United States. It fhall be likewife lawful for the fubjects and inhabitants aforefaid to fail with the fhips and merchandizes aforementioned, and trade with the fame liberty and fecurity from the places, ports, or havens of those who are enemies of both, or either party, without any oppofition or disturbance whatfoever, not only from the places of the enemy aforementioned to neutral places, but alfo from one place belonging to an enemy to another place belonging to an enemy, whether they be under the jurifdiction of the fame Prince, or under several; and it is hereby ftipulated, that free ships fhall also give freedom to goods, and that every thing fhall be deemed free and exempt which fhall be found on board the fhips belonging to the fubjects of either of the contracting parties, although the whole lading or any part thereof, fhould appertain to the enemy of either, contraband goods being always excepted. It is alfo agreed that the fame liberty be granted to perfons who are on board a free fhip, fo that although they may be enemies to either party, they fhall not be made prifoners, or taken out of that free fhip, unless they are foldiers, and in actual fervice of the enemies. Art. XVI. This liberty of navigation and commerce fhall extend to all kinds of merchandizes, excepting only those which are diftinguished by the name of contraband, and under this name of contraband or prohibited goods, fhall be comprehended arms, great guns, bombs, with their fufees and the other things belonging to them, cannon-balls, gun-powder, match, pikes, fwords, lances, fpears, halbert, mortars, petards, grenades, faltpetre, muskets, mufket balls, bucklers, helmets, breaft-plates, coats of mail, and the like kind of arms, proper for arming foldiers, musketrefts, belts, horfes with their furniture, and all other warlike inftruments whatever. Thefe merchandizes which follow fhall not be reckoned amongst contraband or prohibited goods; that is to fay, all forts of cloths, and all other manufactures woven of any wool, flax, filk, cotton, or any other materials whatfoever; all kinds of wearing apparel, together with all fpecies whereof they are used to be made; gold and filver, as well coined as uncoined, tin, iron, latten, brafs, copper, coals; as alfo wheat, barley, and oats, and any other kind of corn, and pulfe; tobacco, and likewife all manner of fpices, falted and smoaked flesh, falted fish, cheese and butter, beer, oils, wines, fugar, and all forts of falt; and in general all provifions which ferve for the fuftenance of life; furthermore, all kinds of cot ton, hemp, flax, tar, pitch, ropes, cables, fails, fail-cloths, anchors, or any part of anchors, alfo fhip-mafts, planks, and wood of all kinds, and all things proper either for building or repairing fhips, and all other goods whatever which have not been worked into the form of any inftrument prepared for war by land, or by fea, fhall not be reputed contraband, much less fuch as have been already wrought and made up for any other ufe; all which fhall be wholly reckoned amongst free goods; as likewife all other merchandizes and things which are not comprehended and particularly mentioned in the enumeration of contraband goods; fo that they may be tranfported and carried in the freeft manner by the fubjects of both parties, even to places belonging to an enemy, fuch towns or places being only excepted as are at that time befieged, blocked up, or invested. And except the places in which any fhip of war or fquadron fhall in con fequence of storms or other accidents at fea, be under the neceffity of taking the cargo of any trading veffel or veffels, and furnish themfelves with neceffaries, giving a receipt, in order that the power to whom the said ship of war belongs, may pay for the article so taken, according to the price thereof, at the port to which they may appear to have been destined by the fhip's papers; and the two contracting parties engage, that the veffels fhall not be detained longer than may be abfolutely neceflary for their faid fhips to fupply themselves with neceffaries; that they will immediately pay the value of the receipts, and indemnify the proprietor for all loffes which he may have fuftained in confequence of fuch tranfactions. Art. XVII. To the end, that all manner of diffenfions and quar rels may be avoided and prevented on one fide and on the other, it is agreed, that in cafe of either of the parties hereto fhould be engaged in war, the ships and veffels, belonging to fubjects or people of the other party, must be furnished with sea letters of paffports, expreffing the fame, property and bulk of the fhip, alfo the name and place of habitation of the mafter or commander of the faid fhips, that it may appear thereby that the ships really and truly belong to fubjects of one of the parties; which passport shall be made out and granted according to the form annexed to this treaty. They fhall likewise be recalled every year, that is, if the fhip returns home within the fpace of a year. It ་ It is likewife agreed, that fuch fhips being laden are to be pro-. vided not only with paffports, as above-mentioned, but also with certificates containing the feveral particulars of the cargo, the place whence the ship failed, that fo it may be known whether any for bidden or contraband goods be on board the faine; which certificates shall be made out by the officers of the place whence the ship failed in the accustomed form; and if any one shall think fit or advisable to exprefs in the faid certificates the perfon to whom the goods on board belong, he may do fo; without which requifites they may be fent to one of the ports of the other contracting party, and adjudged by