"Her Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the President of the United States of America hereby solemnly and sincerely engage to consider the decision of the Commissioners, or of the Arbitrator or Umpire, as the case may be, as absolutely final and conclusive upon each of such claims decided upon by him or them, respectively, and to give full effect to such decision without any objection or delay whatsoever.

"It is agreed that no claim arising out of any transaction of a date prior to July 26th, 1853, the day of the exchange of the ratifications of the Convention of February 8th, 1853, shall be admissible under this Convention..

"ART. 3.—Every claim shall be presented to the Commissioners within six months from the day of their first meeting, unless in any case where reasons for delay shall be established to the satisfaction of the Commissioners, or of the Arbitrator or Umpire in the event of the Commissioners differing in opinion thereupon; and then, and in any such case, the period for presenting the claim may be extended to any time not exceeding three months longer.

"The Commissioners shall be bound to examine and decide upon every claim within two years from the day of their first meeting. It shall be competent for the Commissioners, or for the Arbitrator or Umpire, if they differ, to decide in each case whether any claim has or has not been duly made, preferred, or laid before them, either wholly, or to any and what extent, according to the true intent and meaning of this Convention.

“ART. 4.—All sums of money which may be awarded by the Commissioners, or by the Arbitrator or Umpire, on account of any claim, shall be paid in coin or its equivalent by the one Government to the other, as the case may be, within eighteen months after the date of the decision, without interest.

"ART. 5.-The High Contracting Parties engage to consider the result of the proceedings of this Commission as a full and final settlement of every claim upon either Government, arising out of any transaction of a date prior to the exchange of the rati

that every

fications of the present Convention; and further engage such claim whether or not the same may have been presented to the notice of, made, preferred, or laid before the said Commission shall, from and after the conclusion of the proceedings of the said Commission, be considered and treated as finally settled and barred, and thenceforth inadmissible.

"ART. 6.—The Commissioners and the Arbitrator or Umpire appointed by them shall keep an accurate record and correct minutes or notes of all their proceedings, with the dates thereof, and shall appoint and employ clerks or other persons to assist them in the transaction of the business which may come before them.

"The Secretary shall be appointed by her Britannic Majesty's representative at Washington and by the Secretary of State of the United States jointly.

"Each Government shall pay the salaries of its own Commissioners. All other expenses and the contingent expenses of the Commission, including the salary of the Secretary, shall be defrayed in moieties by the two Parties.

"ART. 7.-The present Convention shall be ratified by her Brittannic Majesty and by the President of the United States, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate thereof; and the Ratifications shall be exchanged at London as soon as may be within twelve months from the date hereof.

"In witness whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have signed the same, and have affixed their respective seals.

"Done at London the 14th day of January, in the year of our

Lord 1869.

"(L.S.)
"(L.S.)

CLARENDON.

REVERDY JOHNSON."

N.B.-The ratification of this, which is sometimes known as the Johnson-Clarendon Convention, was rejected by the American Senate on the 13th April, 1869.

TREATY OF WASHINGTON,

BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN AND THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

Signed at Washington, May 8th, 1871.

Ratifications exchanged at London, June 17th, 1871.

Her Britannic Majesty and the United States of America, being desirous to provide for an amicable settlement of all causes of difference between the two countries, have for that purpose appointed their respective Plenipotentiaries, that is to say:

For Great Britain: Earl de Grey and Ripon, Lord President of the Privy Council; Sir Stafford Henry Northcote, Bart., M.P.; Sir Edward Thornton, Ambassador to the U.S.A.; Sir John Alexander Macdonald, Attorney-General for Canada, and Professor Mountague Bernard; and for the United States: Hamilton Fish, Secretary of State; Robert Cumming Schenck, American Minister to Great Britain; Samuel Nelson, Judge of the Supreme Court; Ebenezer Rockwood Hoar, Esq., of Massachusetts, and George Henry Williams, Esq., of Oregon.

