The New-Jersey gazette — Burlington [N.J.], 1783-04-23 00:00:00, page 2

Tranflafion of the PRELIMINARY ARTICLES of
PLACE, between his Britannick Majesty and
the most Christian King: Signed at Versailles
the zoth of January, 1783.
In the Name of the Most Holy Trinity.
THE King of Great-Britain, and the most Chris
tian King, equally animated with a desire of
putting an end to the calamities of a deftrudive war,
and of re-eftablilhing union and a good understand
ing between them, as necessary for the good of man
kind in general, as for that of their refpedive king
doms, states, and fubje&s, have named for this pur
pose, viz. on the part of his Britannick Majesty, Mr.
Alleyne Fitzherbert, Minister Plenipotentiary of his
said Majesty the King of Great-Britain ; and on the
part of his Most Christian Majesty, Charles Gravier
Comte de Vergennes, Counsellor in all his Coun
fek, Commander of his Orders, Counfellpr of State,
Minister and Secretary of State, and of the Com
mands and Finances of his said Majesty for the De
partment of Foreign Affairs ; who, after having duly
communicated to each other their full powers in good
form, have agreed on the following Preliminary Ar
ticles:
I. As soon as the preliminaries shall be signed
and ratified, sincere friendship shall be re-established
between his Britannick Majesty and his Most Chris
tian Majesty, their kingdoms, states, and fubjefts,
by sea and by lan#, in all parts of the world : orders
shall be sent to the armies and squadrons, as well as
to the fubjeds of the two powers, to stop all hostili
ties, and to live in the molt perfect union, forgetting
what is passed, of which their Sovereigns give them
the order and example ; and for the execution of this
article, sea-passes shall be given on each fide for the
Blips which shall be dispatched to carry the news of
it to the possessions of the said powers.
11. His Majesty the King of Great-Britain shall
preserve in full right the island of Newfoundland,
and the adjacent islands, in the fame manner as the
whole was ceded to him by the thirteenth article of
the treaty of Utrecht, save the exceptions which shall
be flipulated by the fifth article of the present treaty.
111. His Most Christian Majesty, in order to pre
vent quarrels which have hitherto arisen between the
two nations of England and France, renounces the
right of fifhing, which belongs to him by virtue of
the said article of the treaty of Utrecht, from Cape
Bonavifta to Cape St. John, situated on the Pattern
Coast of Newfoundland, in about fifty degrees of
North latitude : whereby the French fishery shall
commence at the said Cape St. John, shall go round
by the North, and going down the Western coast of
the island of Newfoundland, shall have for boundary
the place called Cape Raye, situated in 47 degrees
50 minutes latitude.
IV. The French fifhermen shall enjoy the fifhery
assigned them by the foregoing article, as they have
a right to enjoy it by virtue of the treaty of Utrecht.
V. His Britannick Majesty wiif cede, in full right
to his most Christian Majesty, the islands of St. Pierre
and Miquelon.
VI. With regard to the right of fifhing in the
gulph of St. Lawrence, the French shall continue to
enjoy it conformably to the fifth article of the treaty
of Paris.
VII. The King of Great-Britain shall restore to
France the island of St. Lucia, and shall cede and
guaranty to her that of Tobago.
VIII. The Most Christian King shall restore to
Great-Britain the islands of Grenada, and the Gre
nadines, St. Vincent's, Dominica, St. Christopher's,
Nevis and Montserrat: and the fortreffes of those
islands conquered by the arms of Great-Britain, and
by those of France, shall be restored in the fame
condition in which they were when the conquest of
them was made; provided that the term of eighteen
months, to be computed from the time of the ratifi
cation of the definitive treaty, shall be granted to the
refpedive fubjeds of the Crowns of Great-Britain
and France, who may have fettled in the said islands,
and in other places which shall be restored by the de
finitive treaty, to fell their estates, recover their debts,
and to transport their effects, and retire without be
ing retrained on account of their religion, or any
other whatever, except in cases of debt, or of cri
minal profecutioas.
IX. The King of Great-Britain shall cede and
guaranty in full right to his Most Christian Majesty,
the river of Senegal and its dependencies, with the
forts of St. Louis, Podor, Galam, Arguin and Por
tendie: His Britannick Majesty shall restore likewise
the island of Goree, which shall be given up in the
condition in which it was when the British arms took
possession of it.
X. The Most Christian King shall, on his fide,
guarantee to his Majesty the King of Great-Britain,
the possession of Fort James, and ofthe river Gambia.
