supply in the same or another colony, the application may be granted, if it is made to appear that, owing to real necessities arising from stress of weather, the coal originally given has been prematurely exhausted before it was possible that the vessel could, under existing circumstances, have reached the destination for which she coaled.

But if it should be the case that the vessel has not, since taking in coal, been bona fide occupied in seeking her alleged destination, but has consumed her fuel in cruising, the coal should not be replenished under the terms of the proclamation. Such a case is not one to which the "special permission" referred to in that proclamation was intended to apply.

Her Majesty's government are of opinion that the regulations of the proclamation thus interpreted should be strictly adhered to, without any arbitrary concession to either belligerent. It is by such a course that misunderstandings and complaints of partiality will be most certainly avoided. An unauthorized concession to one belligerent, it may be safely assumed, will not be accepted by those to whom it is made as a justification of a similar concession in an opposite direction.

I approve of your having communicated to the officers administering the government of the other West Indian Islands the fact that certain Federal and confederate vessels of war had called at Barbados.

I shall instruct the governors of the other islands to follow the same course, communicating in all cases the name of the vessel, its alleged destination, and the date of receiving the coal, and the quantity allowed to be placed on board.

The foregoing papers are certainly deserving of attentive consideration, as establishing beyond controversy that the British government were desirous of carrying out, in their fullest extent, the Queen's regu lations for the maintenance of neutrality, and, what is more, that they were prepared to do so, though an adherence to the letter of these reg ulations would have the effect of placing one of the belligerents in a position of great disadvantage relatively to the other. It was obvious that the rule that, unless the whole of the last supply of coal obtained in a British port had been consumed in seeking the nearest port of the belligerent, not even distress of weather should form a ground for allowing a further supply within the three months, was one which exposed to very great difficulties those whose own ports were closed, and who, having few other ports to resort to, were thus compelled to keep the sea at the same time that their means of doing so were seriously diminished, while it was of very little importance to the other belligerent, who, having his ports open, could always have recourse to them for supplies if other resources failed.

Yet, when Sir James Walker, recollecting what had happened on the former occasion, and solicitous to carry out the instructions he had since received, in all their stringency, on the application of Captain Boggs, in April, 1865, to remain a few days at Barbados for the purpose of overhauling the piston and feeding-pump of the engine of his ship, the Connecticut, replied that it would be necessary, in order that he should sanction a stay beyond the prescribed time of twenty-four hours, that Captain Boggs should give a definite assurance of his inability to proceed to sea at the expiration of that time, and as to the period within which it would be possible to execute the necessary repairsmatters as to which the Florida at Bermuda had to submit to a survey by the naval authorities-Captain Boggs allowed his temper to get the better of him; says that "an American man-of-war can always go to sea in some manner"-which sober-minded people may perhaps think a somewhat idle boast-and that he shall do so, "though with risk to his vessel and machinery"-which, as it involved danger both to his ship and crew, may be thought a questionable view of his duty; "regrets that the national hospitality of remaining at anchor for the purpose named in his letter is refused," which was the reverse

British Appendix, vol. i, p. 101.

of the fact; and, evidently with considerable temper, informs the governor that he shall depart from the port to-morrow at 10 a. m.1 .

It is a pity that this outbreak of temper on the part of Captain Boggs should have been exposed by his own countrymen, as though it had been an example of heroism, or that the requisition of Governor Walker, induced by the stringent instructions issued by the British government on the occasion of the complaints of the United States relatively to the Florida, should have been distorted into anything more than a resolution to carry out those instructions efficiently and impartially toward both belligerents.

I return to the Florida. Her next visit to a British port was at Bermuda.

