Inability of the Confederation to manage Foreign Commerce 276 Essential that it should be managed by the United States 277 Views of the Revolutionary Statesmen 277, 278 Commercial Relations of the United States with Foreign Countries 279 Negotiation of the Treaty with the Netherlands 280 Duties and Imposts 281 Congress without Power to enforce Treaty Stipulations upon the States 282 Relations of the United States with Great Britain 282 Measure of Mr. Pitt 282 Change of the English Administration 283 Mr. Pitt's Bill 283 Views of the New English Administration 283, 284 American Trade excluded from the British West Indies 284 The three great Branches of American Commerce 285 Congress apply to the States for further Powers 286 Action of the States thereupon 286 Success of Treaties dependent on the Grant of further Powers 287 Incongruities in the Grants of the several States 288 Failure of the Attempt to negotiate Commercial Treaties 289 Discordant Legislation of the States 290 CHAPTER V. 1783-1787. THE PUBLIC LANDS.--GOVERNMENT OF THE NORTHWESTERN TERRITORY.--THREATENED LOSS OF THE WESTERN SETTLEMENTS. Relations of Congress to the Public Lands 291 Efforts to procure Cessions from the States 292 Cession by New York 293 Disposal of the Territories 293 Power of Congress to acquire and hold Lands 293 Its Constitutional Authority to deal with acquired Territory 294 Cession of Northwestern Territory by Virginia 295 States to be formed from this Territory 296 Congress pass a Resolve for the Regulation of ceded Territory 296 Principles on which the Government of New States should be established 297 Provision for admitting New States into the Union 298 Compact between the Old and New States 299 The Public Lands the true Resources for the Payment of the Public Debt 299 Slavery to be excluded from the New States 299