be taken after the signing of this treaty, excepting only the islands hereinafter mentioned, shall be restored without delay, and without causing any destruction or carrying away any of the artillery or other public property originally captured in the said forts or places, and which shall remain therein upon the exchange of the ratifications of this treaty, or any slaves, or other private property; and all archives, records, deeds, and papers, either of a public nature, or belonging to private persons, which, in the course of the war, may have fallen into the hands of the officers of either party, shall be, as far as may be practicable, forthwith restored and delivered to the proper authorities and persons to whom they respectively belong.' "Considering that, in this stipulation, the words originally captured, and which shall remain therein upon the exchange of ratifications, form an incidental phrase, which can have respect, grammatically, only to the substantives or subjects which precede; "That the first article of the Treaty of Ghent thus prohibits the contracting parties from carrying away from the places of which it stipulates the restitution, only the public property which might have been originally captured there, and which should remain therein upon the exchange of the ratifications, but that it prohibits the carrying away from these same places any private property whatever; "That, on the other hand, these two prohibitions are solely applicable to the places of which the article stipulates the restitution; "The Emperor is of opinion: "That the United States of America are entitled to a just indemnification, from Great Britain, for all private property carried away by the British forces; and as the question regards slaves more especially, for all such slaves as were carried away by the British forces, from the places and territories of which the restitution was stipulated by the treaty, in quitting the said places and territories; That the United States are entitled to consider, as having been so carried away, all such slaves as may have been transported from the above-mentioned territories on board of the British vessels within the waters of said territories, and who, for this reason, have not been restored; "But that, if there should be any American slaves who were carried away from the territories of which the first article of the Treaty of Ghent has not stipulated the restitution to the United States, the United States are not to claim an indemnification for the said slaves."" "The Emperor declares, besides, that he is ready to exercise the office of mediator, which has been conferred on him beforehand by the two states, in the negotiations which must ensue between them in consequence of the award which they have demanded. "Done at St. Petersburg 22d April, 1822." "Count Nesselrode to Mr Middleton. "[Translation.] "The undersigned, Secretary of State, directing the Imperial Administration of Foreign Affairs, has, without delay, laid before the Emperor, his master, the explanations into which the Ambassador of His Britannic Majesty has entered with the Imperial Ministry, in consequence of the preceding contidential communication which was made to Mr. Middleton, as well as to Sir Charles Bagot, of the opinion expressed by the Emperor upon the true sense of the 1st article of the Treaty of Ghent. "Sir Charles Bagot understands that, in virtue of the decision of His Imperial Majesty, His Britannic Majesty is not bound to indemnify the United States for any slaves who, coming from places which have never been occupied by his troops, voluntarily joined the British forces, either in consequence of the encouragement which His Majesty's officers had offered them, or to free themselves from the power of their master-these slaves not having been carried away from places or territories captured by His Britannic Majesty during the war, and, consequently, not having been carried away from places of which the article stipulates the restitution.' "In answer to this observation, the undersigned is charged by His Imperial Majesty to communicate what follows to the Minister of the United States of America: "The Emperor having, by the mutual consent of the two Plenipotentiaries, given an opinion founded solely upon the sense which results from the text of the article in dispute, does not think himself called upon to decide here any question relative to what the laws of war permit or forbid to the belligerents; but, always faithful to the grammatical interpretation of the 1st article of the Treaty of Ghent, His Imperial Majesty declares, a second time, that it appears to him according to this interpretation: "That, in quitting the places and territories of which the Treaty of Ghent stipulates the restitution to the United States, His Britannic Majesty's forces had no right to carry away from these same places and territories, absolutely, any slave, by whatever means he had fallen or come into their power. "But that if, during the war, American slaves had been carried away by the English forces, from other places than those of which the Treaty of Ghent stipulates the restitution, upon the territory, or on board British vessels, Great Britain should not be bound to indemnify the United States for the loss of these slaves, by whatever means they might have fallen or come into the power of her officers.' "Although convinced, by the previous explanations above mentioned, that such is also the sense which Sir Charles Bagot attaches to his observation, the undersigned has nevertheless received from His Imperial Majesty orders to address the present note to the respective Plenipotentiaries, which will prove to them, that, in order the better to justify the confidence of the two Governments, the Emperor has been unwilling that the slightest doubt should arise regarding the consequences of his opinion. "The undersigned eagerly embraces this occasion of repeating to Mr. Middleton the assurance of his most distinguished consideration. "ST. PETERSBURG, 22d April, 1822." "NESSELRODE. By this award it appears that the point of difference was decided in favor of the United States. The Emperor held that the limitations as to the restitution of public property bore no relation to private property. The treaty, he said, prohibited the carrying away of any private property whatever from the places and territories of which the restitution was stipulated by the treaty; that the United States were entitled to consider as having been so carried away all slaves which had been transported from those territories on board of British vessels within the waters of such territories, and who, for that reason, had not been restored, but not slaves which were carried away from territories of which the Treaty of Ghent did not stipulate the restitution. Besides rendering a decision on this point, the Emperor delared that he was ready to exercise the office. of mediator in the negotiations which must ensue between the United States and Great Britain in consequence of the award. 