The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution, Vol. 05
History
The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution, Vol. 05
United States -- Foreign relations -- 1775-1783; United States -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783 -- Sources
"ARTICLE X. When in the said case, or in others similar, the ships of
friends or of neutrals shall be stopped and brought into the ports,
other than those of their destination, contrary to the forms
prescribed or without having given cause for it by well founded
reasons, either by the direction of their course, or by the state of
their papers, by some resistance on their part, the nature of their
cargo, or by other legal causes, founded either on treaties or the
usages of nations universally adopted, the armed vessels, which shall
have seized such vessels, shall be condemned to make good the lost
days as well as the damages and prejudices caused to a seized ship;
this condemnation or justification shall be mentioned in the same
sentence, which shall contain the declarations of good or bad prize,
and to this end they shall proceed with the utmost despatch without
injuring however the privileges or principal points, whereof the
nature of the thing requires observance, and the decisions, whether of
condemnation or acquittal, ought to be executed under sureties, as it
is regulated for the advantage of privateers; and if it happens that
the vessels, which should have caused the damage, belong to the King,
in that case the tribunals or Judges of the Marine shall give notice
of it to the Secretary of your Excellency, sending to him at the same
time justifying pieces and their opinion, to the end that his Majesty
may ordain convenient damages, and what shall be judged necessary to
prevent or remedy like cases; and it is in this sense that the
fortieth and other articles of the regulation for privateering ought
to be understood.
"ARTICLE XI. The sale of prizes and their cargoes, mentioned by the
thirtyseventh, fortyfourth, and other articles of the royal ordinance
for privateering, shall be made, not only after having prepared an
inventory of them, and in presence of the masters of the interested,
or of those who are legally authorised, but also skilful persons shall
have previously made a formal estimate, in which the causes of
avarice, or others influencing more or less upon the price of effects,
shall be examined and juridically proved, in such sort, that at all
times one may notoriously prove both the price of merchandises taxed
before the sale, and consequently the frauds which might be committed
during the said sale, as well as the prejudices that might result from
them.
"ARTICLE XII. The intention of his Majesty being, that this royal
declaration be observed, as making part of his ordinances imprinted
and published in all his ports and maritime places, the King commands
me to transmit it to your Excellency, to have it published to this
end, and that you see to its punctual execution, while, on my part, I
shall communicate it to all the Ambassadors and foreign Ministers
residing in this Court, to the end that each one may give notice of it
to his respective nation.
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