In order to prevent all causes of complaint and dispute which 'may arise on account of prizes that may be taken at sea after the