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DONE at PARIS, this Sixth Day of February, One Thousand Seven Hundred and Seventy-Eight.

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Form of the Pafports and Letters which are to be given to the Ships and Barques according to the Twenty-fifth Article of this Treaty.

To all who fhall fee thefe prefents, Greeting.

IT is hereby made known, that leave and permiffion has been given to mafter and commander of the ship called of the town of

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tons or thereabouts, lying at present in the port and haven of and bound for

and laden with After that this fhip has been vifited, and before failing, he fhall make oath before the officers who have the jurifdiction of maritime affairs, that the faid fhip belongs to one or more of the fubjects of the act whereof

fhall be put at the end of these presents; as likewife that he will keep and caufe to be kept by his crew on board, the marine ordinances and regulations, and enter in the proper office a lift, figned and witneffed, containing the names and firnames, the places of birth and abode of the crew of his fhip, and of all who fhall embark on board her, whom he shall not take on board without the knowledge and permiffion of the officers of the marine; and every port or haven where he fhall enter with his fhip, he fhall fhew his prefent leave to the officers and judges of the marine; and fhall give a faithful account to them of what paffed and was done during his voyage; and he fhall carry the colours, arms and enfign of the king or united states during his voyage. In witnefs whereof we have figned thefe prefents, and put the feal of our arms thereunto, and caufed the fame to be counterfigned by

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TREATY OF ALLIANCE,
EVENTUAL and DEFENSIVE.

LOUIS, by the Grace of GoD, King of France and Navarre,

TH

To all who fhall fee thefe prefents, Greeting:

HE Congress of the united states of North-America, having by their plenipotentiaries refiding in France, propofed to form with us a defenfive and eventual Alliance: Willing to give the faid ftates an efficacious proof of the intereft we take in their profperity, we have determined to conclude the faid alliance. For thefe caufes and other good confiderations thereto moving, we, repofing entire confidence in the capacity and experience, zeal and fidelity for our fervice, of our dear and beloved Conrad Alexander Gerard, royal fyndic of the city of Strasbourg, fecretary of our council of ftate, have nominated, comm fioned and deputed, and by thefe prefents figned with our hand, do nominate, commiffion and depute him our plenipotentiary, giving him power and special command to act in this quality, and confer, negociate, treat and agree conjointly with the abovementioned plenipotentiaries of the united states, invested in the like manner with powers in due form to determine, conclude and fign fuch articles, conditions, conventions, declarations, definitive treaty, and any other alts whatever, as he fhall judge proper to answer the end which we propofe; promifing on the faith and word of a king, to agree to, confirm and establish for ever, to accomplish and execute punctually whatever our faid dear and beloved Conrad Alexander Gerard fhall have ftipulated and figned in virtue of the prefent power, without ever contravening it, or juffering it to be contravened for any cause and under any pretext whatever, as likewife to caufe our letters of ratification to be made in due form, and to have them delivered in order to be exchanged at the time that shall be agreed upon. For fuch is our pleasure. In teftimony whereof we have fet our feal to thefe prefents. Given at Verfailles, the thirtieth day of the month January, in the year of grace one thousand feven hundred and feventy-eight, and the fourth of our reign. (Signed)

(L. S.)

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LOUIS.

By the King

GRAVIER de VERGENNES

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HE Moft Chriftian King and the United States of NorthAmerica, to wit, New-Hampshire, Maffachusetts-Bay, Rhode-Ifland, Connecticut, New-York, New-Jersey, Pennfylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North-Carolina, and Georgia, having this day concluded a Treaty of Amity and Commerce, for the reciprocal advantage of their fubjects and citizens, have thought it neceffary to take into confideration the means of ftrengthening those engagements, and of rendering them useful to the fafety and tranquillity of the two parties; particularly in cafe Great-Britain, in refentment of that connection, and of the good correfpondence which is the object of the faid treaty, fhould break the peace with France, either by direct hoftilities, or by hindering her commerce and navigation in a manner contrary to the rights of nations, and the peace fubfifting between the two crowns. And his majefty and the faid united states having refolved in that case, to join their councils and efforts against the enterprizes of their common enemy;

The refpective plenipotentiaries impowered to concert the clauses and conditions proper to fulfil the faid intentions, have, after the moft mature deliberation, concluded and determined on the following articles.

Article 1. IF war fhould break out between France and GreatBritain during the continuance of the prefent war between the united states and England, his majefty and the faid united states fhall make it a common caufe, and aid each other mutually with their good offices, their counfels and their forces, according to the exigence of conjunctures, as becomes good and faithful allies.