At Bermuda

From a dispatch of Governor Ord to the Duke of Newcastle it appears that the Florida was off the port of St. George's on the evening of the 15th of July, and on the following morning received the necessary permission to enter the port:

Having sent to Captain Maffitt a copy of the printed circular-letter I have had drawn up, embodying the instructions of Her Majesty respecting the treatment of Federal and confederate vessels of war, he called on me on the day of his arrival, and stated that he had been at sea seventy days, with the exception of two visits to Havana and Barbados, each of which occupied less than twenty-four hours, and a visit of shorter duration to a port in the Brazils; that he was last from the immediate neighborhood of New York, within sixty miles of which he had been harassing the United States commerce; that he was in want of repairs to the hull and machinery of his ship, and a small supply of coal; that he feared he should experience difficulty in obtaining the latter, as he was informed that there was no steam-coal whatever in the colony, except in the stores at the dock-yard; and that he trusted, under the circumstances, he would be permitted to receive from this source as much as would serve to carry him to a port of his own country; that he would then use every exertion to complete his refitment, and would leave the colony forthwith.

I told Captain Maffitt that his application for coal from admiralty stores must be made to the senior naval officer, but I assured him at the same time that it would not be complied with, and I granted him permission to remain so long as might be necessary to fit his ship for sea, and to procure from private sources the coal actually required.

All supply of coal from the dock-yard was refused. Thereupon Mr. Walker, a merchant of the colony, applies on behalf of Cap- The Florida at tain Maffitt to the governor :

Bermuna.

As the Florida must of necessity be detained at this port, as a vessel in distress, until the arrival of coals which are daily expected, Captain Maffitt begs me to inquire of your excellency if the privilege will be accorded to him of proceeding to the dock-yard for the purpose of having effected some repairs to machinery and hull of ship, which are of essential importance, and which cannot be effected in the port of St. George's.3

The answer of the governor was that the application could not be granted, to which he adds:

In making this communication I have to express a hope that Captain Maffitt may yet find it in his power to obtain for his vessel such supplies of coal and such necessary repairs as will enable her to proceed without delay to her destination, but I must at the same time point out that Her Majesty's instructions (with a copy of which Captain Mathitt was supplied on the 16th instant) are very stringent as to the limitation of the stay in British waters of vessels of war of the United States or Confederate States, and that it is necessary that whatever may be required to enable the Florida to take her departure from these islands should be provided in the shortest possible period. If, however, Captain Maffitt should find it impossible to procure at the present time whatever may be requisite for this purpose, I must request that he will at once proceed with the Florida to Grassy Bay, there to remain until his departure from the colony is rendered practicable.*

Mr. Walker wrote again, suggesting that there was a large quantity of coal lying in the commissariat department, and applying, on behalf of Captain Maffitt, in his great emergency, for a sufficient quantity to carry his vessel to some coaling depot, offering to pay for them, or toreturn them in kind within a week or two. This again was refused.

On the 22d of July the governor writes to Mr. Walker, requesting him "to ascertain, for his satisfaction, when the necessary repairs and coaling of the Florida will be completed, so as to enable her to proceed to sea." In answer, Mr. Walker says he is requested by Captain Maffitt to inform his excellency that he is using every effort to proceed to sea with as little delay as possible.

"Captain Maffitt," he says, "is fully aware of the stringent character of Her Majesty's instructions with regard to the stay in British waters of men-of-war of the United States and of the Confederate States; and begs me to assure your excellency that his detention has been occasioned not by any disposition to contravene Her Majesty's instructions on the subject, but from the great deficiency of labor at this port, and from canses to which the attention of your excellency has already been directed.

"The necessary r pairs to Captain Maffitt's ship are now nearly completed, and he will commence taking in his coals at 12 a. m. to-day. As it is probable that it will be impossible to finish coaling until to-morrow, (Friday,) Captain Maffitt would be happy to receive the permission of your excellency to remain in the port of St. George's until Saturday morning."

The governor answers that—

Although the instructions of Her Majesty respecting the limitation of the stay in British waters of vessels of war of the Confederate and United States are very stringent, yet, as I have reason to believe that circumstances beyond Captain Maffitt's control have obstructed him in procuring the supply of coal and repairs to his vessel, necessary to enable him to proceed to sea, I think I am justified in complying with his request; and I accordingly authorize the Florida remaining in these waters until the morning of Saturday, the 25th instant, but no longer,'

