CHAPTER IX.

TREATY OF 1794 WITH GREAT BRITAIN.

Confederation no power over Commerce-Commercial conventions with France, Holland, Prussia and Sweden-No trade-Trade to England only important one-Depended on an annual act of Parliament-Policy at variance with Europe-Mr. Adams chosen to St. James-First envoy-Well received-England refused to make a treaty-Account of violations of treaty of '83-Debts—Interest— Confederacy dissolved-Hammond, first envoy to this countryMorris-Pinckney-Origin of oppressive acts by belligerentswar between France and England--Provisions contraband—Rules of neutrality-Danger of a war-Executive appoints Mr. Jay to London-Decides question of neutrality--Concludes a treaty-Unpopular-Eventually favourable to United States.

THE United States, at the close of the war of '83, had commercial treaties with France, Sweden and Holland, but no trade with either of those countries. The Congress of the confederation were not invested with the power to regulate commerce, or to levy imposts, and a proposition, made to the states, authorizing the government to assess a duty of 5 per cent. ad valorem on imports, had been rejected. The confederacy was adopted for the purpose of carrying on the war, and was, in reality, adapted to few other purposes. The excitements of the contest and the necessity of securing their independence, supported the people in their hardships. But

peace left them, if possible, with still greater hardships, and without a single circumstance of excitement. The external pressure, that alone had kept the states united, was removed; and at this juncture there appeared thirteen sovereign, independent governments, bound together nominally in one confederation, each entitled and equally qualified in its own capacity to assess taxes, to establish duties and rates of tonnage, and to open or forbid with each other or with foreign nations, every species of trade or intercourse. America, in a state of colonization, had been permitted to drive only a restricted commerce. The exports were limited to the parent country, and to the least valuable markets of Africa, of the south of Europe, and to the West Indies; though the articles termed in the navigation and subsequent acts, "enumerated commodities," were confined exclusively to Great Britain. The parallel of Cape Finisterre, the boundary of the trade to the north, entirely cut off France, Sweden, and Holland ; countries with whom, as we have said, America had commercial conventions, but no habits of intercourse. The whole trade to Great Britain, her colonies and possessions, (altogether the only one of any value at that period,) rested upon the precarious tenure of an annual act of Parliament.

The course of trade, and of every description of communication with Europe, had formerly been that of a colony. And now become independent, the policy of America could in no way be made to follow in the same current with that of the nations, with whom she was brought immediately to act. Those countries were old and hardened in a system of exclusion and commercial proscription. They held colonies upon whom, according to the fashionable doctrines of the day, not yet entirely exploded, it was just and proper to impose restrictions for the purpose, to use the emphatic words of the preamble to the statute 15 Charles II. " of keeping them (the colonies) in a firmer dependence upon it (the mother country) and” rendering " them yet more beneficial and advantageous to it." On the other hand, the United States having no manufactures at home to protect, or foreign possessions, whose

trade it was necessary to monopolize, found themselves at variance on every point with the systems of the European governments. In their earliest instructions, Congress recommended the adoption of a very liberal scheme of commerce, a system now gradually introducing itself through the world, but at the time exceedingly disrelished and condemned by most of the writers on commerce, particularly Lord Sheffield, in a pamphlet, that attracted great notice. And, undoubtedly, without the alarm caused in the governments of Europe by the French revolution, that led them to consider every reform an innovation, we should already have had a much greater freedom of commercial, and, perhaps, also political institutions in the old world. The commercial regulations of these instructions of Congress of '84 differ little from the doctrines of the armed neutrality, a short time before that period in high repute, but then falling into decay.*

