The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1859-02-03

We have already referred to the claims for
French spoliation, which have been repeatedly
passed upon by the Senate, and the justice of
which has been also acknowledged on two several
occasions by the House of Representatives. There
are, however, so many persons who do not ap-
pear to understand upon what those claims are
founded, that brief sketch of their origin, and of
the negotiations To which they subsequently govo
rise may not be regarded as wholly inopportune
1t is, of course, well known, that during the war
of Independence the assistance we derived from
France, both in money and in munitions of war,
was of the utmost Importance to the success of our
cause. But our readers may not be so we'll aware
that, in consideration for the services thus rend-
cred, we bound ourselves, by treaty stipulations,
not only to guarantee to France the security of her
possessions in the West Indies, but we also agreed
to grant to the French Government the exclusive
and prizes, forever. The expenses incurred by
France in her efforts to establish the independence
of the UNITED STATES have been estimated by Mr.
JEFFERSON at two hundred and ffty-six millions Of
dollars; whilst the cost of the war to u.s. in money,
was but one hundred and forty millions of dollars.
When France, subsequent to the Revolution of 1889,
was engaged in a general European war, she
called upon us to fulfil our treaty obligations,
by cooperating with her in protecting her
dependencies in the West Indies, and by opening
our ports to her ships of war, her privateers, and
to the prizes they might bring in from the high
seas. Being fully conscious of our ina
bility to do so, in our then exhausted
condition, and realizing the extreme dam
ger to which the country would be exposed by
responding to those demands, our Government at
first resorted to expedients to evade an immediate
compliance with its obligations by intimating,
with respect to the Islands, that whenever the
proper time arrived it would make common cause
with France in defending them from capture
Nevertheless, upon their seizure by Great Britain,
we neither interposed nor demonstrated; but were
constrained by the exigencies of own position,
to declare our neutrality.
We did not however deny, that, by the provi-
sions of the treaty of 1878, we guaranteed to
France the possession of her West India Islands
On the contrary, 1--WE offered annual war SUBJ
"sidy of two hundred thousand dollars to be re-
'Eleased from the guarantee" But the French
government refused to accept of it, and demanded
thus arose between the two nations, in consequence
of our avowed determination to take no part in the
general war which was then raging, was subse-
quently increased by the occasional seizure of our
merchant vessels by French privateers, and was
still further embittered by decree which was
issued by the French Government in 1893, sub
ecting to capture all neutral vessels bound to an
enemy's port. Mr.. JAYS treaty with England
led to open rupture between France and the
UNITED STATES Immediately on hearing of its
ratification France authorized the capture or our
merchant vessels wherever they might be found
and after the failure of repeated attempts to settle
the dispute by negotiation, Congress, in 1898,
formally disavowed all further obligation
to coerce us into observing. AS neither party
was disposed to go to war with the other, the only
immediate result of the action taken by Congress,
was to suspend for time, all diplomatic relations
between the two countries. In 1900, the appoint
ment of joint commission, for the purpose of
bringing about adjustment of the points in dis
pute between the two countries, was proposed and
accepted. When the Convention met, the French
Commissioners offered to concede the Justice of
our claims to indemnity for losses incurred, on
condition that the American Commissioners should
admit that France had also claims upon us, aris-
ing out of our refusal to comply with our treaty
stipulations. To this proposition Messrs. PINKNEY
MARSHALL and GERRY, did not feel authorized to
agree. They, however, expressed their willingness
to leave the question of a mutual REIMBURSEMENT
of indemnites to the decision of the Government
of the UNITED STATES; and upon this basis treaty
was subsequently framed, which, in due time was
ratified by the contracting parties. in thus off
setting the claims held by France, with the pro-
perty of American citizens, our Government as
sumed the whole amount of the indemnity which
France acknowledged was justly due from her on
account of spoliations committed upon our COM
merce, and is in duty bound to repay the claim
ants out of the public treasury. In the language
of Mr.. MADISON "The claims from which France
"was released, were admitted by France; and the
"release was for a valuable consideration, in a
correspondent release of the UNITED STATES for
'certain claims on them"