A cargo of coal had, in the mean time, arrived in a vessel called the Harriet Pinckney, out of which Captain Maffitt was enabled to obtain a supply. It is stated in the United States Case and Argument that this vessel was one of the "insurgent transports;" from which it is sought to be inferred that the cargo of coal brought out in her was intended expressly for the Florida; and upon this a charge is founded of a violation of neutrality in a breach of the rule that neither belligerent was to be permitted to establish depots of coal on British territory. To prove that the Harriet Pinckney was an "insurgent transport," a letter from Mr. Dudley to Mr. Seward, of January 2, 1863,3 is referred to; but, on turning to that letter, it will be found that Mr. Dudley is not speaking of or referring to "insurgent transports" at all, but to British vessels employed in runuing the blockade with arms and contraband of war. The word "transport," which, in the argument, is printed between inverted commas, as if taken from the letter, does not occur in it at all. The vessel was, to all appearance, an ordinary trading vessel-one of those engaged in the profitable employment of running the blockade. In this business she visited St. George's five times between January, 1863, and February, 1864. A letter from a Mr. Walker, is, indeed, printed in the seventh volume of the United States Documents, in which he says that he had employed the Harriet Pinckney in the beginning of July to bring a cargo of coal from Halifax; not, however, for the Florida, but to supply some steamer with the means of running the

1 British Appendix, vol. i, p. 111.

2 United States Case, p. 358; United States Argument, p. 161.

3 United States Documents, vol. i, p. 732.

4 British Appendix, vol. v, pp. 5, 13.

5 Ibid., p. 56,

blockade; and, as he expresses it, to save that steamer "the loss of a moon." This shows that the intention was not to supply the Florida with coal, and that the visit of the Florida to Bermuda was not in any way connected with the voyage of the Harriet Pinckney; still less was there anything to suggest the slightest suspicion of such a kind to the colonial authorities. Besides which, the anxietyof Captain Maffitt to obtain coal from other quarters shows plainly that he had no expectation of a specific cargo being sent out for his vessel.

The charge of any violation of neutrality on the occasion of the lastmentioned visit appears wholly to fail.

Leaving Bermuda on the 25th of July, the Florida arrived at Brest on the 23d of August. This part of her history is touched upon lightly and cautiously in the case of the United States;

At Brest.

yet the indulgence alleged to have been granted to this vessel in British ports is but trifling as compared with that which was extended to her in the French port; and the events which occurred there are important as showing that the French government entertained notions more liberal than our own on the subject of hospitality to be extended to belligerent vessels. She had sustained considerable injury to her copper, and much of her machinery required renewing, and workmen and materials had to be brought from England, and these repairs were likely to require a period of several months for their accomplishment. A considerable part of her crew, the time for which they had engaged having expired, desired their discharge. From the dispatches of Mr. Dayton, the United States minister at Paris, to Mr. Secretary Seward, it appears that Mr. Dayton began by remonstrating against any assistance being given to the Florida at all. But the French government answered that, having recognized the Confederate States as belligerents, they could not refuse them the ordinary assistance rendered to ships of war in need of repairs. Next. Mr. Dayton insisted that, as the Florida was a good sailing vessel, no repair should be allowed to be done to her machinery. But to this M. Drouyn de Lhuys answered, "that if she were deprived of her machinery, she would be pro tanto disabled, crippled, and liable, like a duck with its wings cut, to be at once caught by the United States steamers. He said it would be no fair answer to say the duck had legs and could walk or swim. He said that, in addition to this, the offcers of the port had reported to the government that the vessel was leaking badly, that she made water at so much per hour (giving the measurement) and unless repaired she would sink."1

There being no commercial dock at Brest, Captain Maffitt applied for the use of a government dock. Mr. Dayton remonstrated; but M. Drouyn de Lhuys replied that, where there was no commercial dock, as at Brest, it was customary to grant the use of any accommodation there to all vessels in distress, upon payment of certain known and fixed rates; that they must deal with this vessel as they would with one of the United States ships, or the ships of any other nation; and that to all such these accommodations would be granted at once.2

Lastly, permission having been asked to ship new hands, in the place of those whose time had expired, M. Dayton strongly opposed it. He thus states the result:

M. Drouyn de Lhuys informed me that this government, after much conference (and, I think, some hesitation,) had concluded not to issue an order prohibiting an accession to the crew of the Florida while in port, inasmuch as such accession was necessary to her navigation. They had made inquiries, it would seem, and they had ascertained that the seventy or seventy-five men discharged after she came into Brest were discharged

1 British Appendix, vol. vi, p. 132.
2 Ibid.

because the period for which they had shipped had expired. He said, furthermore, that it was reported to him that the Kearsarge had likewise applied for some sailors and a pilot in that port, as well as for coal, and leave to make repairs, all of which had been, and would be, if more were needed, cheerfully granted.

