The enquirer — Richmond, Va., 1810-12-20 00:00:00, page 2

iVr. Pinkney to Air Smith.
London, Aug. 14, 1810.
SIR,
As lord Wellesley still withheld his
long expected answer to tr.y note of the 30ih
of April, respecting the British blockades
anterior to the Berlin decree, ami his wi it
ten overture u» the case of the Chesapeake.
I sent him on the 8tl. inst. a letter, of which
a copy is enclosed. No importunity had be
fore been spared, which it became me to
use.
I need not trouble yon with comments on
the obvious unwillingness of this government
to touch the first mentioned subject, or any
thing connected with its principles and prac.
lice lesptctiug blockades, or with the svs
tern of tiie orders in council. Justice anil
policy both invite il to give the declaration,
which 1 have required; and certainly no
thing hits been omitted, an my p at, to induce
it intake that course. 1 fear, howevet, that
the declaration will be declined ; unless
Inuctd^ lord Welhsley should continue
to evade my application, b\ returning i.o
fenswer to it—a new practice, 1 think, which,
little to be commended us it is, must I
presume, if persisted in here, be reciproca.
lull in America.
It is truly surprising, that, in the case ot
the Chesapeake, there should he the same
backwardness. I can conjecture no motive
for this hesitation to propose, in writ
ing terms arranged in conference be
tween lord Wellesley and myself, in an af
fair which it is the manifest interest of Eng
land to settle as soon as possible. It is now
nlinnst six weeks since lord Wellesley Last
assured inc (as he had before more than
once assured me,) that lie would put me in
possession of j's formal overture in this ca-e
Immediately. He knows that you have been
made officially acquainted with that assm
ance ; for 1 thought it advisea'ole to submit
to his perusal, before it was transmitted,
•(for the purpose principally of avoiding
misunderstandings) uiy short letter to you,
ot the 6ih of last month, which states, that
“ in the business of the Chesapeake, he will
.stM-iie to me in a few days,” ami further, that
in that lidsinesj, *• I do not expect any diftir
•culty ”
There cm be rvo misconception a3 to the
.terms to be offered ; for besides that they
were stated with great precision, in the con
feirnce alluded to, in my letier to you. of
the 6th ultimo, as well as in general ante
Xedent imerviews. I wrote lord Wellesley,
the day after that c* nference. a firivute
note of which a copy is transmitted, enclos
ir.g a memorandum in pencil of the terms
tvnich (exclusive of any further mark of
displeasure to admiral Berkeley, very deci
dcclly discouraged by lord Wellesley) “ had
b< en s)x>ken of, in our different conversati
ons as fit to be proposed.” I do not find,
that I retained any copy of the memorandum
fo pencil ; but the terms (agreeing in sub
stance- with those to which 1 informed you,
in my letter of the 13 ft June last, lord
Wellesley tiad sto objection.) were to this ef
fect.
1. The overture to con ain such a recital,
'Or staten ent, as is found in Mr, E'skine’s
fetter to you of the 1/ih of April, 18c9. of
the prompt disavowal, b\ his Britannic ma
jiesty, of the unauthorised act of his naval
officer, whose recall, as a mark of the
king’s displeasure, from a highly important
and honorable command, immediately ensu
ed;
2. To offer, without any reservation, tfie
restoration of the men to the shift from
'which they were forcibly taken.
3 To oiler, without any reservation, and
Cs a fart of the terms of inter national ad
fusiment, a suitable pecuniary provision for
the families of the persons slain in the at
(sc.k, and for the wounded survivors.
It was, moreover understood, that the pa
pt r, |Jruilt:i iiig tiicac iCi'iiiS, Wouiil fjOi Cun,*
tain the allusions, which have heretofore oc
Cas oned embarrassment ; that the whole
affair would be made to take the most friend
ly c' aracter ; and that I should beat liber.,
ty to express, in my reply.to the overture,
if I thought fit. the expectation of my gov_
ernment as to the further punishment of ad
roiral Berkeley.
1 ought to add. that, in all my con versa.,
tions with lord Wellesley, on the case of the
■Chesapeake, he lias, shown, not only a dis
position, but a wish to accommodate it, &
that I am thciefore the m« le astonished at
the delay which has taken place.
