Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1811-01-08

my government, expected from me COM
munication upon It. And on the Bin OF
August, it was again brought 70 your ioru-
ships recollection in the same mode. At
was moreover mentioned inssSveral CONVEX
sations, after tho delivery of my frs. note,
which had, in fact, been preceded by'verr--
bal explanations on my part, as well as oy
an abortive correspondence in writing, 70
which some of those explanations were
preparatory.
Ii / had been so fortunate as to obtain
for my .hi.hrr,o unauthoris d enquiry, the
notice which I had Aattrred myself It
might receive, and to which I certainly
thought it was recommended BY the PLAIN
est considerations Of policy and jas,lce, 1t
would not, perhaps, have been necessary
for me to trouble your lordship with thus
letter, the purpose of which is, in Very tew
words, TO remind his majesty's govern.
meot, in pursuance Of my Instructions, OF
the sentiments aud expectations Of the gov
ernmen, Of the United States, respecting
such British blockades as that which my
enquiry principally regarded.
Those sentiments and expectations are.
so well explained in two letters from Mr..
Secretary Madison, of the 9Th October,
1908, to Mr.. Thornton, and Of the Sd june,
1906, to Mr.. Merry, that very little more
is required, in the execution of my insuue-
tons on this occasion, than that | should
refer your lordship to the copies OF those
letters which a.c herewith transmitted.
Your lo.dship will perceive. ehas the
strong and conclusive objections, IN law
aad reason, to be found in those papers,
(cspeclalIy in he FIST, which was OCCASION
ed by communication from the BRUSH
consul at New York, of notice from COM
modore Hood, in July, 1898, that the isl
ands of Martinique and Guadaloupe were,
and for some time had been, b!ockaded,)
apply to several blockades which Great
Britain has lately pretended to establish
bu, in particular manner to that ct May.
1906, (lrom the Ebe to Brest inclusive J
to that, in the spring of 1908, of the whole
island of Zealand, and to that in March,
1909, of the isles of Maurisius and Bour-
bon.
The government ofthe United States can
discover no Just foundation for these and
similar attempts to blockade entire coasts
BIZ, .asi eaa.;ens with which the fact has no
rantable prohibitions. of intercourse rather
than regui2, blockAaes and as resembling
in all their ess-ntia! qualities, che exlraor-
binary DEGREES and orders, which for the
last four years, have nearly obliterated eve
nv trace of the public law of the world, &
discouraged by menaces of hostile inter
ruption, and pursued with seizure and con-
iscation, the fairest & most innocent trade
Of neutral merchants.
II may now be hoped that those DEGREES
and orders are about to disappear forever;
aad think may presume thar, as my go
vernment expects, no blockade like tina: OF
May eighteen hundred and six, will sus-
vivc them.
Your lordship has informed me in re-
cent note, that it is his mae'ty's earnest
desire to see the commerce of the world
restored TO that freedom which is necessa-
ry for its prosperity" And cannot sup
pose tina. this freedom is understood to be
consistent with vast constructives block
AIDES, which may be SO expanded at plea
sure as without the aid Of any new device,
10 Cypress and annihilate every trade but
that which England thinks fit to lieence.-
1t is not am sure 70 such freedom that
your lordship can be thought to allude.
am the more inclined to be confident
on this point, because I have now before me !
well known official exposition, conceived
in terms the most exact, of the British doc
trine of blockade, as it stood in 1904, con-
tanned in the reply of Mr.. Merry, his
maiesty's minister in America, to the very
able rcmonstrance aforementioned. from
Mr.. Madison 70 Mr.. Thornton.