1st. His Britannic Majesty acknowledges the said United States, viz. New Hampshire, Massachusetts Bay, Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, to be free, sovereign, and independent states; that he treats with them as such; and for himself, his heirs and successors, relinquishes all claims to the government, proprietary, and territorial rights of the same, and every part thereof: and that all disputes which might arise in future, on the subject of the boundaries of the said United States, may be prevented, it is hereby agreed and declared, that the following are, and shall remain to be their boundaries, viz.

The said states are bounded north, by a line to be drawn from the north-west angle of Nova Scotia, along the high lands, which divide those rivers which empty themselves into the river St. Lawrence, from those which fall into the Atlantic Ocean, to the northernmost head of Connecticut river; thence down along the middle of that river to the forty-fifth degree of north latitude, and thence due west in the latitude forty-five degrees north from the equator, to the northwesternmost side of the river St. Lawrence, or Cadaraqui; thence straight to the south end of the lake Nipissing, and thence straight to the source of the river Mississippi, west by a line to be drawn along the middle of the river Mississippi, from its source to where the said line shall intersect the thirty-first degree of north latitude; south by a line to be drawn due east from the termination of the line last mentioned, in the latitude of thirty-one degrees north of the equator to the middle of the river Appalachicola or Catahouchi; thence along the middle thereof to its junction with the Flint river; thence straight to the head of St. Mary's river; thence down along the middle of St. Mary's river to the Atlantic Ocean; and east by a line to be drawn along the middle of St. John's river, from its source to its mouth in the Bay of Fundy; comprehending all islands within twenty leagues of any part of the shores of the United States, and lying between lines to be drawn due east from the points where the afore said boundaries, between Nova Scotia, on the one part, and East Florida on the other, shall respectively touch the Bay of Fundy and the Atlantic Ocean.

2d. From and immediately after the conclusion of the proposed treaty, there shall be a firm and perpetual peace between his

Britannic Majesty and the United States, and between the subjects of the one and the citizens of the other: wherefore all hostilities, both by sea and land, shall then immediately cease; all prisoners on both sides shall be set at liberty; and his Britannic Majesty' shall forthwith, and without causing any distinction, withdraw all his armies, garrisons, and fleets, from the said United States, and from every post, place, and harbor, within the same, leaving in all fortifications the American artillery that may be therein and shall also order and cause all archives, records, deeds, and papers, belonging to either of the said states, or their citizens, which in the course of the war may have fallen into the hands of his officers, to be forthwith restored, and delivered to the proper states, and persons to whom they belong. 3d. That the subjects of his Britannic Majesty, and people of the said United States, shall continue to enjoy unmolested, the right to take fish of every kind on the banks of Newfoundland, and other places where the inhabitants of both countries used formerly, to wit, before the last war between France and Britain, to fish, and also to dry and cure the same at the accustomed places, whether belonging to his said majesty, or to the United States; and his Britannic Ma jesty, and the said United States will extend equal privileges and hospitality to each other's fishermen as to their own.

4th. That the navigation of the river Mississippi, from its source to the ocean, shall for ever remain free and open, and that both there, and in all rivers, harbors, lakes, ports, and places, belonging to his Britannic Majesty, or to the United States, or in any part of the world, the merchants and merchants' ships, of the one and the other, shall be received, treated, and protected, like the merchant and merchants' ships of the sovereign of the country: that is to say, the British merchants, and merchant ships, on the one hand, shall enjoy in the United States, and in all places belonging to them, the said protection and commercial privileges, and be liable only to the same charges and duties as their own merchants and merchant ships; and on the other hand the merchants and merchant ships of the United States, shall enjoy in all places belonging to his Britannic Majesty, the same protection and commercial privileges, and be liable only to the same charges and duties of British merchants and merchant ships, saving always to the chartered trading companies of Great Britain, such exclusive use and trade, and their respective posts

VOL. II.

T

and establishments, as neither the subjects of Great Britain, nor any of the more favored nations participate in.

Paris, 8th October, 1782. A true copy of which has been agreed on between the American commissioners and me, to be submitted to his Majesty's consideration.

RICHARD OSWALD.

Alteration to be made in the treaty, respecting the boundaries of Novu

Scotia, viz.

East, the true line between which and the United States shall be settled by commissioners, as soon as conveniently may be after the

war.

Copy of Pass given to the ship Washington to carry over the preliminary articles. GEORGE R.

(L. S.)

George the Third, by the Grace of God, King of Great Britain, France and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, &c. To all Admirals, Vice Admirals, Captains, Commanders of our ships of war or privateers, Governors of our Forts and Castles, Custom-house Comptrollers, Searchers, &c. to all and singular our officers and military, and loving subjects whom it may concern, greeting, Our will and pleasure is, and we do hereby strictly charge and require you, as we do likewise pray and desire the officers and ministers of all princes and states in amity with us, to permit and suffer the vessel, called the Washington, commanded by Mr. Barney, belonging to the United States of North America, to sail from either of the ports of France to any port or place in North America, without any lett, hindrance, or molestation whatsoever, (but on the contrary affording the said vessel all such aid and assistance as may be necessary. Given at our court at St. James's the tenth day of December, 1782, in the twenty-third year of our reign-By his majesty's command,

(Signed)

THOMAS TOWNSHEND.

We have the honor to congratulate congress on the signature of the preliminaries of a peace between the crowit of Great Britain and the United States of America, to be inserted in a definitive treaty so soon as the terms between the crowns of France and Great Britain shall be agreed on. A copy of the articles is here enclosed,' and we cannot but flatter ourselves that they will appear to congress, as they do to all of us, to be consistent with the honor and interest of the United States; and we are persuaded congress would be more fully of that opinion if they were apprised of all the circumstances, and reasons which have influenced the negociation. Although it is impossible for us to go into that detail, we think it necessary nevertheless to make a few remarks on such of the articles as appear most to require elucidation,

Remarks on Article 2, relative to the boundaries.

The court of Great Britain insisted on retaining all the territories comprehended within the province of Quebec by the act of parliament respecting it. They contended that Nova Scotia should extend to the river Kennebeck; and they claimed not only all the lands in the western country, and on the Mississippi, which were not expressly included in our charters and governments, but also all such lands within them as remained ungranted by the King of Great Britain: it would be endless to enumerate all the discussions and

'See page 278 of this vol.

arguments on the subject. We knew this court and Spain to be against our claims to the western country, and having no reason to think that lines more favorable could ever have been obtained, we finally agreed to those described in this article. Indeed they appear to leave us little to complain of, and not much to desire. Congress will observe, that although our northern line is in a certain part below the latitude of forty-five, yet in others it extends above it, divides the Lake Superior, and gives us access to its western and southern waters, from which a line in that latitude would have excluded us.

..

Remarks on article 4, respecting creditors.

We had been informed that some of the states had confiscated British debts; but although each state has a right to bind its own citizens, yet in our opinion it appertains solely to congress, in whom exclusively are vested the right of making war and peace, to pass acts against the subjects of a power with which the confederacy may be at war. It therefore only remained for us to consider, whether this article is founded in justice and good policy.

In our opinion no acts of government could dissolve the obligations of good faith, resulting from lawful contracts between individuals of the two countries, prior to the war. We knew that some of the British creditors were making common cause with the refugees, and other adversaries of our independence; besides, sacrificing private justice to reasons of state and political convenience, is always an odious measure, and the purity of our reputation in this respect in all foreign commercial countries is of infinitely more importance to us, than all the sums in question. It may also be remarked, that American and British creditors are placed on an equal footing.