In a lew days I intend to renew my efforts
to bring this matter to a Conclusion, and to
obtain an answer of some sort to iny letter of
the 30th of April. I am sufficiently inclin
ed t»* present a strong p iper upon these sub
jects; but, in the actual posture of affairs,&
in the absence of such instructions from you,
as would countenance such a step. I think
it iny duty to forbear a little longer.
it h not impossible. that lord vvellesley’s
back wardness, to close tlu* case of the Cites
apeake, with me, may arise front a desire,
that .1 should be adjusted in America, thro’
the ntw minister. If this were so, howe_
ever, he could have no inducement to con
ceal it from me, since he is aw..re that I
have always entertained the same desire.
When 1 see him I will advert to this. J am
not yet able to say, positively, who the new
minister will be. k >» d —- - —, and some
otfu rs are spoken of. Lord Wellesley has
given no other written information, on the
subject, than is contained in his letter of the
£2d ultimo, already communicated to you.
His verbal information has been to the same
effect, with this addition, that he retained
Iiis opinion, (mentioned in my official letter
to you of the 4th of January last.) that the
Tr.itaster to America ought to be a man of
rank As far as may be prudent, I shall
not fail to do all that is in my power to ex.
indite the appointment.
The letter from general Armstrong to
•which my letter, cf the 8th inst. to lord
Wellesley alludes, is dated ti.e 24th of Ju •
ly ; and expresses his wish, that the de
claration nt the British government, con
cerning the blockades, may be obtained and
forwarded without delay.
I have the honor to be, tkc. &c.
(.Signed)
\VM PINKNEY.
Hon. Jlobcrt Smith, itfc- is'*.
Mr. Pinkney to Mr. Smith:
London, Aug. 18, 1810,
81R,
l enclose the Times neflrspnper of this
inoriin g containing a copy of a i'rtnch fit-..
( . e of the 5'.h inst. a nil nf a letter, of the
same <’ate from ’ the French minister fm
foitign affairs to general Ancsirot g. The
I:>s- is a to st important paper ; oi which,
7 In pe to receive, without «*< lay, an ol7ici.il
ComniuniCa'fon.
1 h ”e the hoDor to be, &c.
V
\VM, PINKNEY,
/ •. P.obert Hn.ilh, Ufc. t?c. Ufe.
' Xfr. Piftlcnttj tt> *1 fr. Smith. ' \
London, August 21 181(7.
SIR,
I have just received a communication
from General Armstrong, dated the Cth
uist. announcing the absolute revocation of
the Berlin and Milan decrees ; and have
in consequence, sent a note to lord Welles.,
ley, requesting to see him Lord Welles
ley is out nfftown, but will, it is said, return
to night or to morrow morning.
General Armstrong has not transmitted
«nv copy of tho official notice, mentioned ir.
his letter ; but 1 presume, it is the sanru
with that published in >he Mopiteur of the
9th, ot which 1 am in possession, and with
which the quotation, iu gen. Armstrong’s
letter, agrees.
I do not know, whether bis construction
of that document will be thought here to be
liable to any objections. I think it impos
sible, however, that, upon any in erpretation
of it, this government can hesitate to repeal
its orders in council.
A copy of General Armstrong’s letter to
me is inclosed.
I have the honor to be. 8cc,
(Signed)
WM PINKNEY.
tion. nober: Smith, i?c. a c ere.
Cufiy of General Jlrms'rong'a letter to
Air. Pinkney
Paris, August 6, 1810.
Slit.
I have the honor to Inform you, that his
majesty the Emperor and king, has been
pleased to revoke his decrees of Berlin and
Milan. Of this ineresting fact, I had this
morning a written and official notice, in the
following words, viz : “ Je sols autorise a
vnus declarer, monsieur, que les decrets de
Berlin et de Milan sont revoques. et, qu’a
duter du ler Novenibre, ilscesseront d’avoir
lem effe’ .*’•
Sincetelv hoping, that you may be able
to turn this circumstance to some useful
account, I forward it per triplicate, and am,
sir, with very gteat respect, your most obc
dient and verv humble servant,
(Signed)
JOHN ARMSTRONG.
If E. William Pinkney.
General .Armstrong- to Air. Pinkney.
Paris, August 7. 1810.
SIR. b
I hazarded a line or two yesterday, by
the way of Morlaix, merely to inform you,
that .he imperial decrees ot Berlin and Mi
lan were at last given up. I now send
you by a more direct conveyance, a copy of
the Duki ot Cadore’s letter to me of theSih
inst. ; aiid am, sir.
