1804. BARING versus CHRISTIE. 1st, that the papers were thrown into the sea by the captain in sight of the privateer, which captured him; 2dly, that the captain and supercargo, having precipitately abandoned their ship in spite of the good treatment received by them from the French captain, and the hints he gave them about remaining there, in order to plead their own cause, and thereby avoid her confiscation; thirdly, the behaviour of the captured crew; fourthly, the captain being a Portugueze without a certificate of his naturalization; fifthly, that the United States, in the last treaty which they concluded with England, have suffered to be added to the articles, which have been looked upon till at present as contraband of war, staves, tar, tackles, sail-cloth, iron-hoops, and finally, all which can be made use of for the vessels, are sufficient motives to condemn the said ship; after a serious examination we have adjudged, and do judge, that the ship, Mount Vernon, capt. George Dominick, a Portugueze, with her cargo, has been duly and justly captured by the French privateer, commanded by citizen Nadal, to whom we adjudge the same as property belonging to him, &c.-St. Domingo, Fructidor 13, (13th August), 4th year of the Republic, one, &c. Signed in the register, PoNs, judge, and DESPUGEAN, notary public.-Signed, PoNs, judge, and DESPUGEAN, notary. The special verdict also found the 12th article of the treaty between America and France of the 6th of February, 1773, viz. "The merchant ships of either of the parties which shall be making into a port belonging to the enemy of the other ally, and concerning whose voyage and the species of goods on board her, there shall be just grounds of suspicion, shall be obliged to exhibit as well upon the high seas as in the ports and havens, not only her passports, but likewise her certificates, expressly shewing that her goods are not of the number of those which have been prohibited as contraband ;" and also the 23d article of the same treaty as follows: "It shall be lawful for all and singular the subject of the most christian king, and the citizens, people, and inhabitants of the said United States, to sail with their ships with all manner of liberty, and security, no distinction being made, who are the proprietors of the merchandizes laden thereon, from any port to the places of those who now are or hereafter shall be at enmity with the most christian king, or United States; it shall likewise be lawful for the subjects and inhabitants aforesaid to sail with the ships and merchandizes before mentioned, and to trade with the same liberty and security from the places, ports, and havens of those who are enemies of both or either party without any opposition or disturbance whatsoever, not only direct from the places of the enemy aforesaid to neutral places, but also from one place belonging to any enemy to another place belonging to an enemy, whether they be under the jurisdiction of the same prince or under several. Also the 25th article, both in French and English :”* « To the end that all manner of dissentions and quarrels may be avoided and prevented on the one side and the other, it is agreed that in case either of the parties hereto should be engaged in war, the ships and vessels belonging to the subjects or people of the other ally must be furnished with sea letters or passports, expressing the name, property, bulk of the ships (of the said ship) as also the name and place of habitation of the master or commander of the said ship, that it may appear thereby that the ship really and truly belongs to the subjects of one of the parties, which passports shall be made out and granted according to the form annexed to this treaty: these passports shall be renewed (they are likewise to be renewed) every year in case the vessel returns home in the space of a year (that is, if the ship happens to return home within the space of 1804. BARING verous CHRISTIE. There being some difference between the English and French copies annexed to the treaty, the translation of the French copy is stated here as text, and the various readings of the English copy, annexed to the treaty, are inserted in italics between brackets. 1804. BARING versus CHRISTIE. a year). It is likewise agreed that such ships, being laden, are to be provided not only with a passport (with passports as above mentioned) but with certificates containing the [several] particulars of the cargo, the place from whence the ship sailed, [and whither she is bound that so it may be known whether any contraband goods be on board the same], and an account of such article of contraband as he has on board, which certificates shall be made out by the officers of the place from whence the ship set sail; and if any one shall think it fit or adviseable to express in the certificate, the persons to whom the goods on board belong, he may freely do so." Also the 27th article viz. "That if the ships of the said subjects, people or inhabitants of either of the parties, shall be met with, either sailing along the coasts or on the high seas, by any ships of war of the other, or by any privateers, the said ships of war or privateers, for the avoiding of any disorders, shall remain out of cannon-shot, and may send their boats aboard the merchant-ship which they shall so meet with, and may enter her to the number of two or three men only, to whom the master or