the competent tribunal, according to what is above fet forth, that all the circumstances of his omiffion having been well examined, they fhall be judged to be legal prizes, unless they fhall give legal fatisfaction of their property by testimony equally equivalent. Art. XVIII. If the ships of the faid fubjects, people or inhabitants of either of the parties, fhall be met with, either failing along the coafts, or on the high feas, by any fhips of war of the other, or by any privateer, the said ship of war or privateer, for avoiding any diforder shall remain out of cannon fhot, and may fend their boats on board the merchant ship which they shall so meet with, and may enter her to the number of two or three men only, to whom the master or commander of fuch fhip or veffel fhall exhibit his paffports concerning the property of the ship, made out according to the form inferted in this present treaty; and the ship, when she shall have shewn fuch passport, fhall be free and at liberty to purfue her voyage, fo as it fhall not be lawful to moleft or give her chafe in any manner, or force her to quit her intended course. Art. XIX. Confuls fhall be reciprocally established, with the privileges and power which those of the most favoured nations enjoy in the ports where their Confuls refide, or are permitted to be. Art. XX. It is also agreed, that the inhabitants of the territories of each party shall respectively have free accefs to the courts of juftice of the other; and they fhall be permitted to profecute fuits for the recovery of their property, the payment of their debts, and for obtaining fatisfaction for the damages which they may have fuftained, whether the perfons whom they may fue be subjects or citizens of the country in which they may be found, or any other persons whatever who may have taken refuge therein; and the proceedings and VOL. IV: Sentences N fentences of the faid Courts fhall be the fame, as if the contending parties had been subjects or citizens of the said country. Art. XXI. In order to terminate all differences on account of the loffes fuftained by the citizens of the United States, in confequence of their veffels and cargoes having been taken by the subjects of his Catholic Majefty during the late war between Spain and France, it is agreed that all fuch cases shall be referred to the final decifion of commiffioners to be appointed in the following manner. His Catholic Majefty fhall appoint one commiffioner, and the Prefident of the United States, by and with the advice and confent of the Senate, fhall appoint another; and the faid two commiffioners fhall agree on the choice of a third, or if they cannot agree fo, they shall each propofe one perfon, and of the two names fo propofed, one fhall be drawn by lot in the prefence of the two original commiffioners; and the person whose name shall be drawn fhall be third commiffioner; and the three commiffioners fo appointed fhall be sworn impartially to examine and decide the claims in queftion, according to the merit of the feveral cafes, and to juftice, equity, and the laws of nations. The faid commiffioners hall meet and fit at Philadelphia: and in cafe of the death, fickness, or neceffary abfence of any fuch commif fioner, his place fhall be fupplied in the fame manner as he was firft appointed, and the new commiflioner fhall take the fame oaths, and do the fame duties. They fhall receive all complaints and applica tions authorised by this article during eighteen months from the day on which they fhall affemble. They fhall have the power to examine all fuch perfons as come before them on oath or affirmation touching the complaints in question, and alfo to receive in evidence all written teftimony authenticated in fuch a manner as they fhall think proper to require or admit. The award of the faid commiffioners, or any two of them, fhall be final and conclufive, both as to the juftice of the claim, and the amount of the fum to be paid to the claimants; and his Catholic Majesty undertakes to cause the fame to be paid in fpecie, without deduction, at fuch time and places, and under fuch condi tions as fhall be awarded by such commiffioners. Art. XXII. The two high contracting parties, hoping that the good correfpondence and friendship which happily reign between them, will be further increased by this treaty, and that it will contri bute to augment their profperity and opulence, will in future give to their mutual commerce all the extenfion and favour which the advantage of both countries may require. And in confequence of the ftipulations contained in the fourth Article, his Catholic Majesty will permit the citizens of the United States, for the fpace of three years from this time, to depofit their merchandizes and effects in the port of New Orleans, and to export them from thence without paying any other duty than a fair price for the hire of the ftores, and his Majefty promifes either to continue this permiffion, if he finds, during that time, that it is not prejudicial to the interest of Spain, or he should not agree to continue, he will affign to them on another part of the banks of the Miffiffippi an equivalent establishment. Art. XXIII. The prefent treaty will not be in force until ratified by the contracting parties, and the ratifications fhall be exchanged in fix months from that time, or fooner, if poffible. In witness whereof, we, the underwritten Plenipotentiaries of his Catholic Majesty and of the United States of America, have figned this present treaty of friendship, limits, and navigation, and have thereunto affixed our seals respectively. Done at San Lorenzo et Beal, this feven and twentieth day of October, 1795. THOMAS PINCKNEY, (L. s.) |