W':h verv great respect, &c.
(Signed)
JOHN ARMSTRONG.
JVilliam Pinkney tisy. etc. etc. etc.
Extract oj a letter from Air. Pinkney to
Mr. Smith.
“ LondoS Friday. 24ih Aug 1810.
** 1 transmit a copv of my answer, form,
ed upon your recent instructions, to Lord
Wellesley’s notification of the blockade of
Corfou. Is it not worthy reflection, whether
ian attempt to blockade an entire sea like
du Adriatic, should not be prorested against,
whatever may be the force employed in
closing the passage to it ?”
(COPY.)
From Mr. Pinkney to Lord Wellesley
Great Cumberland Place,
August 21, 1810.
Mr Lord,
I have had the honor ro receive your
official note of the 8th inst. communicating
the resolution of the British gorernment to
establish a blockade of the canal of Corfou,
and shall not fail to transmit a copy of it,
nr'i11• o3 iattiC uClaj* as pOSSiblc, tO ti'iC* 3C
, cretary of state, of the U. S
In the mean time I take the liberty, in
pursuance of the sentiments of the Presi
dent, heretofore signified to me, to observe
to your Lordship that4 as a blockade essen_
tially implies a force on the spot for the
purpose, and as the notification required in
the case must be a warning to the neutral
traders of the fact that a blockade exists,
the communication ywhich your lordship has
made to me, derive* its title to the acknow
ledgments of the U S. from the supposition
that it was meant as a friendly premonition,
which, though imposing of itself no legal
restraint on neutrals, nor inducing any pe
nal consequences, might usefully influence
the course, of their mercantile expeditions.
In this sense the communication will be re
ceived by the President, as amaik of hat
ft iendly attention which ought in all cases
' to be reciprocally maintained, and in this
sense the President will be the more dispo
i sed to regard the communication, as a dif
1 ferent one would contradict the definition
j of a blockade, and of the t quisitc notifica.
lion thereof, contained in the orders of the
British government to commodore Hood &
, the judges of the vice-admiralty courts, us
communic ed to the American govern,
merit by Mr, Merry, on the 12th of April,
1304
I have the honor to be, &c.
(Signed;
WM. PINKNEY.
The moat noble the Marquis
Wellesley, Ifc. &c. Isfc.
Mr. Pinkney to Mr. Smith.
London, Aug. 29, 1810
sin,
I dined yesterday with lord Wellesley, &
found that he had only re’orned to town m
the morning. He still complained of indis„
position ; but it certainly Could not be con.
side-red as unfitting him for business. In a
short conversation before dinner, he told
me that my note respecting the Berlin and
Milan decrees should be mentioned to his
| colleagues to day, and that I should have
an immediate answer ; that the affair of
the Chesapeake “ would be settled to my
satisfaction that he believed he . should
recommend to the king the appointment ol
a minister plenipotentiary to the U. S. ei
th(-r this week or tin- next ; ‘that he had
two persons in his eye, (both men of high
rank) but that lie could not with propriety
name them to me at present. As tar as the
opportunity permitted, luigrd promptitude
on all these subjects as indispensable, and
expressed my confidence that ihey would
! be disposed of in season for the approach,
it.g meeting of Congress.
You perceive that, notwithstanding past
promises, nothing has yc« been done, and
that there is no scCuri y that we shall have
any thing but promises. I am truly disgust.
* Translation—•* / am authorised
to drr/are 'o you. *ir, that the decrees of
Herltn and Milan arc revoked, and, that
njivr the firm of A ovember they vstll cease
! .0 have ejf cci.”
t&5. wtCFt tttfS 7 m*fi wonVS, if I follotvrtl rzf
own inclination, pm a speedy end to it. It
is bettet, however, to do nothing of an irri
taiiug nature, until this government has had
full tune to act upon my note of the 25th.
Even if it should decline to repeal the or
ders in council, (which I am told is quite
possible) a moderate course on nv part will
have the recommendation of putting it more
clearly in the wrong. If it ahou/d decline
to repeal, the President fcnay be assuttd.
that I will not fail to present such a paper,
as conduct so extraordinary will demand ;
and if further delays are affected, that 1
shall remonstrate in veiy decided terms.
I have the honor to be, See.
(Signed)
WM, PINKNEY.
Hon. Robert Smith.