XI. In order to prevent all difeuffion in that
part of the world, the two courts shall agree, either
by the definitive treaty, or by a separate aft, upon
the boundaries to be fixed to their respective posses
sions. The gum trade shall be carried on in future,
as the English and French nations carried it on before
the year 1755.
XII. In regard to the rest ofthe coasts of Africa, the
fubjeds of both powers shall continue to frequent
them, according to the custom which has prevailed
hitherto.
XIII. The King of Great-Britain shall restore to his
Molt Christian Majesty all the eltablifhments which
belonged to him at the commencement of the present
war on the coast of Orixa, and in Bengal, with li
berty to surround Chandenagor with a ditch for drain
ing the waters; and his Britannick Majesty engages
to take such measures as may be in his power, for
securing to the fubjedts of France in that part of In
dia, as also on the coasts of Orixa, Coromandel and
Malabar, a fafe, free, and independent trade, such
as was carried on by the late French Eall-India Com
pany, whether it be carried on by them as individu
als, or as a Company.
XIV. Pondicherry, as well as Karrical, shall like
wise be restored and guarantied to France; and his
Britannick Majesty shall procure to serve as a depen
dency round Pondicherry, the two diftridts of Vala
nour and Banour; and as a dependency round Kar
rical, the four contiguous Magans.
XV. France shall again enter into possession of
Mahe, and of the Comptoir at Surat ; and the French
shall carry on commerce in this part of India, con
formably to the principles laid-down in the thirteenth
article of this treaty.
XVI. In case France has allies in India, they fliall
be incited, as well as those of Great-Britain, to ac
cede to the present pacification ; and for that pur
pose, a term of four months, to be computed from
the day on which the proposal shall be made to them,
fliall be allowed them to make their decision ; and
in cafe\of refufal on their part, their Britannick and
Most Christian Majeflies agree not to give them any
assistance, directly or indiredly, against the British
or French possessions, or against the ancient possessi
ons of their refpedive allies ; and their said Majesties
shall offer them their good offices towards a mutual
accommodation.
XVII. The King of Great-Britain, desirous of giv
ing his Most Christian Majesty a sincere proof of re
conciliation and friendfllip, and of contributing to
the solidity of the peace which is on the point of be
ing re-established, with content to the abrogation
and suppression of all the articles relative to Dun
kirk, from the treaty of peace concluded, at Utrecht
in 1713, inclusively, to this time.
XVIII. By the definitive treaty, all those which
have existed till now between the two high contrast
ing parties, and which shall not have been derogated
from, either by the said treaty, or by the present
preliminary treaty, shall be renewed and confirmed ;
and the two courts fliall name commissioners to en
quire into the state of commerce between the two
nations, in order to agree upon new arrangements
of trade, on the footing of reciprocity and mutual
convenience. The said two courts shall together
amicably fix a competent term for the duration of
that business.
XIX. All the countries and territories which may
have been or which may be conquered, in any part
of the world whatsoever, by the arms of his Britan
nick Majesty, or by those of his Most Christian Ma
jesty, and which are not included in the present ar
ticles, shall be restored without difficulty, and with
out requiring compensation.
XX. As it is necessary to assign a fixed epoch for
the reftitutiohs, and the evacuations to be made by
each of the high contrasting parties, it is agreed,
that the King of Great Britain shall cause to be eva
cuated the islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon, three
months after the ratification of the definitive treaty,
or sooner if it can be done; St. Lucia, in the Welt-
Indies, and Goree, in Africa, three months after the
ratification of the definitive treaty, or sooner if it can
be done. The King of Great-Biitain shall, in like
manner, at the end of three mouths, after the rati
fication of the definitive treaty, or sooner if it can
be done, enter again into possession of the islands of
Grenada, the Grenadines, St. Vincent, Dominica,
St. Christophers, Nevis, and Montserrat.
France shall be put in possession of the towns and
comptoirs which are restored to her in the East-In
dies, and of the territories which are procured for
her, to serve as dependencies roundsPondicherry,
and round Karrical, fix months after the ratification
of the definitive treaty, or sooner if it can be done.
France fliall, at the end of the fame term of fix
months, restore the towns and territories which her
arms may have taken from the Englilh, or their al
lies, in the East-Indies.
In consequence whereof, the necessary orders shall
be sent by each of the high contrasting parties, with
reciprocal passports for the ships which fliall carry
them, immediately after the ratification of the defi
nitive treaty.^
XXI. The prisoners made refpedively by the arms
of his Britannick Majesty, and his Most Christian
Majesty, by land and by sea, fliall be restored reci
procally and bona fide, immediately after the ra
tification of the definitive treaty, without ransom,
and on paying the debts they may have contrasted
during their captivity ; and each crown shall relpec
tively reimburse the funis which shall have been ad
vanced for the subsistence and maintenance of their
prisoners, by the Sovereign of the country where they
shall have been detained, according to the receipts
and attested accounts, and other authentick titles,
which fliall be produced on each fide.
