The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1870-03-17
The Alabama Claims.
Present Status OF the Negotiations Recent Note
From the British Minister Of Foreign Affairs
WASHINGTON February a.

RfcSeHG
From the British Minister Of Foreign Affairs
WASHINGTON, February 81.
Additional publicity has just been Civ
en- to the status of the Alabama claims,
which shows that no progress worthy of
mention has been made since the cores
pondence submitted to the Senate about
the middle of December The following
letter from Lord Clarendon to Mr.. Thorn
ton, complaining of Secretary Fish's con-
duct regarding that correspondence, and
stating that no fresh proposals for resum-
ing negotiation can originate with the
English Government, is now made public
in this country for the first time, and it
is Of late date.
FOREIGN OFFICE, Jan. 10, 1870.-Sir !:
Mr.. Motley has this day read to me dis
patch dated the 22nd uit., from Mr.. Fish,
stating that among he papers respecting
the Alabama claims presented to the SEN
ate he had not included my dispatch of
the 9Th of November, and the memoran.
dun it iRclosed, which he did not con-
slider to be official, as the memorandum
was not signed or dated; and as in my
other dispatch of the same date had
said that her Majesty government did
not propose to follow Mr.. Fish through
the long recapitulation contained in his
dispatch of the 25th of September, of the
various points that had been discussed In
the voluminous correspondence that had
taken place between the two governments
for several years, said that this decision
by Mr.. Fish, seemed to be founded
on a mistake, was mnch to be lamented !;
and l stated that his dispatch of the 25th
OF September had been read with surprise
and r,gret by her Majesty's government ;
but after due deliberation they had de-
termined to extract from it such passages
as might be considered friendly, and ex
hib ting desire for the settlement of
differences, in order to place on record
the cordial concurrence of her Majesty S
government in those sentiments,and their
readiness to resume negotiations-though
for obvious reasons, no fresh proposal
could originate with them. By adopting
this course, and abstaining from controv-
ersial discussion, it was thought that pol
icy of her Majesty's government might in
a convenient form, be distinctly indicat-
ed but it was impossible that the alleg-
ations against England contained in Mr..
Fishs dispatch should remain unanswer-
ed, or that the people of either country
should be induced to think that her Maj
esty's government had allowed Judgment
to goby default and we, accordingly, in
a seperate dispatch, inclosed the observa-
tions that, in our opinion, the national
honor required. Her Majesty govern
ment thereby followed the example of
Mr.. Fish, who had made distinction be-
tween her Majesty's government and my
self, in order, as he said to state calmly
and dispassionately, and with more un-
reserved freedom then might be used in
a dispatch addressed directly to the
Queens government, what the govern
ment of the United States seriously con-
sidered to be the injuries it had suffered.
My colleagues and |, however, did not
consider the dispatch as personal or con-
tidential to myself, or otherwise than as
an official communication from the gov
eminent of the I'm ted States. In the
same manner added that my second dis
patch of the 9Th of November could not
be considered otherwise than rs an off
cicl communication. The memorandum
1t inclosed was not signed or dated, for
that was not customary or necessary; but
the dispatch in which it was incloaed
was both dated and signed, and the docu-
ment was thereby made official, and a
copy of it was placed in Mr. Fishs hands.
| did not question the right of Mr.. Fish
to deal with the correspondence in any
manner he thought fit; but that for my
own part must say that in presenting a
correspondence to Parliament | should
not think it right to Withhold the observa-
lions of foreign government, upon an
important dispatch of mine that had been
officially communicated to it, The pnb-
hcation of the correspondence was, in nv
opinion, to be regretted, as having ten
dency to prolong the discussion and not
to allay irritation; but when it became
known here that the correspondence had
been sent to the Senate, her Maiesty's
government had no alternative than 10
publish the whole, as the British public
had right to expect that important in
formation won be furnished TO them by
their own government, and not be de-
rived from the newspapers of another
country. Mr.. Motley, in a friendly tone,
supported the views of Mr.. Fish, and "a
conversation followed upon the general
subject, which l do not think it necessary
to report, because Mr.. Motley desired that
it should not be considered to have an
official character, as negotiations, if they
were resumed, would be conducted at
Washington. am, etc
CLARENDON.