[Here fallows Mr. Pinkney's communi
cation co Lord IVcllesley on the repeal of
the Berlin and Milan decrees, and the
Marquis Wellesley's reply thereto, pub
lished in the Enquirer of ttie 23d October
last.]
Mr. Pinkney to Gen, .'frtnstront*.
London*. Sep. 3d. 1810.
SIR,
I received yesterday, from lord Welles
ley. an answer, dated the 31st of last month,
to my note of the 25th, in which 1 commit
nicated to him the purport of your letter to
me of the 6th, respecting tile Berlin and
Milan decrees ; and I hasten to put you in
possession (by a special messenger) of a co..
py of each of those papers, to be used ac
cording to your discretion
It is extremely desirable that I should
have, without loss of time, the benefit of
such reflections upon this answer as you may
be disposed to favor me with, and of such
iuformation,calculated to regulate my course
with regard to it, as your local position may
enable you to furnish. ,
Your letters of the 6th and 7th ultimo con,,
cur in representing, (witn perfect propriety,
I think) that the revocation of the Berlin
and Milan decrees is to take effect absolute
ly after the 1st of November, and I have so
put it to the British government. , .You will
let me know if any error (which I do not
in the least suspect) has been discovered in
'his representation, cr if it is necessary thht
the subject should he brought before this
government in any other form than hat
which, looking to your representation, I have
chosen.
You will perceive that the pledge contain
ed in Lord Wellesley's answer, is referred
to the period when the repeal of the French
edicts shall have actually taken effect and
the commerce of neutral nations shall have
been restored to the condition in which those
edicts found it. In case there is nothing e
quivocal in these last expressions, the pledge
is, I presume, sufficient for the. present, if
the recal of the French decrees does not
depend on a condition precedent, as some
have supposed. If, on the other hand, it is
understood that, before the French repeal
is to take effect, namely, before the 1st or
2d of November, G. B. must revoke her or
ders in council, so that the orders shall cease
to operate at the same momenc with the
decrees ; or, if it should be understood that
the British blockades to which France ob
jects (that of May, 1806, for example.)
must be recalled, or declared not to be in
force, before the same period ; then un
doubtedlv the pledge is nothing ff the
pledge is sufficient, we have only*to let the
matter rest until November : If it is insuf
ficient, I cannot be too soon employed in
taking a new course. I ought to mention
however, that I am now preparing a note to
lord Wellesley to be presented in a few
days, concerning the blockades. Tins step
is proper, and I think, indispensable, whe
ther the revocation of the decrees of France j
depends upon those blockades being put cut
of the way or not.
Begging you to let me hear from you as
soon as convenient, I am, sir. with great res
pect and consideration, your most obedient, j
humble servant,
(Signed)
Wm. PINKNEY.
Mr. Pinkney to Mr. Smith.
London, Sefit 4th, 1810.
SIR,
I have just received your letters by Lieu.,
tenant Spence. Their dates are as follows:
17th July, 1810; 5th July, (original and du
plicate); 2d ]uly, (original and duplicate);
50th June, (original and duplicate); 16ih
June, (duplicate, the original had been re
ceived before ;) 13th June, (duplicate, the
original had already been i eceived.)
I have only time to add, that the repeal
of the French decrees, (as communicated to
me by general Armstrong,) and the reply
of lord Wellesley, of the "1st ultimo, to my
communication on that subject, do not appear 1
to me to take away the necessity of execu
ting the instructions contained in your letters
of the 2d and5:h of July relative to the Bri
tish blockades, although they may affect
the manner of executing those instructions.
The note which 1 intend to present on this
occasion, will be ready in a day or two, and
shall he sent in immediately.
I have the honor to he, &c. 8cc.
YVM. PINKNEY.
P S Lord Wellesley sent me h message
yesterday, through Mr. Hamilton, that, if
I still wished to see him on the subject of
my late communication, he would receive
me to_day I replied that I had'no wish to
see him, on that subject ; but that it might
be necessary to write him a note up n it
hereafter. I mean to confine myself as much
as possible to written mterc urse with lord
Wellesley.
WM PINKNEY.
Air. Pinkney to Air. Smith
London, 7th Srfu. 1810.
