The Writings of Thomas Jefferson, Vol. 5 (of 9): Being His Autobiography, Correspondence, Reports, Messages, Addresses, and Other Writings, Official and PrivateJefferson, Thomas
History
The Writings of Thomas Jefferson, Vol. 5 (of 9): Being His Autobiography, Correspondence, Reports, Messages, Addresses, and Other Writings, Official and Private
Jefferson, Thomas
United States -- Politics and government -- 1775-1783; United States -- Politics and government -- 1783-1865
You heard in due time from London of the signature of a treaty there
between Great Britain and the United States. By a letter we received
in January from our ministers at London, we found they were making up
their minds to sign a treaty, in which no provision was made against the
impressment of our seamen, contenting themselves with a note received
in the course of their correspondence, from the British negotiators,
assuring them of the discretion with which impressments should be
conducted, which could be construed into a covenant only by inferences,
against which its omission in the treaty was a strong inference; and in
its terms totally unsatisfactory. By a letter of February the 3d, they
were immediately informed that no treaty, not containing a satisfactory
article on that head, would be ratified, and desiring them to resume the
negotiations on that point. The treaty having come to us actually in the
inadmissible shape apprehended, we, of course, hold it up until we know
the result of the instructions of February the 3d. I have but little
expectation that the British government will retire from their habitual
wrongs in the impressment of our seamen, and am certain, that without
that, we will never tie up our hands by treaty, from the right of passing
a non-importation or non-intercourse act, to make it her interest to
become just. This may bring on a war of commercial restrictions. To show,
however, the sincerity of our desire for conciliation, I have suspended
the non-importation act. This state of things should be understood at
Paris, and every effort used on your part to accommodate our differences
with Spain, under the auspices of France, with whom it is all important
that we should stand in terms of the strictest cordiality. In fact, we
are to depend on her and Russia for the establishment of neutral rights
by the treaty of peace, among which should be that of taking no persons
by a belligerent out of a neutral ship, unless they be the _soldiers_ of
an enemy. Never did a nation act towards another with more perfidy and
injustice than Spain has constantly practised against us: and if we have
kept our hands off of her till now, it has been purely out of respect to
France, and from the value we set on the friendship of France. We expect,
therefore, from the friendship of the Emperor, that he will either compel
Spain to do us justice, or abandon her to us. We ask but one month to be
in possession of the city of Mexico.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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