Art. 2. The effential and direct end of the prefent defenfive alliance is, to maintain effectually the liberty, fovereignty, and independence, abfolute and unlimited, of the faid united states, as well in matters of government as of commerce.

Art. 3. The two contracting parties fhall, each on its own part, and in the manner it may judge moft proper, make all the efforts in its power against their common enemy, in order to attain the end propofed.

Art. 4. The contracting parties agree, that in cafe either of them fhould form any particular enterprize in which the concurrence of the other may be defired, the party whofe concurrence is defired, fhall readily and with good faith join to act in concert for that purpofe, as far as circumftances and its own particular fituation will permit.; and in that cafe, they fhall regulate by a particular convention, the quantity and kind of fuccour to be furnished, and the time and manner of its being brought into action, as well as the advantages which are to be its compenfation.

Art.

Art. 5. If the united states fhould think fit to attempt the reduction of the British power remaining in the northern parts of America, or the islands of Bermudas, thofe countries or islands, in cafe of fuccefs, fhall be confederated with, or dependent upon the faid united ftates.

Art. 6. The most christian king renounces for ever the poffeffion of the islands of Bermudas, as well as of any part of the continent of North-America, which before the treaty of Paris, in 1763, or in virtue of that treaty, were acknowledged to belong to the crown of Great-Britain, or to the united states, heretofore called British colonies, or which are at this time, or have lately been under the power of the king and crown of Great-Britain.

Art. 7. If his moft chriftian majefty fhall think proper to attack any of the islands fituated in the Gulph of Mexico, or near that gulph, which are at prefent under the power of Great Britain, all the faid ifles, in cafe of success, shall appertain to the crown of France.

Art. 8. Neither of the two parties fhall conclude either truce or peace with Great-Britain, without the formal confent of the other first obtained; and they mutually engage not to lay down their arms, until the independence of the united ftates fhall have been formally or tacitly affured, by the treaty or treaties that fhall terminate the war. :

Art. 9. The contracting parties declare, that being refolved to fulfil each on its own part, the claufes and conditions of the prefent treaty of alliance, according to its own power and circumftances, there fhall be no after-claim of compenfation, on one fide of the other, whatever may be the event of the war.

Art. 10. The most chriftian king and the united states agree to invite or admit other powers, who may have received injuries from England, to make common cause with them, and to accede to the present alliance, under fuch conditions as fhall be freely agreed to, and fettled between all the parties.

Art. 11. The two parties guarantee mutually from the prefent time and for ever, against all other powers, to wit, The united ftates to his moft chriftian majefty, the prefent poffeffions of the crown of France in America, as well as thofe which it may acquire by the future treaty of peace; and his most chriftian majesty guarantees on his part to the united states, their liberty, fovereignty, and independence, abfolute and unlimited, as well in matters of government as commerce, and alfo their poffeffions, and the additions or conquefts, that their confederation may obtain during the war, from any of the dominions now or heretofore poffeffed by Great-Britain in North-America, conformable to the fifth and fixth articles above written; the whole as their poffeffion fhall be fixed and affured to the faid ftates, at the moment of the ceffation of their prefent war with England.

Art. 12. In order to fix more precifely the fenfe and application of the preceding article, the contracting parties declare, that in

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case of a rupture between France and England, the reciprocal guarantee declared in the faid article, fhall have its full force and effect, the moment fuch war fhall break out; and if fuch rupture shall not take place, the mutual obligations of the faid guarantee fhall not commence until the moment of the ceffation of the present war, between the united states and England, fhall have ascertained their poffeffions.

Art. 13. The prefent treaty fhall be ratified on both fides, and the ratifications fhall be exchanged in the space of fix months, or fooner, if poffible.

IN FAITH WHEREOF the refpective plenipotentiaries, to wit, on the part of the most chriftian king, Conrad Alexander Gerard, royal fyndic of the city of Strafbourg, and fecretary of his majesty's council of state; and on the part of the united states, Benjamin Franklin, deputy to the general congress from the state of Pennsylvania, and prefident of the convention of faid ftate; Silas Deane, heretofore deputy from the state of Connecticut ; and Arthur Lee, counsellor at law, have figned the above articles both in the French and English languages; declaring, nevertheless, that the present treaty was originally compofed and concluded in the French language, and they have hereunto: affixed their feals.

DONE at PARIS, this Sixth Day of February, One Thousand Seven Hundred and Seventy-Eight.

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