The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1852-03-29

that awful conflict Wasld she redeem thoss
pledges which ardent and enthusiastic mind.
thought that she was under and, taking the
part Of France, strike by her side for The liber
ties Of the world? She could not join England
in crusade against those liberties. WoulG
she, them participate in the struggle, or would
she rather remain quiet spectator Of the gi
gantic scene, and trust to God the destnies Of
her ally! Necessity-stern, infexble necessity
could alone impel her to choose the last al
tentative.
This was" says Lyman in his American Di
plomacy, ian extraordinary period France had
now become professedly a republic, and was
threatened with humiliation by European co.
aition, at the head of which was England
'.The distance Of America from Europe-the
youth and peculiarly of her government, at that
time little understood, and certainly fur from
being c0nfrmed-the narrowness Of her re.
sources--the entire absence of every species OF
armament--powefuy combined to point out
the course she should adopt" 1t is somewhat
curious to see what little that proclamation OF
neutrality did realize for America 1t was issued
in April, 1893 In the summer following,
Great Britain, Russia, Spain, Prussia, and the
empire Of Germany entered into treaty, for the
purpose, among other things 'of closing their
ports and prohibiting the expectation Of naval
stores, corn, grain, and provisions, from their
ports TO the ports of France" They also en-.
gagged ito take all other measures in their power
| for injuring the commerce of France" and to
unite all their efforts "t0 prevent other p0uers not
implicated in the t0ar from giving any protec-
ton whatever, directly or indirectly, in conse-
quence of their neutrality to the commerce or
property of the French on the sea or in the ports
of France" You well know, Mr.. President,
that in the celebrated treaty of Utrecht between
France and England, even naval stores were
declared Stree of war;" and you know also that
there are treaties on. record between England
and the United Provinces in l645, with France
in 1867 and 1861 with Spain in 1913 with
Denmark in 1881, and with Russia in 1904, in
which provisions are by name excluded from The
list Of conlraband. Shall say anything of the
outrages, insults, wrongs, offered by England to
America under the neutrality policy Why, sir,
they were such as to force upon us within less
than year the necessity Of sending n special
embassy to the court of st. James, in order to
plead redress for past offences, and at all
events to obtain security that our rights under
the neutrality should be recognised and re-
spected for the future.
The alarm of the c0untry---its sufleringa, it's
impatence, and irritation-may well be judged
from the limitations which our minister was di.
rected to give Of them in England. Says our
Secretary of State, in his instructions to Mr. Jay,
1874: "You will keep alive in the mind of the
British minister that opinion which the solemn
ity of special mission must naturally inspire of
the strong ag'tations excited in the people of
the United States by the disturbed condition be.
tween them and Great Britain" y 4
I" You will mention, with due stress, the general
irritation of the United States, at the perations,
spoliati0ns, captures" &C., &c.
Such was the situation in which the United
States found themselves in the year l794, hard
ly ten months after the issuing Of the famous
proclamation. MIR. Jay succeeded in effecting
treaty. What that treaty secured to the United
States is what now propose to investigate
His instructions were explicit. The anxiety of
the United States to see those principles ac-
knowlcdged which alone could render our neu-
trality available was extreme. What did the
treaty end in? Let us turn first to the instruc-
tons under which Mr.. Jay was instructed to act
He was to listen to the suggestions of com
mercial treaty, and to keep in view, amongst
other objects, the following:
lst Reciprocity in navigation, particularly to
the West Indies, and even to the East Indies
Cd. Free ships to make free goods.
Sd. Proper security for the safety of neutral
commerce in other respects, and particularly by
declaring provisions never to be contraband, ex-
cept in the strongest possible case by defining
blockade, by restricting the opportunities OF
vexation in visiting vessels.
Here is, now what the treaty allowed: d.
rect trade between the United States and the
West Indies in vessels not exceeding seventy tons
in BURDEN but the United States were under
an obligation to restrain their vessels from car
rying certain articles, the produce of those
islands, to any other place than the United
States. The Americans were forbidden from
carrying any molasses, sugar, coffee, cocoa, or
cotton in American vessels, either from his
Majesty's islands or from the United States, to
any part of the world except the United States"
The treaty restored the ports of the western
frontier but without indemnity for their long
detention, or for the slaves carried off by Sir
Guy Carleton Ship timber, tar, hemp, sails,
and copper were declared contraband, though
free in all other treaties made by the United
| States Provisions were declared contraband,
and there was an express declaration that the
! flag did not cover the merchandise--the only
treaty ever rigned by the United States in which
such an acknowledgment is to be found. Eng
land, however at the peace of Utrecht, had nc
knowedged hatthe flag covered The merchandise
Thus nothing was secured. None Of the rights
| Which Jay OtoI ulreCleu tO assert ana
vindicate were recognised, and the treaty signed
by him justified the judgment passed upon its
merits, through the appellation by which it went,
of an instrument that settled nothing. Nor We're
the rights claimed by the United States respect
ed by England after the treaty. The aggres-
sions on the part of the latter went on, increas-
ing until they forced us into the very extreni
ties which the neutrality was intended to pro-
vide against; and we realized the pungent With
cism by which one of our statesmen defines
neutral power-"a po'oer that both beligerents
plumber with impunity"
Lyman, from whom | have already quoted
speaks thus of the motives which induced the
United States so long to forbear under repeated
infections of outrage and wrong:
"America, a new State, was thrust hastily,
with all the attributes of sovereignty, into the
midst of the old nations of Europe. Not having
grown up with them, trying her wings, feeling
her strength rs she advanced to mature age
along with those powers, her relative position
was not ascertaned, and acts of the parties en-.
gagged in the European wars were patiently en-
dured, not from want of sagacity and spirit, both