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SOUTHERN RECORDER. VOL. I. MILLEDGEVILLE, TUESDAY, MAY 30, 1320. No. 16. PUBLISHED WEEKLY, (on Tuesdays) BY S. GRAXTLAjYD R. M. ORME, VT THREE DOLLARS, IN ADVANCE, OR FOUR DOLLARS AT THE EXPIRATION OF THE YEAR. (£/» Advertisements conspicuously inser ted at the customary rates. DOCUMENTS Accompanying the Message of the President trans- ' milled to balk Houses of Congress, on the y/h instant. RECAL OF MR. ONIS. [TRANSLATION.] Son Ferdinand flic Seventh, Kinp, by the grace of God, of Castile, Leon, a id Arrngon, of the two Sicilies, Jerusalem, Navarre, Grenada, Toledo, Valencia, Galicia, Majorca, Seville, Sardinia, Cordova, Corsica, Murcia, Jam, the Algarves, AlgeSiras, Gibraltar, the Canary Is lands, of the two Indies, and of the islands of the Ocean Sea ; Archduke of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, of Brab int, and Milan; Count of Ilapsburg,Flanders, Tirol, and Barcelona ; Lord of Biscay and Molina : Jo my great and good friends the United States of America: Great and good friends: It having heen represented to us by Don Luis de Onis, #ur Envoy Extraordinary and Minister plenipotentiary to you, that he is desi rous to return to Europe, for the reco very of his health, we have thought fit to grant him the necessary permission for that purpose. We have, therefore, authorized him to take his leave of you, and have charged him, in so doing, to assure vou of our constant friendship k desire to maintain &l strengthen the ties «f amity now happily subsisting between us. On his faithful execution of these our commands, we rely with confidence, as we do that you will receive with sa tisfaction these renewed assurances. We conclude by commending you to Cod; and we pray that he would have you in his safe and holy keeping. Madrid, of 1819. Your good friend, FERDINAND. .Joaquin Jobe Melcareuo PS Ruiz Davaloj. A true copy. L. the Duke of Sam Fernando 8a Qcip.oca. JOoa Luis de Onis to the Secretary of State. [translation.] Sir : Having received from my Sove reign an appointment to other duties, bping thereby deprived of the satisfac tion of presenting to the President the letters of re-credence of the King my master, I am under the necessity of trans mitting them to you, with my request that you would be pleased to lay them before his Excellency the President: to Hnomyou will also make it known, that His Majesty, on deciding to terminate my mission to your government, has com manded me to express to it the assurance of his unalterable desire to maintain the Strict friendship now happily subsisting between both powers. In fulfilling these^dere of my Sove- teign, permit me, si^Phlso to express to you the deep sense I entertain of the personal attentions with which I was ho nored by the President, by yourself iu particular, and by the citizens of the U- aion in general ; & to add the assurance, that, it will ever be to me a subject of •he most grateful reflection, if, in the discharge of my duties, and in the exe cution of the orders of my government, whose object it always has been to estab lish the most perfect harmony between the two countries, 1 shall have been so fortunate as to have acquired the esteem ef the President, together with yours. I pray you, sir, to receive the further assurance of my distinguished sentiments, and my wish that God may preserve you Biauy vears. LUIS DE ONIS. Madrid, January 27,1820. Credential letter delivered by Central l’ivci to the President of the United Slates. [translation.] lion Ferdinand the Seventh, King, by the grace of God, of Castile, Leon, and Arragon, of the two Sicilies, Jerusalem, Navarre, Grenadu, Toledo, Valencia, Galicia, Mujorca, Seville, Sardinia, Cordova, Corsica, Murcia, Jaen, the Algurves, Algeziras, Gibraltar, the Canary Islands, of the two Indies, and of the islands ot the Ocean sea ; Archduke of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, of Brabant and Milan; Count ol Hupsburg, Flanders, Tirol, and Barcelona; Lord of Biscay and of Molina. So my great and good friends the United States of America. Great and good friends : Being anima ted by the most sincere desire to main tain tite friendship and good understand ing happily subsisting between both countries, and it being necessary, to that «nd, that another person, possessing our entire confidence, should forthwith be deputed to you, as a successor to our late Envoy L Minister Plenipotentiary, Don Buis De Onis, to whom we have gruuted le we to return to Europe, for the re-es tablishment of his health, we have tho’t fit to confer the said appointment on Don Francisco Dionisio Vives, a mnior-gene- r| d of our armies, Knight of tne Third Class of the Royal and Military Order of St. Ferdinand, and a Member ol the Su preme Council of the said Order; Knight ®f the Royal and Military Order of St. Hermenegildo ; twice honored by de crees of thanks for patriotic services ; decorated with the North Star, k Crnss- * s of Honor, for