SIR,
It has been supposed here, that the no
tification of a blockade of the *• Canal of
Corfou,” t>n the 18.h of last month, was in
tended to close the Adriatic ; nntl the Eng
lish newspapers, as you will have perceiv
ed, so represented it In rny letter to you
of the 20th ult. communicating a copy of that
,notification, I have adopted this constructi
on, which now appears to he erroneous.—
The M Catial,” to which the notificition is
now understood to apply, is the narrow pits
sage to the eastward of Corfou.
I have the honor to be,
With great consideration, sir,
Your most obedient humble servt.
(Signed) WM. PINKNEY.
Robert Smith, i*c. ifc. cfc.
Mr. Pinkney in Mr. Smith.
London, 15th Sc fit, 1810.
I SIR.
I *end enclosed, a ropy of a second f^t
Iter, which I have written to lord Wellesley,
I respecting the htopp.ige oi Auiencuu vessel!, i
ttftfhpting to Soun8: together with
a eopv ot the pYo»eM of the m ister ofhhe
American ship “ Alert,” mentioned in that
letter which is well entitled to your atten
tion.
1 have the honor to he. &c
(Signed) WM. PINKNEY.
i*tr Pinkney to Lord llrvHealey.
CjRKAT CVM PtltLAND PLAGE,. .
I5iu September, 1810.
>‘Y LORD
III u.y note of the 1st inst. I had the honor
to inform your Lordship, ihat it iiad been
slated to me, in a letter from Gottenburgh,
that in consequence At' some misconception
of the effect of the order for establishing a
blockade of Elsinore in May last. American
vc'Stls had recently been prevented from
passing the Sound, by the English naval
farce in that quarter ; and I requested, that
if this statement v.ras correct, sucli eaplana.
tions might be transmitted to the British
commander us might, at least, confine the
blockade in question to the port against
which it had been professedly instituted.
As I have not received any answer to that
note, and consequently do not know whether
any order has been given to remove the in.
ierrup ion which it mentions i fieri it to be
necessary, to lay before your Lordship, the
enclosed original protest of the master of the
American ship 44 Alert,” which appears to
establish the existence of that interruption
in a form as exceptionable as it could pos
sibly assume.
# ^ hat ever may be the ground upon which
sir James Saumarez has thought fit to issue
his orders, to close the passage of tue Sound
to American vessels, returning in the pro
secution of a lawful trade t » the U. S. or
proceeding in a contrary direction, your
lordship will, I am persuaded, thick with
me. that u.y government has a fair claim to
lie made acquainted, either through me or
through such other channel, as your lord
ship may deem more proper with tlip in
tentions of the Briiish government on the
subject.
Before I conclude this letter, I must call
your lordship’s attention to the particular
circums'ances of the case, which has mainly
produced it, and to the redress which those
circumstances plainly require
. 1 lie ** Alert” has been seized and sent to
England, by the - Africa,” fi r salvage. —
Tne peril from which she was saved, it she
was saved from any peril, was created by
the injustice ol the capturing vessel, in turn
ing her from the regular course oi lier home
ward voyage.. .
That the commander of the “ Africa,” or
those under whom h« acted, should be reil
pousible to the utmost lor the loss occasion
ed by that injustice, seems to be perfectly
reasonable ; but it is difficult to imagine, in
what way he can expect, to derive from it
a right to inflame the loss for his own ad
vantage. I trust, that the attempt will be
repiessed in a suitable manner, and that, in
puce of salvage to be paid by the injured
neutral, compensation will, in some n ode
or other, be awarded to him for the damages
he has been made to sustain.
The impressmeut on board the ** Alert”
of four American seamen by the “ Africa,”
cannut be passed unnoticed. This abuse
could not fail to be interesting under anv
circumstances ; but on this occasion, (sup
posing .he enclosed narrative to be true) it!
is not only characterised by an utter disre
g ud ot the rights of the American covern I
uunt, and by the oppression of its citizens,
but is practised under a shew of friendly '
protection, and aggravated by every practi
cal wrong wincu could well bu associated
with it
I have the honor to be, &c. Sec. Sec.
(Signed)
WM. I’INKNEY
Mr P nknry to Lord Wellesley.
Great v.u?iB£,HLANn Place,
bt-p. 21, 1810.