commander of such ship or vessel shall exhibit his passport, concerning the property of the ship made out according to the form inserted in this present treaty; and the ship, when she shall have shewed her passport, shall be free and at liberty to pursue her voyage, so as it shall not be lawful to molest or search. her in any manner, or to give her chase, or force her to quit her intended course." The special verdict then stated the American act of Congress, 20th July, 1796, imposing a duty upon tonnage, to take place after the 1st of September, 1790, on all vessels entering an American port, viz. on the ships of the United States, 6 cents per ton; on vessels built within the U. S. but belonging wholly or in part to subjects of foreign powers, 30 cents per ion; and on other ships 50 cents per ton. Also, an act of congress, passed the 31st December, 1792, for the registry of vessels to take place after the last day of March then next, enacting that ships registered under a certain aet, entitled, &c.; and those registered under that act, and no other, except such as are duly qualified for the coasting trade and fisheries, shall be denominated and deemed ships or vessels of the United States, entitled to the benefits and privileges appertaining to such ships or vessels, provided they shall not continue to enjoy the same longer than they shall continue to be wholly owned and be commanded by a citizen of the U. S. and which, in effect, directs that vessels, built or not built in America, after the 4th day of July, 1776, and belonging wholly to citizens of the United States, or ships not United Statesbuilt, but on the 16th of May, 1789, and thenceforth belonging to citizens of the U. S. or vessels duly captured or forfeited, and so belonging to such citizens, may be registered, and no other; provided that they be not entitled to be registered, or to the benefit of registry, if owned wholly or in part by such citizen residing abroad, other than foreign consuls or partners in American houses of trade, &c. And that, in order to such registry, an oath shall be taken by the owner, &c. before the registering officer, declaring, to the best of his knowledge and belief, the name, burthen, and built of the vessel, the year when built, &c. when transferred to a citizen of the U. S. or captured or forfeited, producing a copy of the condemnation, authenticated in the usual forms, and declaring his, her, or their place of abode; and if he or she be the sole owner, or who is owner, &c. with their names and abodes, and that he, so swearing, is a citizen, &c. and whether any owner resides out of the U. S. &c. And that there is no foreign subject, directly or indirectly, by way of trust or otherwise, interested in any such ship, or the profits or issues thereof: and that the master or commander thereof is a citizen of the U. S. and the manner in which he is so; subject to the forfeiture of the ship and tackle, &c. in case the same is false, within the knowledge of the person so swearing, &c. That when the master is changed, the owners shall report such change to the collector of the district, &c. where the said vessel shall first be after 1804. BARING versus CHRISTIE, 1804. BARING wards, and shall make oath that the new master is a citizen of the U. S. and shall indorse the same upon the certificate of registry to be then produced, &c. subject to a CHRISTIE. forfeiture of the registry, and a fine of 100 dollars, on the versus Bill of Excep master, in case the said oath be not so made, &c. That if any ship shall be transferred, in whole or in part, to or in trust for a foreign subject; and the same be not made known, as before directed, such ship, &c. shall be forfeited, with a saving of the rights of any citizen and owner not knowing of the sale; that upon the entry of every ship of the U. S. at the port of any owner's residence, he shall make oath that the register contains the names of all the owners, and whether the ship has since been trausferred, and that no foreign subject has, to his belief, any share therein, by trust or otherwise; and if no owner shall reside at such port where the ship shall enter, the master shall make the like oath, otherwise such ship shall not be entitled to the privileges of a ship of the U. S. But whether, &c. Damages assessed conditionally at 5231. 13s. 6d. costs, 40s. Continuance aud judgment for the defendant, and damages adjudged to the defendant, by occasion of the premises, to 2301. by the direction of the justices here to the said defendant, at his request, for his costs and charges, by him, &c. tions. Bill of Exceptions, stating that the counsel for the defendant, in order to prove that the said ship, with her ́cargo, were proceeded against by the captors in the provisional tribunal of prizes in the island of St. Domingo, and that a sentence of condemnation was pronounced by the said tribunal; and in order to prove the contents of the said sentence, proved that in consequence of an application to the attornies for the plaintiff's by the attorney for the defendant, to furnish the defendant with all such papers and documents as tended to shew, who were interested in the said ship and in her said cargo, and in what manner they were lost, the said paintiff's by their attornies sent the following letter: "Mount Vernon.Messrs. Smith, &c. herewith send the only two letters which the plaintiffs have received from Messrs. Wil |