XXII. In order to prevent all canfes of complaint
and dispute, which may arise on account of prizes
which may be made at sea after the fignirg of these
preliminary articles, it is reciprocally agreed, that
the vessels and effects which may be taken in the Chan
nel, and in the North Seas, after the space of twelve
days, to be computed from the ratification of the
present preliminary articles, shall be restored on both
lides,
That the term shall be one month, from the Chan
nel, and the North Seas, as far as the Canary islands,
inclusively, whether in the Ocean or in the Medi
terranean. Two months, from the said Canary
islands, as far as the Equinoctial line, or Equator.
And lastly, five months in all other parts of the
world, without any exception, or any other parti
cular description of time and place.
XXIII. The ratifications of the present preliminary
articles shall be expedited in good and due form, and
exchanged in the space of one month, or sooner if it
can be done, to be computed from the day of the
signature of the present articles.
In witness whereof, we the underwritten Ministers
Plenipotentiary of his Britannick Majesty, and
of his Most Christian Majesty, by virtue of our
respective full powers, have signed the present
preliminary articles, and have caused the seal of
our arms to be put thereto.
Done at Versailles, the 20th day of Jan. 1783,
ALLEYNE FITZHERBERT, (L. S.)
GRAVIER DE VERGENNES, (L. S.)
TRENRO N, April 23.
Saturday last His Excellency the Governor of
the state, accompanied by the Hon. the Vice-Pre
sident, and a number of the gentlemen of this town,
let out, on his way tohis feat near Elizabeth- Town:
Previous to his departure the inhabitants waited on
His Excellency, and by their committee appointed
for that purpose presented to him the following ad
dress :
May it please your Excellency,
THE inhabitants .of Trenton and the vicinity,
animated with the most sincere joy, beg leave to
congratulate your Excellency on the full eftablilh
ment'of the Independence of America, and the ac
complishment of a glorious Peace. Our acknow
ledgments to those decided and persevering patri
ots who have, by their exertions and their fuffer
ings, been instrumental, under Providence, in pro
curing these blessings, are, we assure your Excel
lency, no less sincere than our joy ; and we Ihould
confider ourselves as wanting in a proper expression
of them, if we omitted this occasion of manifefting
our high refped for your character and virtues as a
distinguished patriot, and upright, zealous magistrate.
We recoiled, with pleasure and veneration, that
when the helm of state was committed to your
hands, at an %rly period of the revolution, you ac
cepted, with firmnefs, the perilous station; and
when the storm encreafed and raged with the great
est violence, we have seen you persevering in the
face of every danger and difeouragement, till we
have happily arrived in the haven of Peace, Liberty
and Independence. We cannot omit our thanks
for the affability and attentions we have experienced
from your Excellency during your residence in this
place, which have called forth our unfeigned esteem
for your private and social virtues; and our sincere
regret at your departure would be still greater
did we not relied that it restores ,you to that do
meftick felicity which you have been so long obliged
to facrifice to the pdblick welfare. With these sen
timents of gratitude and affedion, fitting, we truss,
for freemen to express, and for the firft magistrate
of a free people to hear, we wish a long continu
ance of dqmpftick and pei fonal happiness to your
Excellency, the warm attachment of a generous and
grateful people, " the testimony of a good consci
ence," and the favours of indulgent Heaven.
In behalf of the inhabitants,
Elihu Spencer, J
Isaac Smith,
John Cox, , Committee.
Sam. W. Stockton, |
Wm. C. Houston,J
To which His Excellency was pleased to returq
the following Answer:
Gentlemen,
YOU do me great honour by your very po
lite and friendly address, for which I return you
my most hearty thanks.
I have never been fond of parade, nor courted
applause ; but when men of sense; when true pa
triots ; when those who have distinguished them
selves in our late arduous conflict, approve of the
publick condud of men in eminent stations, such ap
plause cannot fail of imparting zeal and heart-felt
fatisfadion. It produces this effect in the breast of
every man of sensibility, because, (where flattery is
not to be presumed, and republicans mould scorn
to flatter) it ought to be regarded as an additional
testimony to that of his own confeioufnefs of the
reditude of his intentions, whatever errors he may,
through human frailty, or the singular difficulty of
the times, have involuntarily committed.
I most sincerely join you, gentlemen, with heart
and with voice, in your exultations on the foil
eftaoliihment of the Independence of America, ^nd