distinguished conduct ®aii valor at the battles of Albuera, So- a hrgn 5 1.ugo, Tramanes, and Madina del Campo ; also at the surrender of Villa Franca to the army of the left; he unit ing the requisite qualifications for the due discharge of the said trust. We therefore hope, that, on his pre senting to you this our letter of credence, you will grant him a kind and favorable reception ; giving alt faith and credit to what he shall say to you on our behalf. Done at Madrid, this fifteenth day of December, 1819. FERDINAND. Countersigned—Joaquin Jose Melgarejo de ituis Davalos. A true copy. L. The Dvke or San Fernando 8c Quirooa [translation.] General Dor. Pruneiico Dionisio Piles to the Se cretary o f State. Sir : In conformity with the orders of my government, which were communi cated to Mr. Forsyth on the 1 Gtli of De cember Inst, by his excellency the Duke of San Fernando and Quiroga, and with the earnest desire of the King, my mas ter, to see a speedy adjustment of the existing difficulties which obstruct the establishment, on a permanent basis, of the good understanding so obviously re quired by the interests of both powers, 1 have the honor to address you, and frankly to state to you, that my august sovereign, after a mature mnd deliberate examination, iu full council, of the trea ty of 2',’d February of the last year, saw, with great regret, that, in its tenor, it was very far from embracing all the measures indispensably requisite to that degree of stability which, from his sense of justice, he was anxious to sec estab lished in the settlement of tlie existing differences between the two nations. The system ofhostilitv, w Licit appears to be pursued in so many parts of the Union, against the Spanish dominions, as well as against the property of all their inhabitants, is so public and notorious, that, to enter into detail, would onlv serve to increase the causes of dissatis faction ; I may be allowed, however, to remark, that they have been justly de nounced to the public of the U. States, even by some of their own fellow-citi zens. Such a state of things, therefore, in which individuals may be considered as being at war, while their governments are at peace with each other, is diame trically opposed to the mutual and sin cere friendship, and to the good under standing which it was the object of the treaty (though the attempt has failed) to establish, and of the immense sacrifices consented to by his Majesty to promote. These alone were motives of suffici ent weight imperiously to dictate the propriety of suspending the ratification of the treaty, even although * e Ameri can Envoy had not at first announced, in the name of Ids government, and subse quently required, of that of Spain, a de claration which tended directly to annul one of its most clear, precise, and con clusive articles, even after the signature and ratification of the treaty. The King, my master, influenced by considerations so powerful as to carry with Iht-i i the fullest evidence, Ins, therefore, judged it necessary and indis pensable, i:i the exercise of his duties as a sovereign, to request certain explana tions of j our government ; and lie has, iu consequence, given me his commands to propose to it the following points; in the discussion and final arrangement ol which, it seems proper that the relative state of the two nations should be taken into full consideration. That the United States, taking into due consideration (lie scandalous system of piracy established in, and carried on from, several of their ports, will adopt measures satisfactory and effectual, to repress the barbarous excesses, and un exampled depredations, daily committed upon Spain, her possessions, and proper ties ; so as to satisfy what is due to in ternational rights, and is equally claim ed by the honor of the American people. That, in order to put a total stop to any future armaments, and to prevent all aid whatsoever being afforded from any part of the Union, which may be in tended to be directed against, and em ployed in the invasion of H. C. Majesty’s possessions in North America, the Uni ted Slates will agree to offer a pledge (a dar una seguiradad) their integrity shall be respected. And, finally, that they will form no re lations with the pretended governments of the revolted provinces of Spain situ ate beyond sea, and will conform to the course of proceeding adopted, in this in spect, by other powers in amity with Spain. In submitting to you these just and na tural demands, I have received the or ders of the King, my master, to make known to the President that they would have been regularly communicated to the Minister Plenipotentiary of the Uni ted States at Madrid, if, in the excess of his zeal, he had not, at an early period, been induced to express himself in terms disrespectful to the dignity of his Majes ty ; and I am, at the same time, com manded to give the assurance that, in al luding to an incident of so unpleasant a nature, it is not intended