jects, as fhall be fo inhuman as to take advantage of any fuch misfortune, may be feverely punished.

Art. XXXVIII. It fhall be free for the fubjects of each party to employ fuch advocates, attornies, notaries, folicitors, and factors, as they fhall think fit; to which end the faid advocates and others above mentioned, fhall be appointed by the ordinary judges, if it be needful, and the judges be thereunto required.

Art. XXXIX. And for the greater fecurity and liberty of commerce and navigation, it is further agreed, that both the king of Great Britain, and the Moft Chriftian king, shall not only refufe to receive any pirates or fea-rovers whatsoever into any of their havens, ports, cities, or towns, or permit any of their fubjects, citizens, or inhabitants, on either part, to receive or protect them in their ports, to harbour them in their houses, or to affift them in any manner whatfoever; but further they fhall caufe all fuch pirates and fea-rovers, and all perfons who fhall receive, conceal, or affift them, to be brought to condign punishment, for a terror and example to others. And all their fhips, with the goods or merchandizes taken by them, and brought into the ports of either kingdom, fhall be feized as far as they can be difcovered, and fhall be reftored to the owners, or their factors duly autho-, rized or deputed by them in writing, proper evidence being firft given, in the court of admiralty, for proving the property, even in cafe fuch effects fhould have paffed into other hands by fale, if it be proved that the buyers knew, or might have known, that they had been piratically taken. And generally all fhips

and merchandizes, of what nature foever, which may be taken on the high feas, fhall be brought into fome port of either kingdom, and delivered into the cuftody of the officers of that port, that they may be reftored entire to the true proprietor, as foon as due and fufficient proof fhall have been made concerning the property thereof.

Art. XL. It fhall be lawful, as well for the fhips of war of their majefties, as for privateers belonging to their fubjects, to carry whitherfoever they please the thips and goods taken from their enemies, without being obliged to pay any fee to the officers of the admiralty, or to any judges whatever; nor fhall the faid prizes, when they arrive at and enter the ports of their faid majefties, be detained or feized; neither fhall the fearchers, or other of◄ ficers of those places, vifit or take cognizance of the validity of fuch prizes; but they fhall be at liberty to hoift fail at any time, to depart, and to carry their prizes to the place mentioned in the commiflions or patents, which the commanders of fuch fhips of war fhall be obliged to fhew on the contrary, no fhelter or refuge fhall be given in their ports to fuch as have made prize upon the fubjects of either of their majesties; but if forced by ftrefs of weather, or the dangers of the fea, to enter therein, particular care fhall be taken to haften their departure, and to cause them to retire from thence as foon as poffible, as far as it is not repugnant to former treaties made in this refpect with other fovereigns or states.

Art. XLI. Neither of their said majefties fhall permit the fhips or goods belonging to the fubjects of the other to be taken within cannon

fhot

fhot of the coaft, or in the ports or rivers of their dominions, by fhips of war, or others having commiffion from any prince, republic, or city, whatsoever but in cafe it fhould fo happen, both parties fhall employ their united force to obtain reparation of the damage thereby occafioned.

Art. XLII. But if it fhall appear that the captor made ufe of any kind of torture upon the mafter of the fhip, the crew, or others who fhall be on board any fhip belonging to the fubjects of the other party, in fuch cafe, not only the fhip itfelf, together with the perfons, merchandizes, and goods whatsoever, fhall be forthwith released, without any delay, and fet entirely free, but also fuch as fhall be convicted of fo enormous a crime, together with their accomplices, fhall fuffer the most fevere punishment fuitable to their offences: this the king of Great Britain and the Moft Chriftian king mutually engage fhall be obferved, without any relpect of perfons whatfoever.

Art. XLIII. Their majefties fhall respectively be at liberty, for the advantage of their fubjects trading to the kingdoms and dominicns of either of them, to appoint therein national confuls, who thall enjoy the right, immunity, and liberty belonging to them, by reafon of their duties and their functions: and places thall hereafter be agreed upon where the faid confuls fhall be eftablished, as well as the nature and extent of their functions. The convention relative to this point fhall be concluded immediately after the fignature of the prefent treaty, of which it thall be deemed to conititute a part.

Art. XLIV. It is alfo agreed, that in whatever relates to the lading and unlading of fhips, the fafety of merchandize, goods, and effects, the fucceffion to personal estates, as well as the protection of individuals, and their perfonal liberty, as alfo the adminiftration of justice, the subjects of the two high contracting parties fhall enjoy in their refpective dominions the fame privileges, liberties, and rights, as the moft favoured nation.

Art. XIV. If hereafter it shall happen, through inadvertency or otherwife, that any infractions or contraventions of the prefent treaty fhould be committed on either fide, the friendfhip and good underftanding fhall not immediately thereupon be interrupted; but this treaty fhall fubfift in all its force, and proper remedies fhall be procured for removing the inconveniences, as likewife for the reparation of the contraventions and if the fubjects of either kingdom fhall be found guilty thereof, they only shall be punished and feverely chaftifed.