Mv Lord
On the 30th of April iast, I haci
the honor .o address a note to your loru
ship, in which, upon the inducements which
i. stated 1 took the liberty to inqune, wtie
liter there was any o6jection on the par. ol
his majesty’s government, to a revocation,
or to a declaration that thiy were no luiigv i
m mree, of the Htitisa blockades ot France
of a date anterior to the Berlin decree.
in a second note of the 23d ol June, I hud
the honor to recal your lordship’s attention
to that enquirj, and toadd, that my govern
ment expected from me a communication
upon it. And on the 8th of August, it was
again brought to your lordship’s i ecollection,
in the same mode. It was moreover menti
oned in seveial conversations, alter the de
liver, of my fi stnme, whrch had, in lac,
been preceded by verbal explanations on my
part, as well as uy an abortive Correspm
deuce in writing, .o which some of ihose ex
planations were preparatory
Ii 1 had been so foitunate as to obtain for
my hitherto unauthorised inquiry, the notice i
which I had Hattercd myself it might re
ceive, and to which I cer.ainly thought it
was recommended by the plainest conside
rations of policy and justice, it would not,
perhaps, have been necis->aiy for me to trou
Ole jour lordship with this letter, the pur j
pose of which is, in very lew words, to re ■
mind his majesty's government, in put so-j
ance of my mstructi ns, of the sentiments
and expectations of tne government ot the 1
United States, respec mg such British
b ockades as that which my inquiry princi i
pally regaided,
'1 hose s' aliments ami expec aliens are so
wel. explained in two le tcts. from Mr. .*>e
cretaty Madison, ot the 27,,li Oc .ber, 1803,
to Mr Thornton, and of the 3 i ol June. 1806,
to Mr. Merry, that very little rm>re is re
quired, in the execution of my instructions
on this occasion, than tha* I shou d refer your
lordship to the copies of those letteis which
are herewith transmitted
Your lordship will perceive, that the
strong and conclusive objections, in law and
reason, to be found in those papers, (especi
ally in the first, which was occasioned by a
communication from the British consul at
New York of a notice from commodore
Hood, in July, 1803, that the islands ot Mar
Unique and Gmldaloupe wi re, and tor some
time had been blockaded.) apply to several
blockades which G. B. has lately pretended
to establish ; but in a particular manner to j
that of May, 1806, (from the fcjlbc to Brest i
inclusive;) to that, in the spring of 1808,
ol the whole Gland of Zealand, and to that
in March, 1809, of the Isles of Mauritius and I
Bourbon.
The government of th»- U.S. can discover I
no just foundation tor these and similar at
tempts to block ade entire Coasts, by notifir.a
lions with which the tact has no cotrcspon
deuce I views them as unwarrantable
prohibitions ol intercourse rather than reg.
ular bl >tkadis ; nn»! as resembling in all
then essential qualities, the cx,liavrci,narj
decrees end orders, which fov the last f. bv
years, have nearly obliterated e very 11 ;tvo
of the public law of the world, and discon
rafted by menaces of hostile interruption,
and pursued with seizure and Confiscation,
the fairest and most innocent trade of neutral
merchants.
It may now be hoped that those decrees
and orders are about to disappear forever ;_
and 1 think I may presume that, as my gov.,
eminent expects, no block tile, like that of -
May, 1806. will survive them.
Your lordship has informed me, in a re***
cent note, that it is “his majesty’s earnest •
desire to see the commerce of the world tf
stored to that freedom which is necessary
for its prosperity.” Audi cannot supp.s'b.
that this freedom is understood to be consi >-*
tent with vast constructive blockades, which
may be so expanded at pleasure as, without,
the aid ol any new devise. to oppress and on
militate every trade but that which England
thinks fit to licence. It is not, I am suit* t u
such freedom that your lordship can be tho’c
: to allude.
I am the more inclined to be confident our
this point, because I have now before me m.
well known official exposition, conceived iu
terms the most exact, of the Riitish d .c
irme of blockade, as it s'o.d in 1804, con^
tained in the reply of Mr. Merry, his majes
ty’5* minister in America, to the very able
renrtonstrance, abovementioned, from Mr.
Madison 10 Mr. Thornton.
In that rpp.ly, (of the 12th of Aptil, 18C4,>
is formal! 'announced to the government of
• he U.S “by ins rhajtjsty’s command, sig^
nified toMf. Merry, hy the principal Secie
tat y of .Stave lor foreign affairs, that • lot*
ledressmg the grievance, cr.mplalnrd of/
by the American government, orders hart
been sent to commodore Ho .d (and the ne
cessary directions given to the vice admiral
ty courts in the Vy. Indies and America; not
to consider any blockade of tire. Islands of
Martinique and Gaudalonpe as existing, un
less in respect of particular ports which
might bo actual y invested ; and then noly
tocapture vessels bound to such ports, uni ss.
they should previously have been wu.neck
not to enter them.”