to make the conduct of Mr. Forsyth a subject of com plaint, but merely to make your govt i- rnent fully acquainted with the motives of my august sovereign, in adopting the resolution, as already stated. I flatter myself that the President, on an attentive examination of the contents ofthis note, entirely dictated by senti ments of justice, will see a decisive evi dence of tbo sincere desire of the King, mv master, to attain with prompitude the definitive settlement of a transaction, no less important in itself, thnn it is essenti al to the mutual interests of the two countries. I eagerly avail myself ofthis occasion to assure you of my perfect respect, and highest consideration. I pray that God may long preserve you. FRANCISCO DIONISIO VIVES. Washington, April 14, 1820. The Secretary of State la Genera! Don Vrnneisrn Dionisio 1 ires, Envoy Extraordinary and Mi nister Plenipotentiary from Spain. Department of 8tntp, Washington, I8tli April, 1820. Sir ; Before replying to the letter which 1 have had the honor of receiving from you, dated the 14th inst. I am di rected by the President of the U. States to request a copy of your full powers, & to be informed whether you arc the bear er of the ratification, by His Catholic Majesty, of the treaty signed on the 22d of Feb. 1819, by Don Luis de Onis, and are ready, in ttie event of suitable ex planations being given upon the points mentioned in your letter, to exchange the same for the ratification on the part of the United States, if the Senate should advise and consent that such exchange of ratifications should now be accepted 1 Please to accept the assurance of my distinguished consideration. JOHN QUINCY ADAMS General Don Francisco Dionisio Vives to the Se cretary nf Stale. [translation.] Sir : In answer to your note of yester day’s date, and in compliance with the request stated in its first point, J have tiie honor to enclose a copy of my full powers. 1 have at the same time to inform you, that I.am not the bearer of the treaty of the 22d of February, 18tG, signed by Don Luis de Onis ; nor docs it seem a- greeablc to the natural course of things, and to established usage, that a treaty should he ratified previous to a removal of the obstacles which have expressly caused the suspension of its ratification. But I am enabled to assure you, that 1 am fully authorized to offer a solemn promise, in the name of the King, my master, that, if (lie result of the propo sals presented iu my first note be satis- tactory, the ratification of the treaty will be attended with no further delay than the time indispensably necessary lor the arrival at Madrid of one of the gentle men attached to mv legation, who has ac companied me for that especial purpose. I renew to you, sir, the assurance of my distinguished consideration ; and I pray God long to preserve vou. FRANCISCO DIONISIO VIVES. Washington, VJlh April, 1820. Full power of General Vires. [translation.] Don Ferdinand tin: Seventh, King, by the prnre ot God, of Castile, Leon, mid Arrngon, ofthc two Sicilies, Jerusalem, Navarre, Grenada, Toledo, Valencia, G iicin, Majorca, Seville, Sardinia, Cordova, Corsica, Murcia, Jaen, the Alkarves, Gibraltar, the Canary Islands; of both Indies, tind of the Isles of tile Ocean ; Archduke of Austria; Dike of Burgundy, Brabant, and Milan ; Count ol lUipshu -p, Flanders, Tirol, and Barcelona; Lord olliis- cay, uiul oMtloIina, 6jc. lac. The state of peace, amity, and good understanding, now happily subsisting between Us & the United Slates ot North America, being favorable to the mutual and amicable adjustment and settlement of all existing differences between the two governments ; and it being expedi ent, to that end, to authorise a person, having our confidence, and possessed of the requisite information, experience, and political knowledge, for so import ant a trust; which qualities uniting in you, Don Francisco Dionisio \ives, a Major General in our service, a Knight of the Royal and Military Order of San Ferdinand, and Member of the Supreme Council of the said Order ; a Knight of the Royal and Military Order of Saint Herinenegildo ; twice honored by de crees oftliuohs for public service ; deco rated with the order of the North Star, k Crosses oflfonor, for distinguished con duct and valor at the battles of Albuera, Sorauren, Lugo, Tamanes, and Medino del Cmnpo, the surrender of Villa Fran ca del Vierzo, in the operations of the left, at the sieges of Pampeluna and Bay onne ; and our Envov Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the above named States ; We have authorized, and by these presents we do authorize you, granting you full power, in the most ample form, to meet and confer with such person or persons as may he duly authorized by the government ol the United States ; and with him or them to settle, conclude, and sign, whatsoever you may judge ne cessary to the best arrangement of all points depending between the two go vernments ; promising, as wo do hereby promise, upon the faith and word of a King, to approve, ratify, and fulfil, such articles or agreements as you may con clude and sign. ( * In testimony whereof, I hnve com manded ttie present to be issued, signed by us, sealed with our privy seal, and countersigned by the undersigned, our principal Secretary ofState, and of Uni versal Dispatch. Given at Madrid, the 15th of December, 1819. I, THE KING. Countersigned, A. Joai/uin dose Melgarejo De Puis Darutos. 