Art. XLVI. His Britannic majefty and his Moft Chriftian majefty have referved the right of revifing and re-examining the feveral ftipulations of this treaty, after the term of twelve years, to be computed from the day of paffing laws for its execution in Great Britain and Ireland refpe&tively, to propofe and make fuch alterations as the times and circumftances may have rendered proper or neceflary for the commercial interefts of their respective fubjects: and this revifion is to be completed in the space of twelve months; after which term the prefent treaty fhall be of no effect, but in that event the good harmony and

friendly

friendly correfpondence between the two nations fhall not fuffer the leaft diminution.

Art. XLVII. The prefent treaty fhall be ratified and confirmed by his Britannic majefty and by his Moft Chriftian majefty, in two months, or fooner, if it can be done, after the exchange of fignatures between the plenipotentiaries.

In witness whereof, we the underfigned commiffaries and plenipotentiaries of the king of Great Britain and the Moft Christian king, have figned the prefent treaty with our hands, and have fet thereto the feals of

our arms.

September, 1786.

WM. EDEN. (L. S.)

GERARD DE RAYNEVAL. (L. S.)

Form of the Paports and Sea-letters which are to be granted by the reSpective Admiralties of the Dominions of the two high contracting Parties to the Ships and Veffels failing from thence, pursuant to the 24th article of the prefent treaty.

N. N. To all who fhall fee thefe prefents, greeting. Be it known that we have granted licence and permiflion to N. of the city (or place) of N. mafter or commander of the fhip N. belonging to N. of the port of N. burthen

tons, or thereabouts, now lying in the port or haven of N. to fail to N. laden with N. the fhip having been examined before her departure, in the ufual manner, by the officers of the place appointed for that purpose. And the faid N. or fuch other perfon as fhall happen to fucceed him, fhall produce this licence in every port or haven which

States of the Province of Holland, fent September 26, 1786, in anfer to their Notification of his Sufpenfion from the Office of Captain General.

Noble, great, and mighty lords,

and particularly good friends. T is with the utmost concern we

have feen by the letter and refolution of your noble and great mightineffes, dated the 22d inftant, that you are pleafed to perfift provifionally, and without prejudice to the further deliberations of your noble and great mightineffes, in the various orders iffued out concerning the troops of that ftate, by which they have been relieved, till further orders, from that part of the oath which bound them to our obedience as captain-general of Holland and Weit Friesland, but which orders your noble and great mightineties did not think proper to impart to us in our aforefaid quali ty, whilft you fufpend provifion ally the effect of your refolution of the 8th of March, 1766, which 4

invefted

invefted us as captain-general of your province by efpecial delegation, with power to difpofe of all military employments, from the enfign to the colonel inclufively, ferving in the militia or troops within your jurifdiction.

We cannot but be fenfibly hurt at the aforefaid refolution, fince its effect is to deprive us of a right which has been allowed and fecured to us by the unanimous vote of all the members of the state, by appointing us captain-general hereditary of Holland and Weft Friefland. We might here claim the immediate effect of fuch a refolution, which as it had been entered into nem. con. cannot, fuppofing it to be revocable, be cancelled, or even fufpended, without the like unanimity. But what goes ftill nearer to our heart, and on which we cannot remain filent, is the motives you are pleased to adduce in fupport of your laft refolution, namely, that it has been taken with a view to obviate our influence as captain-general over the faid troops, and the manner of directing them, which is incompatible with the fafety of your province, and the measures adopted to fecure it.

We might, without failing in what we owe to your noble and great mightineffes, and in as earneft a manner as befits a matter of fuch high importance, that concerns our honour and good name, request you would be pleafed to communicate to us the reafons of the mistrust your noble and great mightineffes entertain of our influence and direction of the provincial troops, and then you would find that we have it fufficiently in our power to convince your noble and great mightineffes how groundless

are both your apprehenfions and the malicious hints thrown out by certain perfons, ill-difpofed towards the country and ourfelves. But we are perfectly eafy and fecured that nothing can be alledged with truth againit us, by which we thould have deferved to forfeit the confidence of your noble and great mightineffes. And we can vouch before God, yourfelves, all the citizens of the Netherlands, nay, and before all the world, that in this regard our confcience is perfectly irreproachable. Under pleasure of your noble and great mightineffes, we cannot but declare, fince our honour, dearer to us than life, ftands impeached, that we cannot remain under fuch a blame and ftigma, refulting from the tokens of diftruft given us by your noble and great mightineffes, and especially by your recent refolution; and it is a duty we owe to the race from whence we fpring, to the royal houfe to which we have the honour to be allied, to their high mightineffes, to the respective provinces to whofe fervice we are bound by the employments we hold by hereditary right, and to ourselves, in fine, to clear ourselves from fuch an afperfion; that, confcious' of our innocence, from any failure of our plighted faith to your noble and great mightineffes, as well as to the provinces of Holland and Weft Friefland, by the oath taken by us as ftadtholder, governor, captaingeneral, and hereditary admiral of your province, when we undertook to act in thofe capacities; we are juftified in fuppofing that nothing pofitive hath been laid to our charge, and that all the steps taken against us are merely the refult of fome members of your affembly having too readily lent an ear to the reports

of