APPENDIX:

CONTAINING A FEW PAPERS WHICH COULD NOT BE OBTAINED IN SEASON FOR INSERTION IN THEIR PROPER PLACES.

MESSAGE

FROM THE PRESIDENT of THE UNITED STATES TO THE SENATE. APRIL 23, 1812.

I TRANSMIT to the Senate a report of the Secretary of State, complying with their resolution of the 4th of March last. JAMES MADISON.

REPORT.

THE Secretary of State to whom was referred the resolution of the Senate of the 4th of March last, has the honour to report, that the enclosed papers, marked A. B. and C. contain all the information in this Department, "relative to captures made by the belligerents since the 1st day of May, 1811, of vessels of the United States, bound to or from the Baltic, or within that sea." All which is respectfully submitted.

Department of State, April 23, 1812.

B.

JAMES MONROE.

Extract from Mr. Erving's No. 6, to the Secretary of State. Copenhagen, July 28, 1811.

I HAVE the honour, herewith, to enclose copies of my note to Mr. de Rosenkrantz, dated 17th instant, upon the convoy question, No. 1, and his reply of the 27th, No. 2.

The reference of my above mentioned note to the royal chancery, as stated in the minister's reply, did not take place till the 24th or 25th; in the mean time two of the cases therein mentioned, viz: The Annawan and the Hesper were condemn. ed by the high court: I think it probable that the remaining two cases, in which, as you will perceive by that note, the evidence of force used to compel the vessels to join convoy is more clear than in the other cases, will be acquitted. Since the date of my last, upwards of twenty of our vessels have passed up the Bal tic; some few of these have been detained, examined and released. Eight vessels have come down bound for the United States; of these, five have been detained; one, the "Experiment," Vib. bert, having despatches on board from Mr. Adams, was released instantly, on my application; three others were released after a * VOL. V.

Α

few days' detention, and one only (having an English license, laden for English account, and being bound to Ireland) is pending in the prize court.

It is said that a great number of our vessels have gone up under convoy. I find it is impossible to obtain in advance, any security for such of these as may return without convoy. The clause in the king's instructions, against which I have thought it my duty to protest, is understood to extend to all vessels which have used enemy's convoy during the voyage (out and home) in which they are actually engaged.

[ENCLOSED IN MR. ERVING'S NO. 6.]

To his Excellency Mr. de Rosenkrantz, first Minister of State and Chief of the Department for Foreign Affairs, &c. Co. penhagen, July 17, 1811.

SIR,

THE undersigned, special minister of the United States of America, in acknowledging the receipt of the note dated 9th instant, of his excellency Mr. de Rosenkrantz, first minister of state, and chief of the department for foreign affairs, cannot but express the very great concern with which he has seen the deter. mination of his majesty therein declared, of adhering to a rule of proceeding with regard to American vessels, found under British convoy, against which the undersigned has so formally protested and remonstrated, as a violation of principles derived from the law of nations to which only the United States can sub. mit the arbitration of their neutral rights; that contrary to the practice of other governments with which that of America has from time to time found itself in collision upon similar questions, his Danish majesty confines himself to a declaration of his will unsupported by authorities or examples, and unqualified by any modifications of, or exceptions to, the offensive principle in question, adapted to the peculiar circumstances of the cases which may be affected by it; and finally, that by the operation of this rule, cases now depending in the high court, of ships and cargoes purely and wholly American, wherein neither the owners or masters have done, attempted to do, or contemplated any injury or offence to his majesty's belligerent rights, are to be condemned because they have had the previous misfortune of falling into the hands of his enemy: neither the regular form in which these vessels have entered the Baltic, paying their sound dues; neither the judicial investigations which have established their neutrality; neither orders found on board directing them not to take British convoy; neither the notariety or the most clear proofs of their having been forced into convoy; these it seems are not to avail. But that his majesty may see in the most distinct manner the full effect of his own rule, and that the representations of the undersigned against it may go accompanied by clear exemplifications of the injustice which it operates, so that it shall at all times appear that he has not remonstrated but on sufficient grounds, and that he has not magnified the cause

of complaint, he will here briefly state the circumstances of the enly four vessels which remain uncondemned of eighteen which were taken under the same convoy: These are,

The Annawan, Donaldson; Hesper, Cushing; Hope, Rhea; Elizabeth, Campbell.

The two first named of these vessels (Annawan and Hesper) were captured by his majesty's cruisers on entering the Baltic. They underwent a trial in the prize court, when their neutrality was fully established, and they were released. These previous proceedings leave scarcely a possibility of supposing that they sought convoy on their return; but the assurance in this respect is completed and confirmed by the unanimous declarations of the masters and crews, proving most incontestibly that they were forced to join the British convoy.

The Elizabeth, Captain Campbell, was also captured on her outward voyage by his majesty's cruisers: her neutrality was established and she was acquitted by the prize court. The fact of her having been forced into convoy, conformably to the unanimous declaration of the master and crew, is found also recorded in her log-book, under date June 18th, 1810.

The instructions of the supercargo, Fisher, found on board, direct the captain in these words, viz:

"In your passage down the Baltic, you will call at Elsineur and pay the Sound dues, if in your power; and if prevented by any force, or other occurrence, you will make the necessary protests, and forward such documents to Mr. Yard as will prove your having proceeded in every respect in a clear and regular manner. In case, however, notwithstanding all the documents you possess, you should meet with any interruption whatever, I beg you will, if on any part of the continent, send me an estafette, and I will endeavour as much as lays in my power to assist you, either by coming to you or sending you such proofs as lay in my power. I have provided you with a letter of credit on the house of Messrs. Parish and Co. of Hamburgh, in case of need; and I shall also write to Messrs. Belfour, Ellah and Rainals, to send you assistance if you are in need of it, which I must confess I do not apprehend, from the Elizabeth having regularly paid her Sound dues, and having been already acquitted through the courts in Norway."