1 he Seen lary yf Slate to General Don Francisco Dionisio Vires. Department of State, Washington, 21st April, 18-20. Fir : 1 ain directed by the President ofthc United States to express to you the surprise and concern with which he has learnt that you are not the bearer of the ratification, by his Catholic Ma jesty, of the treaty signed on the 22d February, 1819, by Don Louis de Onis, by virtue cfa full power, equally com prehensive with that which you have now produced. A lull power, by which his Catholic Majesty promised, “ on the laith and word of a King, to approve, ratify, and fulfil, whatsoever might be stipulated and signed by him.” By the universal usage of nations, nothing can release a sovereign from the obligatiion of a promise thus made except the proof that his minister, so empowered, has been faithless to his trust, by transcending his instructions. A our sovereign has not proved, nor even alleged, that Mr. Onis had trans cended his instructions ; on the contra ry, with the credential letter which you have delivered, the President has learnt that he has heen relieved from the mis sion to the United States only to receive a new proof of the continued confidence of his Catholic Majesty, in the appoint ment to another mission, of equal digni ty mu! importance. On the faith ofthis promise of the King, the treaty was signed and ratified, on the part of the United States ; and it contained a stipulation that it should al so be ratified by his Catholic Majesty, so that the ratifications should, within six months from ihe dato of its signature, be exchanged. In withholding this promised ratifica tion beyond the stipulated period, lfis Catholic Majesty made known to the President that lie should forthwith des patch a person, possessing entirely his confidence, to ask certain explanations, which were deemed by him necessary previous to the performance of his pro mise to execute the ratification. The minister of the United States at Madrid was enabled, and offered to give, all the explanations which could justly be required in relation to the treaty. Your government declined even to make known to him their character ; and they arc now, after the lapse of more than u year, first officially disclosed by you. 1 am directed by the President to in form you, that explanations which ought to be satisfactory to your government, will readily be given upon all the points mentioned in your letter of the 14th inst. but that he considered none of them, in the present state of the relations be tween the two countries, as points for discussion. It is indispensable that, be fore entering into any new negotiation between the United States and Spain, that relating to the treaty already signed should be closed. If, upon receiving the explanations which your government lias asked, and which lam prepared to give, you are authorized to issue orders to the Spanish officers commanding iri Florida, to deliver up to those of the United States who may he authorized to receive it, immediate possession of the province, conformably to the stipulations of the treaty, the President, if such shall he the advice and consent of the Senate, will wait (with such possession given) for the ratification of his Catholic Majes ty, till your messenger shall have time to proceed to Madrid. But, if you have no such authority, the President consid ers it would be at once an unprofitable waste of time, and a course incompati ble with the dignity of this nation, to give explanations which are to lead to no satisfactory result ; and to resume a ne gotiation, the conclusion, of which can no longer be deferred. Be pleased to accept the assurance of tny distinguished consideration. JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. General Don Francisco Dionisio Vives to the Se cretary of Slate. [translation.] Sir : In acknowledging the receipt of your note ofthc 21st inst. 1 have the ho nor to remark, in the first place, that you appear to have misconceived a material part of my r letter of the l -4th, by re-pro ducing arguments which have been al ready sufficiently refuted by my govern ment. You will, therefore, excuse me from reviving them here, in so far as they relate to the question whether a sovereign is, or is not, bound to ratify what may have heen signed by his ne gotiator ; it being well known that vari ous instances may be cited of cases in which the ratification of a treaty has been justly suspended, without alleging, as tite motive for so doing, that the nego tiator had