It is natural to conclude that, though thrr
grievance, w'uch this frank conununica.
tion condemns, has been since so often reu
peatevl, as ulmos to make us lose signt of'
the rule in the multitude of its violations *.
your lordship could n >t speak-hf the iest«
ration of the just freedom of commerce, as
an event desired by Great Britain, without
some reference to the neglected doctrine
this paper, and without some idea of reviving '
it.
With regard to the blockade of Mar
1806. I regret that I have failed to obtain .am
admission, apparently warranted by iacts,
and invited by ciicumstauces, that it is not hr
force.
Your lordship’s answer to my letters of
the 15th February and 7th of March lusty
appeared to justify the opinion, that tiiix
biockade sunk into the orders in council o?
1807, with wnich it nas perfectly congeni
al. It can scarcely be said that since"1 thst
promulgation of these orders, theie hat,
been e\en a shew of maintaining ft, as an
ac.ual olockade, by a siatiunaiy force ade
quate or inadequate, distributed with that
view along die immense line of coast whiclv
it affected to embiace; and if it has not
been constantly so maintained, nor even ar*,
tempted, to be maintained, as an actual
1.1 it .taco, but has yielded its timciimis siti'*^
1867. to orders in council, neither being nor
professing to be, actual blockades, it n»av. £
imagine, be very saiely asserted, that it ex
ists no longer.
I,.it ..s this conclusion has not been adopt—1
cd, but has ra h r been resisted by your
lordship, it is my duty in transmit'ing h©
[enclosed copy if an act of the Conn-ess of
theU. S. passed <>n the 1st of May 18 lu e .ti
tled An act concerning rhe comm • ca*
intercourse between the 17 S. an 1 G B.
and France, nml theirdtpendencies, md for
other purposes,” to state >o your lord dp
that an ahnulmem of the blockade of Mrjc
1806 is considered by the President, tc>
be as indispensable, in the view of tha- act
as he revocation of the British orders ia
council.
I have the honor to be,
YV’th high consideration,
My lord, your lordship’s
Most obedient,
Ilumblc servant,
(Signed;
Wji. PINKNE^
The most noble
The jMarquis
iTelleslej. \sfc {Tc. iZc
Mr, Pinkney to Mr Smith
London, September 28, 1RIQ.:
SIR,
I have already sent you a copy ofLorflP
Wellesley’s reply to that part of mv lettr*
ot the 15th inst, wliidi particularly resnect"
ed the case of the Alert 1 he amount u(j^
that reply was. that government could nob
in ei fere, and 'hat the case must be lett to
the enuitnf admiralty.
I now transmit (subjoined) his answer trt
that part of my letter, which regarded the
effect of the blockade of Klsinore (as if v. aa
interpreted by Sir James Saumarcz) or the*
passage of the Sound; from which i pt*
pears, that it is not yet intended to oiosa
that passage.
No notice has been taken of the residua
of my letter, concerning the four American
seamen taken rom the Alert.
As I have transmitted you a copy of
l.ot d Wellesley’s reply to my application
for the release of the Mary, from which in
was to he infet red. th:it she would he imrne_
dlately released, I ought now to mention
that, so far from being released, she is to
be forthwith proceeded against as prize*
I he3e things require a large stock of pati
ence.
I have the honor to be, See.
(Signed)
WM PINKN*V.
lion. R. Smith, <Sc. hfc. Kt?c.
Lord IVetlenley to Mr. Pinkney,
The marquis Wellesley has the honor to
acquaint Mr. Pinkney,-in answer to that
part of his letter of the 15th inst. relating tp
an alledced misconception of the order of
Council for the blockade of F.lsinorr, that it
is the intention of his majesty*# governments
that that blockade shoo d be strictly con*
fined to the p<>rt of Elsinore and th.v it
does not affect anv vessels professedly >v n-d
op the Sound, unless it shoilld appear, from
their papers, that they are bound to Eisi*
nore.
The marqui* W elleslev begs to renew to
Mr. Pinkney the assurances of his high con*
sideration.
Fo reign Office, Sr fit 1 f 1 ft.
U iUiam Pinkney t ife, ts\ . iS‘r,