The supercargo Fisher also wrote to the above mentioned Belfour, Ellah and Rainals, of Elsineur, directing them to pay the Sound dues on the Elizabeth and despatch her as quick as possible, which letter said Belfour and Co. received, as appears by

their affidavits.

In the case of the "Hope," Rhea, superadded to all other proofs of her having been forced into convoy is an endorsement made on her ship's papers on the 15th June, by the British commander, Charles Dashwood, of which the following is an extract. "Boarded by H. M. S. Pyramus, off the north end of Goth. land, and ordered to proceed to join convoy in Hano bay, near

Cadsham. He has no license whatever, yet as it appears to be neutral property, the return of his outward bound cargo, I have my doubts about detaining her. My object in ordering her to join convoy, though a neutral, is to prevent her from going to an enemy's port with naval stores, or to be captured."

The undersigned is sensible that he has now said all that the subject requires, yet he cannot leave any observation of his excellency Mr. de Rosenkrantz without reply; upon that therefore which seems to call for the acquiescence of the American government to the rule in question, because it has not been disputed by any European power, he must remark, that no European power whatever is, relatively to that rule, in the same situ. ation as the United States; but on the contrary, that each of them is impossibilitated, by the nature of circumstances, from reclaiming against it. G. W. E.

[TRANSLATION.] Enclosed in Mr. Erving's No. 6.

THE undersigned, Minister of State, chief of the department of Foreign Affairs, has the honour to inform Mr. Erving, Minister of the United States of America, that in consequence of the par. ticular representations which Mr. Erving addressed to him on the 17th inst. in favour of the American vessels "Annawan," "Hesper," "Hope," "Elizabeth," captured under English convoy by Danish cruisers, he hastened to cause the royal chancery to make known to the supreme tribunal of the admiralty, the arguments furnished by the note of Mr. Erving, to prove that the said vessels had been forced to join convoy.

The undersigned has also drawn the attention of the supreme tribunal to the particular situation in which these vessels were placed. He wishes that this circumstance may determine the judges of the admiralty to make an exception to the rules established for the government of cruisers, and for the tribunals of prizes.

The Minister of State has the honour to pray of Mr. Erving to be pleased to observe that if, as he remarks, the American vessels find themselves, so far as regards the use they make of the protection of the enemies of Denmark by the means of convoy, in a situation or relation different from that of vessels under the European flags generally, this does not in any degree change the rule which has been prescribed by the King of Denmark, because, as has been heretofore alleged by the undersigned, the protection of the enemy destroys, in him who uses it, his original quality of neutral and friend. This rule might, by an event of the moment, be more applicable to the conduct of the masters of American vessels, than to that of the masters of vessels under any of the European flags, but it is calculated to be applied to every neutral flag without distinction.

The undersigned is consequently obliged again to state to Mr. Erving, that the use of English convoy, in the North Sea, or in the Baltic, exposes neutral vessels to be treated conformably to

the provisions of the S. xi. lit. D. of the ordinance regulating

privateers.

He seizes this occasion to renew to the Minister of the United States the assurance of his high consideration.

(Signed)

Copenhagen, July 27, 1811.

No. 7.

ROSENKRANTZ.

Extract of a Letter form George W. Erving, special Minister of the United States at Copenhagen, to the Secretary of State, dated Copenhagen, August 18, 1811.

Two American vessels, viz: the "Hero" and "Radius," have been captured by the French privateer La Minute, No. 2. The captain of this corsair imagines that he can justify the capture by his Emperour's decree against colonial produce, within which description he supposes the cotton of these vessels, (though the produce of Carolina and Georgia,) to be comprised. The oil on board the Radius, is from Gallipoli. The same corsair is now cruising off Elsineur, just without the Danish jurisdiction, and declares his intention of stopping every vessel which has any colonial produce on board; though as the season is so far advanced it is not probable that there will be any more arrivals from the United States; yet I have taken measures to have a Swedish boat cruising from the island of Anholt to the coast of Sweden, to warn all our vessels so that they may pass through the Belt and pay their Sound dues at Nyborg."

[ENCLOSED IN MR. ERVING'S NO. 7.]

Extract of a Letter from George W. Erving, Esq. special minister of the United States at Copenhagen, to Jonathan Russell, Esq. charge d' affaires of the United States at Paris, dated Copenhagen, August 9, 1811.

"BRIG Hero, H. Blackler, master, of Marblehead, owned by William Blackler and Sons, 107 tons burden, from Marblehead, bound to St. Petersburg with a cargo of cotton and coffee.

"Brig Radius, B. Lander, master, of Boston, owned by W. Gray, from Newport, bound to St. Petersburg, with a cargo of oil, cotton, &c.

"DEAR SIR,

"THE two vessels above mentioned, arrived at Elsineur, on the 6th instant, paid their Sound dues, and proceeded on their voyage. On the 7th, the wind being ahead, they anchored near this port. Yesterday morning, about 4 o'clock, they got under way again, and in the course of the day were captured by a French privateer, at about six English miles from the Danish shore, off the point of Falsterbrough, that is within the Swedish jurisdiction. They were brought into this port by said privateer at 2 o'clock yesterday afternoon. I made every effort with Mr.