And the said Plenipotentiaries, after having exchanged their full powers, which were found to be in due and proper form, have agreed to and concluded the following Articles :-

SECTION I.-VIOLATION OF NEUTRALITY.

ART. 1.-Whereas differences have arisen between the Government of the United States and the Government of Her Britannic Majesty, and still exist, growing out of the acts committed by the several vessels which have given rise to the claims generically known as the "Alabama" claims:

And whereas Her Britannic Majesty has authorised Her High Commissioners and Plenipotentiaries to express, in a friendly spirit, the regret felt by Her Majesty's Government for the escape, under whatever circumstances, of the "Alabama" and other

vessels from British ports, and for the depredations committed by those vessels:

Now, in order to remove and adjust all complaints and claims on the part of the United States, and to provide for the speedy settlement of such claims, which are not admitted by Her Britannic Majesty's Government, the High Contracting Parties agree that all the said claims, growing out of acts committed by the aforesaid vessels, and generically known as the "Alabama" claims, shall be referred to a Tribunal of Arbitration to be composed of five Arbitrators to be appointed in the following manner, that is to say: one shall be named by Her Britannic Majesty; one shall be named by the President of the United States; His Majesty the King of Italy shall be requested to name one; the President of the Swiss Confederation shall be requested to name one; and His Majesty the Emperor of Brazil shall be requested

to name one.

In case of the death, absence, or incapacity to serve of any or either of the said Arbitrators, or in the event of either of the said Arbitrators omitting or declining or ceasing to act as such, Her Britannic Majesty, or the President of the United States, or His Majesty the King of Italy, or the President of the Swiss Confederation, or His Majesty the Emperor of Brazil, as the case may be, may forthwith name another person to act as Arbitrator in the place and stead of the Arbitrator originally nained by such head of a State.

And in the event of the refusal or omission for two months after receipt of the request from either of the High Contracting Parties of His Majesty the King of Italy, or the President of the Swiss Confederation, or His Majesty the Emperor of Brazil, to name an Arbitrator either to fill the original appointment or in the place of one who may have died, be absent, or incapacitated, or who may omit, decline, or from any cause cease to act as such Arbitrator, His Majesty the King of Sweden and Norway shall be requested to name one or more persons, as the case may be, to act as such Arbitrator or Arbitrators.

ART. 2.—The Arbitrators shall meet at Geneva, in Switzerland,

at the earliest convenient day after they shall have been named, and shall proceed impartially and carefully to examine and decide all questions that shall be laid before them on the part of the Governments of Her Britannic Majesty and the United States respectively. All questions considered by the Tribunal, including the final award, shall be decided by a majority of all the Arbitrators.

Each of the High Contracting Parties shall also name one person to attend the Tribunal as its Agent to represent it generally in all matters connected with the Arbitration.

ART. 3.-The written or printed case of each of the two Parties accompanied by the documents, the official correspondence, and other evidence on which each relies, shall be delivered in duplicate to each of the Arbitrators and to the Agent of the other Party as soon as may be after the organisation of the Tribunal, but within a period not exceeding six months from the date of the exchange of the ratifications of this Treaty.

ART. 4.-Within four months after the delivery on both sides of the written or printed case, either Party may, in like manner, deliver in duplicate to each of the said Arbitrators, and to the Agent of the other Party, a counter case and additional documents, correspondence, and evidence, in reply to the case, documents, correspondence, and evidence, so presented by the other Party.

The Arbitrators may, however, extend the time for delivering such counter case, documents, correspondence, and evidence, when, in their judgment, it becomes necessary, in consequence of the distance of the place from which the evidence to be presented is to be procured.

If in the case submitted to the Arbitrators either Party shall have specified or alluded to any report or document in its own exclusive possession without annexing a copy, such Party shall be bound, if the other Party thinks proper to apply for it, to furnish that Party with a copy thereof; and either Party may call upon the other, through the Arbitrators, to produce the originals or certified copies of any papers adduced as evidence, giving in each instance such reasonable notice as the Arbitrators may require.