Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1811-11-14

CD her a2SrcSSioas upon American commerce,
and had recently promulgated anew her DEGREES
suffering no trade from this country, bat thro
licences publicly sold by her agents, and that
all the suppostioas you have formed of innova-
tons on the part ct &. B.itain or of her prcten-
Sons 70 trade with her enemies are Wholly
groundicss. have also stated TO you the view
his Malesty's government has taken ofthc cues
ton OF the blockade of May 1896, and il now on
Is remains that urgc atreshthc injustice oi-the
United States government pcrscyering i'll their
union with the French system FOR the parposc
Of crushing the commerce OF Great Britain
From every consideration which equity, good
policy or interest can suggest, there appears to
DC such 4 cell upon america 10 give up this sys-
tenn which i.yors France to the injury OF Great
Britain; that cannot, however little satisfac
tory your communications are, as vet abandon
ali hopes that even before the Cor gross meet,
new view may be taken of tie subject by the
President, which viii lead TO 8 more happy re-
| suit. M
Ihave the honor to be, with very high consi-
deration and reapect, sir,
Your most obetlicnt humble servant,
AUGUSTUS j. FOSTER
| TO The hon. James Of5aroc, CSC. s5e. &c
Mr.. MONROE 70 MR.. FOSTER.
Department q State, 9th 5at, 1911.
| I had the honor 20 receive your letter of
yesterdays date, in time To submit il TO the
view of the President before he left town
| 1t was nv object to state to you in my letter
of the 25d instant, that under existing circ,m-
stances, it was impossible for the President TO
terminate the operation of the pon-importation
law OF the 81 march last; that France having
| accepted the proposition made by a previous law
| equally TO Great Britain and TO France, and ha-
wing revoked her DEGREES, violating our neutral
rights, & Great britain having declined to revoke
hers, it became the duty Of this government to
fulfill its engagement and TO declare the nom
Importation law in force against Great Britain.
This state of affairs has not been sought by
the United States. When the proposition con-
tanned in the law of May LIST, 1910, was offered
| equally to both powers there was cause to pre-
sumo that Great Britain would have accepted it,
| in which event the non-importation law would
| not have operated against her.
| 1t 10 in the power of the British governme mt.
at this time to enablethe President to set the
non-importatonl law aside by rendering to the u
nited States an act Of justice. If Great Britain
will cease to violate their neutral ri ghts by revo
king her orders in council, on which event alone
| the President has the power, 1 am instructed
| TO inform you that lie will, without delay, excr-
else 1t by terminating the operation of this law
II is presumed thatthe communications which
have had the honor to make to you, of the re-
vocation by France of her DEGREES, so far as they
violated tie neutral rights Of the United States,
| and of her conduct since the revocation, will
! present to your government different view of
the subject from that which it had before taken,
| and produce in Its councils a correspondent eff.
| feet.
Ihavc the honor to be- &c.
(signed)
JAS. MONROE.
AHsxstus T. Foster, Esq. G,e. &c &c.
Mr.. MONROE TO Mr.. YosrEn.
Department Of STATE, Oct. 1, 1911.
Ihave had the honor to receive your letter
of the goth of July, and to submit it TO the view
of the President.
IN answering that letter, it is proper that 7
should notice complaint that had omitted TO
reply in mine OF the 23d of July, to your remon-
! STRANGE against the proclamation of the Presi-
dent of Nov. last and TO the demand which YOU
had made, by the order of your governm mt of
the repeal of the non-importation act of March
Cd of the present year.
My letter has certainly not nerited this inn
putation.
Having shewn the injustice of the British on
vernment in issuing Che orders in council on the
prctext assigned, and It's still greater injustice
in adheriug TO them after that pretcxt had fail.
ed, respect for Great Britain as well ms for the
United States, prevented my placing in The
strong light i'll which the subject naturally pre-
the extraordinary demand founded on 1t, that
while Your government accommodated in no.
thing, the United States should rclnquish the
ground, which by just regard To the public
rights and honor, they had been compelled to
take. Propositions tending to degrade a nation
can never be brought into discussion By govern
nent not prepared to submit TO the degradation
Il was for this reason that confined nv reply to
those passages in your letter, which involved
the claim of tho United States on the principles
Of justice, to the revocation of the orders in
council. Your demand, however, was neither
unnoticod or unanswered. In laying before YOU
the complete, and as was believed, irresistible
proof on which the United States expected, and
called for the revocation of the orders in council
a very explicit answer was supposed 70 be given
TO that demand.
Equally unfounded IS your complaint that
! misunderstood that passage which claimed,
as condition Of the revocation Of the Orders
in Council, that the trade of Great Britain
with the continent should be restored to the
state in which it was before the Berlin and
| Milan DEGREES were issued. As this preten-
sion was novel and extraordinary, Il was me-
cessary that distinct idea should be formed
oft, and, with that view, asked such an ex-
PLANTATION as would enable noe to form one.
| In the explanation given, you do not insist
| on the right To trade in British property, with
| British vessels, directly with your enemies
Such a claim, you admit would be prepos-
ferrous. But you do insist by necessary impli-
cation, that France has no right to inhibit the
| importation into her ports of British manu-
\ features, or the produce Of the British soil
when the property Of neutrals and that, nm
/ I'll France removes that inhibition, the u
States are to be cut OF BY Great Britain from