*The first administration under the constitution was disposed to maintain the same system. We shall quote a remarkable passage from a report of the Secretary of State for the year '92. "Instead of embarrassing commerce under piles of regulating laws, duties, and prohibitions, could it be relieved from all its shackles, in all parts of the world, could every country be employed in producing that which nature has best fitted it to produce, and each be free to exchange with others mutual surpluses for mutual wants, the greatest mass possible would then be produced of those things which contribute to human life and human happiness; the numbers of mankind would be increased, and their condition bettered. Would even a single nation begin with the United States this system of free commerce, it would be advisable to begin it with that nation; since it is one by one only, that it can be extended to all. Where the circumstances of either party render it expedient to levy a revenue, by way of impost on commerce, its freedom might be modified in that particular, by mutual and equivalent measures, preserving it entire in all others. Some nations, not yet ripe for free commerce in all its extent, might still be willing to mollify its restrictions and regulations for us, in proportion to the advantages which an intercourse with us might offer. Particularly, they may concur with us in reciprocating the duties to be levied on each side, or in compensating any excess of duty by equivalent advan

Great anxiety naturally existed in America on the subject of commercial intercourse. The commissioners, that made the treaty of '83, were empowered, as has already been said, to conclude a commercial convention. They did not succeed in that object; for Great Britain manifested uncommon reluctance to take any other step in her diplomatic relations with America, than to acknowledge the independence of the country. In the meanwhile, the nation rushed into a most ruinous commerce with England, that in a short time added infinitely to the alarming evils the war and the weakness of the confederacy were daily causing. The very earliest measures were adopted, however, by the government to obtain a formal protection for the trade of the country. On the 1st of May '83, ten days only after the ratification of peace, Congress ordered a second commission to be prepared for Messrs. Adams, Franklin, and Jay, or either of them, to enter into a treaty of commerce with Great Britain. But this commission appears to have accomplished nothing.

The commission of '83 not having succeeded in concluding a commercial convention, John Adams of Massachusetts was chosen in February '85 minister plenipotentiary to the court of St. James; the first envoy sent to Great Britain by the United States; he was well received by the king and ministry.*

tages of another nature. Our commerce is certainly of a character to entitle it to favour in most countries. The commodities we offer are either necessaries of life, or materials for manufacture, or convenient subjects of revenue; and we take in exchange, either manufactures, when they have received the last finish of art and industry, or mere luxuries. Such customers, too, whose demands, increasing with their wealth and population, must very shortly give full employment to the whole industry of any nation whatever, in any line of supply they may get into the habit of calling for from it."

* We believe the following account may be relied on as an authentic version of the remarks of the king on the occasion of the interview of the American minister:

"Mr.

But the English government does not appear to have paid much attention to America the first five or six years after the peace. They were occupied, entirely, with domestic affairs; -in renewing their ancient alliances with Holland, Prussia, and other governments of the continent, disturbed by the revolution war-in concluding a commercial convention with France-in regulating the trade of Quebec and Ireland—and, besides the customary topics of India and the catholics, two unexpected and very laborious subjects, the establishment of a regency, and the impeachment of Warren Hastings, engrossed a great deal of time and deliberation. England, taking advantage of the general calm, to repair, as rapidly as she could, the disasters of the war, (not, to be sure, preparatory to the tremendous contest, in which she was about to be involved, far more terrible, and in the end fortunate for her, than the one from which she had just emerged,) saw America struggling, and at one time nearly overpowered, with her own

"Mr. Adams, according to etiquette, was introduced to the king's closet, where ('as is usual for foreign ministers') he made a speech to his majesty; in performing which, he was somewhat affected, and when he had finished, the king said :—

"SIR,―The whole of this business is so extraordinary, that the feelings you discover on the occasion appear to me to be just and proper. I wish, sir, to be clearly understood, before I reply to the obliging sentiments, you have expressed in behalf of the United States. I am, you may well suppose, the last person in England, that consented to the dismemberment of the empire, by the independence of the new states, and, while the war was continued, I thought it due to my subjects to prosecute that war to the utmost. But, sir, I have consented to the independence, and it is ratified by treaty, and I now receive you as their minister plenipotentiary; and every attention, respect, and protection, granted to other plenipotentiaries, you shall receive at this court. And, sir, as I was the last person that consented to the independence of the United States, so I shall be the last person to disturb, or in any way infringe upon, their sovereign independent rights; and I hope and trust, that from blood, religion, manners, habits of intercourse, and almost every other consideration, the two nations will continue for ages in friendship and confidence with each other.'"