transcended his powers or instructions. There may, unquestiona bly, be other reasons sufficiently valid to exonerate him from the obligation of ratifying, supposing that to have been the case. It is evident that the scandalous pro ceedings of a number of American citi zens ; the decisions of several of the courts of the Union ; and the criminal expedition set on foot within it for the in vasion of his Majesty’s possessions in North America, at the very period when the ratification was still pending, were diametrically opposite to the most sacred principles of amity, and to the nature and essence of the treaty itself. These hostile proceedings were, notwithstand ing, tolerated by the federal government, and thus the evil was daily aggravated ; so that the belief generally prevailed throughout Europe that Ihe ratification of the treaty by Spain, am! the acknowl edgment of the independence of the re bellious trans-ntlantic colonies, by the United States, would be simultaneous acts. The pretentions advanced by Mr. Forsyth, in relation to the 8th article, were also evidently calculated to render the treaty illusory. It is, therefore, not possible to assign reasons more pow erful. or more completely justificatory of the sovereign resolution ofthc King, mv master, to suspend his ratification of that instrument. In my first note. 1 also hinted at the offensive terms employed by the Ameri can Minister at Madrid, from the very outset ; which you notice no further than by taking up the second point upon which the one which I have now the honor to contest essentially turns. Al though his Majesty might certainly have kept aloof from a deportment so void of moderation, and so derogatory to his dignity, it is obvious that any discussions commenced w ith a minister so situated, were only likely to produce unprofita ble results, his correspondence tending more powerfully to disunite than to re concile the contracting.parlies. It was, indeed a subject of great regret, that the incident just referred to ; the distance of Spain from the new world, which, from the obstructions to correspondence, produced unavoidable delay, in receiv ing correct information of the events passing here, and which to his Majesty appeared incredible ; and, in fine, his wish to avoid whatever had the appear ance of an unfounded complaint, and an unpleasant dillerence between the two governments, should have retarded my arrival, and the happy conclusiou of ihe transaction now pending. I have further to state to you, that I am not authorized by Ilis Majesty to give the necessary orders to the Span ish authorities in the Floridas to deliver up those possessions to the U. States ; nor was this to be presumed* 1 sirfee, if it appeared contrary to the natural order fillings, and to established usage, that tiie treaty should be ratified previous to receiving the explanations which neces sitated its suspension, it would, conse quently, seem the more so, that it should receive its due accomplishment before it was finally ratified. It is with equal surprise mid concern that i observe, in the conclusion of your note, that you intimate the intention to decline any discussion of my proposals previous to the possession of the Floti- dus ; since it appears to me that such discussion could not be long, in the e- vent of your government being ready to accede to them, (in which case I repeat that I am authorized solemnly to pro mise, in the name of His Majesty, that the ratification of the treaty shall be no longer delayed.) nor, that the delay, un avoidably produced by that particular cause, in the occupation of the territo ries in question, could be considered as derogatory to the dignity of the United States ; and the more so, ns, until then, His Catholic Majesty w ould not be iu the full possession of his rights. 1 flatter myself that, on a considera tion of the contents of this note, you will favor me with an answer more a- greeable to my wishes. In the mean time, 1 reiterate the as surance of iny distinguished considera tion and respect, praying God to pre serve you many years. FRANCISCO DIONISIO VIVES. Washington, ‘2Ath April, 1820, The Secretary of Slate to General Don Francisco Dionisio Vires, Envoy Extraordinary unit Mi nister Plenipotentiary from Spain. Department of State, Washington, 3d May, 1820. Sir : The explanations upon the point mentioned in your letter ofthc 14th ult. which 1 have had the honor ofgivingyou at large in the conference between us, on Saturday last, and the frankness of the assurances which 1 had the pleasure of receiving from you, of your convic tion that tljey .would prove satisfactory to your government, will relieve me of the necessity of iectfrring to circumstan ces which might tend to irritating discus sions. In the confident expectation that, upon the arrival of ypur messenger at Madrid, Lis Catholic Majesty will give his immediate ratification to the treaty of the 22d February, 1819^ I readily forbear nil reference to the delays