2. MIXED COMMISSIONS UNDER CONVENTION OF JUNE 30 (JULY 12), 1822. The offer of the Emperor to act as mediator was accepted by both the parties to the arbitration, and on June 30 (July 12), 1822, a convention was concluded between them under his mediation.1 Average Value and Claims. By this convention the execution of the award was to be accomplished by two processes, the first of which was the ascertainment of an average value to be allowed as compensation for each slave for which indemnification might be due; the second, the exami 1 Am. State Papers, For. Rel. V. 214. nation of individual claims, in order to determine the number of slaves and the amount of other property for which compensation should be paid. Two Boards. For these purposes the convention provided that each government should appoint one "commissioner" and one "arbitrator;" that the two commissioners and two arbitrators so appointed should "meet and hold their sittings as a board in the city of Washington;" that they should have power to appoint a secretary; that before proceeding to the other business of the commission they should respectively take an oath or affirmation diligently, impartially, and carefully to examine, and to the best of their judgment, according to justice and equity, to decide all matters submitted to them under the convention. It was further provided that any vacancy occurring in the board should be filled in the same manner as the original appointment. But in reality the commissioners and arbitrators whose appointment was thus authorized constituted two boards, for the performance, respectively, of the successive processes of ascertaining the average value of slaves and determining the validity of individual claims. Board Under Article By Article II. of the convention it was provided that if at the first meeting of the board consisting of the two commissioners and two arbitrators the governments of the United States and Great Britain should not have agreed on "an average value, to be allowed as compensation for each slave for whom indemnification may be due," in that case the "commissioners and arbitrators" should "conjointly proceed to examine the testimony which shall be produced under the authority of the President of the United States, together with such other competent testimony as they may see cause to require or allow, going to prove the true value of slaves at the period of the exchange of the ratifications of the Treaty of Ghent," and upon the evidence so obtained "agree upon and fix the average value." But in case "the majority of the board of commissioners and arbitrators should not be able to agree respecting such average value," it was stipulated that a statement of the evidence produced, and of the proceedings of the board upon it, should be communicated to the diplomatic representative of Russia in the United States, who should render thereon a final decision. Board Under Article "Definitive List" of Claims. By Article III. of the convention it was provided that after the average value of slaves should have been fixed the two commissioners should constitute a board for the examination of individual claims. They were however restricted to the consideration of such claims as should be contained in a "definitive list," to be furnished by the Secretary of State of the United States, "of the slaves and other private property for which the citizens of the United States claim indemnification." Claims "not contained in" this list the commission was "not to take cognizance of, nor receive;" nor was the British Government to be required to make compensation for them. On the other hand, His Britannic Majesty engaged "to cause to be produced before the commission, as material towards ascertaining facts, all the evidence of which His Majesty's Government may be in possession, by returns from His Majesty's officers or otherwise, of the number of slaves carried away." The "evidence so produced, or its defectiveness," was not however to be allowed to "go in bar of any claim or claims which shall be otherwise satisfactorily authenticated." By Article IV. of the convention the two commissioners were required to examine "all the claims submitted, thro' the above-mentioned list, by the owners of slaves or other property, or by their lawful attorneys or representatives," and to determine them according to the merits, under the rule expressed in their oaths, having regard to the imperial award and the explanations accompanying it. "And, in considering such claims," the article further provided, "the Commissioners are empowered and required to examine, on oath or affirmation, all such persons as shall come before them touching the real number of the slaves, or value of other property, for which indemnification is claimed; and also to receive in evidence, according as they may think consistent with equity and justice, written depositions or papers, such depositions or papers being duly authenticated, either according to existing legal forms or in such other manner as the said commissioners shall see cause to require or allow." "In the event of the two commissioners not agreeing in any particular case under examination, or of their disagreement upon any question which may result from the stipulations of this convention," Article V. provided that they should draw |