I told him I was quite confident the Kearsarge had made no attempt to ship a crew there, and that, as respects a pilot, that stood on ground peculiar to itself, and had no reference to the general principle.

The determination which has been reached by the French authorities to allow the shipment of a crew, or so large a portion of one, on board of the Florida while lying in their port is, I think, wrong, even supposing that vessel a regularly commissioned ship of war. I told M. Dronyn de Lhuys, that, looking at it as a mere lawyer, and clear of prejudices which my official position might create, I thought this determination an error. He said, however, that in the conference they had reached The Florida at that unanimously, although a majority of the ministry considering the question were lawyers.1

Breet.

From a report by the British consul at Brest, on the subject of the reception and stay of the Florida at that port, it appears that

Captain Maffitt, the commander of the Florida, was informed by the admiral of the port, (préfet maritime,) Vice-Admiral Count de Gueytou, that he was at liberty to effect the repairs of the ship and provide her with coal and provisions, the same as any merchant-ship.

#

The commercial resources of Brest proving insufficient to effect the repairs of the Florida, application was made to the port-admiral to allow her to enter the government dock-yard, and permission for her to do so was granted, it being stipulated that all expenses should be re-imbursed by the agent, M. Aumaître, and that her powdermagazine should be cleared before entering the dock. To effect the latter operation, a government barge was furnished for the purpose of removing the ammunition; and this barge was, later, moored in the bay.

On the 9th of September, 1863, the Florida entered the government dock, and remained there for general repairs for a period of about five weeks.

The Florida completed her repairs in the dock-yard, and afterward took moorings in the merchant harbor of Brest, where she was slowly refitted. On the 27th of December she was moved to the roadstead.

It appears that some of the mechanism of the more heavy guns of the Florida had never been regulated, and her commander desiring to have this done, an application was made to the port-admiral for permission to land the guns for that purpose; but this was at once and positively refused, on the ground that such an act might be interpreted as equivalent to allowing a re-inforcement of arms.

But, it appears, her small-arms were allowed to be landed, in order to be repaired by a gun-maker of Brest, named Kock; this permission was granted, on the agent, M. Aumaître, giving a guarantee to the authorities of the custom-house that they should be reshipped on board the Florida.

No arms or ammunition were furnished to the Florida while at Brest.

Through M. Aumaître, the agent, M. Rainals ascertained that thirty-five seamen claimed and obtained their discharge from the Florida here; that they were, in part, replaced by others, chiefly natives of Belgium, Germany, Italy, and Southern Austria, brought to Brest by railway direct from Paris, in numbers never exceeding four at a time, and that they were quietly sent on board in similar numbers.

The Federal corvette Kearsarge re-appeared in Brest waters on the 3d of January, 1864; and, after steaming about the bay to within a mile of the town, again proceeded to sea.

The Florida, being ready for sea, left Brest between 9 and 10 o'clock on the evening of the 9th of February, 1864, in charge of a pilot; and at a distance of about thirty miles from that port, passed through the dangerous passage Du Raz, inside the Saints, landing the pilot at Audierne.

I cannot help surmising that, if all this had happened in one of Her Majesty's ports; if a government dock-yard had been placed at the dis posal of a confederate cruiser; if such cruiser had been allowed to remain six months; to have her small-arms repaired on shore; and to take in as much coal as she wanted, "like any merchant-vessel," and largely to recruit her crew, this tribunal would not have failed to find a very eloquent and indignant denunciation of such a violation of neu trality in the papers which have been presented to us.

1 British Appendix, vol. vi, p. 136.

Ibid., vol. i, pp. 126, 127.