which have hitherto retarded that event, anil all disquisition upon the perfect right which the United States have hud to that ratification. I am now instructed to repeat the as surance which has already been given you, that the representations which ap pear to have been made to your govern- ment of a system of hostility, in vurioue parts of this Union against the Spanish dominions, nnd the property of Spanish subjects ; of decisions marked with such hostility by any of the courts of the U. States, and of the toleration in any cas« of it by this government, are unfounded. In the existing unfortunate civil war be tween Spain and the Soutli American provinces, the United States, have con stantly avowed and faithfully maintained an impartial neutrality. No violation of that neutrality by any citizen of the U« States has ever received sanction or countenance fnun this government.— Whenever the laws previously enacted for the preservation of neutrality have heen found by experience in any man ner defective, they have been strength ened by new provisions and severe pe nalties. Spanish property, illegally cap- lured, has been constantly restored by the decisions nf the tribunals of the Unit ed States, nor has the life itself beea spared of individuals guilty of piracy, committed upon Spanish property on the high seas. Should the treaty be ratified by Spain, and tbe ratification be accepted by and with the advice and consent of the Se nate, the boundary line recognized by it, will be respected by tbe U. Stales, & due care will be taken to prevent any transgression of it. No new law or en gagement will be necessary for that p :r- pose. The existing laws are adequate to the suppression of such disorders, and they will be, as they have been, faitls* fully carried into effect. The miserable disorderly movement of a number not exceeding 70 lawless individual strag glers, who never assembled within the jurisdiction of the United States, into a territory to which Mis Catholic Majesty has no acknowledged right other than the yet unratified treaty, was so far from receiving countenance or support from the government of the United States, that every measure necessary for it* suppression was promptly taken undcB their authority ; and from the misrepret sentations which have been made of thi* very insignificant transaction to the Spa nish government, there is reason to be lieve that the pretended expedition it self, as well as the gross exaggerations which have been used to swell its im portance, proceed from the same sour ces, equally unfriendly to the U. States and to Spain. As a necessary consequence of the neutrality between Spain and the South American provinces, the United States can contract no engagement, not to form any relations with those provinces.— This has explicitly and repeatedly been avowed and made known to your gov ernment, both at Madrid k at this place. The demand was resisted both in confe rence and written correspondence, .be tween Mr. Erving and Mr. Pizarro. Mr. Onis had long and constantly been informed, that a persistance in it would put an end to the possible conclusion of anv treaty whatever. Your sovereign will perceive that as such an engagement cannot be contracted by the U. State* consistently with their obligations of neu trality, it cannot justly be required of them, nor have any of the European na tions ever bound themselves to Spain by such an engagement. With regard to your proposals, it iff proper to observe, that His Catholic Alar jesty, in announcing his purpose of ask ing explanations of the United States, gave no intimation of an intention to re quire new articles to the Treaty. You arc aware that the United States cannot consistently with what is due to them selves, stipulate new engagements, as the price of obtaining the ratification of the old. Tite declaration which Mr. For* sytli was instructed to deliver, at the ex change of the ratifications of the treaty, with regard to the 8th article, was not intended to annul, or in the slightest de- gree, to alter or impair the stipulations of that article; its only object was to guard your government, and all persons who might have had any interest in any of the annulled grants, against the possi ble expectation or pretence that thosa grants would be made valid by the trea* tv. All grants subsequent to the 24th January 1818, were declared to be po sitively null and void ; and Mr. Oois al ways declared that he signed the treaty, fully believing that the grants to the Duke of Allagon, Count Punon Rostro, and Mr. Vargas, were subsequent to that date. But he had in his letter to me of 16th November 1818, declared that those grants were null and void, because the essential conditions of the grant's, had not been fulfilled bv the grantees. It was distinctly understood by us both, that no grant, of whatever date, should be made valid bv the treaty, which woul4 not have been valid by ti e laws ofSpaio and the Indies, if the treaty had not