The Diplomatic Correspondence of the American Revolution Volume IV Part 19

ARTICLE I.

There shall be a firm, inviolable, and universal peace, and a sincere amity between Her Most Faithful Majesty, the Queen of Portugal, her heirs and successors, and the United States of North America, as well with respect to the citizens and subjects of the said two parties as their people, islands, cities, and places situated within their respective jurisdictions, and between their people and inhabitants of all cla.s.ses, without exception of persons and places, similar to what has been already established with the most favorite powers.

ARTICLE II.

The subjects of Her Most Faithful Majesty may freely frequent and reside in the United States, and traffic in all kinds of effects and merchandises, whose importation or exportation is not or shall not be prohibited, and they shall not pay in the ports, harbors, roads, countries, islands, cities, and places within the United States, other or greater duties or imposts of any kind whatever, than such as the most favored nations are, or shall be, obliged to pay. And they shall enjoy all the rights, liberties, privileges, immunities, and exemptions with respect to trade, navigation, and commerce, whether in going from one port of the said States to another, or in going there, or returning from any part or to any part of the world whatever, which the said nations do or shall enjoy.

ARTICLE III.

In the like manner the citizens and inhabitants of the United States of North America shall freely frequent and reside in the States of Her Most Faithful Majesty in Europe; also in Madeira and the Azores, and trade there in all kinds of effects and merchandises, the importation and exportation of which is not, or shall not be prohibited, and they shall not pay in the ports, harbors, roads, countries, islands, cities, and places of the Queen of Portugal, other or greater duties of any kind whatsoever than such as the most favored nations are, or shall be, bound to pay; and they shall enjoy all the rights, liberties, privileges, immunities, and exemptions as to trade, navigation, and commerce, whether in going from one port of Her Most Faithful Majesty's States to another, or in going there, or returning from any part of the world whatever, which the said nations do or shall enjoy.

ARTICLE IV.

Her Most Faithful Majesty shall use every means in her power to protect and defend all the vessels and property belonging to the subjects, people, and inhabitants of the said United States, which shall be in her ports, harbors, or roads, against any violence whatever that may be committed by the subjects of her said Majesty, by punis.h.i.+ng such as shall violate these principles.

ARTICLE V.

The preceding article, shall be in like manner reciprocally and exactly observed on the part of the United States, with respect to the vessels and property belonging to the subjects of her said Majesty, which shall be found in their ports, harbors, or roads, against any violence that may be committed by the subjects of the United States.

ARTICLE VI.

If any squadrons or vessels of war touch at the ports, or enter into the seas in the neighborhood of Her Most Faithful Majesty's States, they shall conform to the regulations already established with respect to the other most favored maritime powers.

ARTICLE VII.

The United States of America likewise oblige themselves reciprocally to observe with exact.i.tude the stipulations contained in the above article.

ARTICLE VIII.

It is likewise agreed and determined that every merchant, captains of merchant vessels, or other subjects of Her Most Faithful Majesty, shall have entire liberty in all places within the dominion or jurisdiction of the United States of America, to manage themselves their own affairs, and to employ therein whomsoever they please, and that they shall not be obliged to make use of any interpreter or broker, nor to pay them any fee, unless they do employ them. Moreover, the masters of the vessels shall not be obliged, in loading or discharging their vessels, to employ workmen, appointed for that purpose by public authority, but they shall be entirely free to discharge or load themselves their vessels, and to employ, in loading or discharging, such persons as they shall think proper for the purpose, without paying any fee, under the t.i.tle of salary, to any other person whatever, and they shall not be obliged to put any kind of merchandise in other vessels, or to receive them on board, and wait to be loaded any longer time than what they please, and all and every of the citizens, people, and inhabitants of the United States of America shall have, and shall reciprocally enjoy, the same privileges and liberties in all the aforesaid places within Her Most Faithful Majesty's jurisdiction in Europe. And, as to what concerns contraband goods, which may be introduced in merchant vessels belonging to either nation, they shall be obliged to submit to the visit of the officers appointed in the two States, to prevent the said contraband, and, for that purpose to conform to the established regulations, or such as shall be established within the respective States.

ARTICLE IX.

Full and entire liberty of conscience shall be granted to the inhabitants and subjects of each party, and no one shall be molested with respect to his wors.h.i.+p, provided he submits, as far as respects the public demonstration, to the laws of the country. The inhabitants and subjects of either party, who shall die in the territory of the other party, shall be permitted to be buried in suitable and decent places, which shall be a.s.signed for that purpose, and the two contracting powers shall provide, each within its own jurisdiction, that the respective subjects and inhabitants may obtain certificates of death, in case they shall be required to deliver them.

ARTICLE X.

The subjects of the contracting parties may, within the respective States, freely dispose of their property, moveable and immoveable, either by testament, donation, or otherwise, in favor of such persons as they may think proper, and their heirs, wherever they may dwell, shall receive these successions, even ab intestato, either in person or by attorney, without the necessity of obtaining letters of naturalization. These inheritances, as well as the capitals and effects, which the subjects of the two parties, in changing their residence, would carry from the place of their abode, shall be exempted from any duties on the part of the government of the two respective States. The contents of this article shall in no wise derogate from the ordinances published against emigrations, or which shall hereafter be promulgated within the dominions of the two powers, the exercise of which they reserve to themselves.

ARTICLE XI.

If, hereafter, a war should happen between Portugal and the United States, which G.o.d forbid, the s.p.a.ce of nine months shall be granted to the merchants of either country residing at that time in the other, to collect their debts and put their affairs in order, and they may depart with all their effects without let or molestation. All fishermen, farmers, artisans, or manufacturers, unarmed and residing in cities, places, and villages not fortified, who work for the subsistence and welfare of mankind, and who peaceably exercise their respective employments, shall be allowed to continue their occupations without molestation from the armed forces of the enemy, in whose power they may fall through the events of war; but should it be necessary to take anything from them for the use of the army, they shall be paid for them at a reasonable price. All traders and merchants, whose vessels shall not be armed for war, but employed in the commerce of exchanging the productions of different countries, and thereby rendering the wants, conveniences, and comforts of life easier to be obtained and more universal, shall be permitted to pa.s.s freely, and without molestation. Neither of the contracting powers shall grant a commission to any privateer, authorising it to take or destroy such merchant vessels, or to interrupt such commerce.

ARTICLE XII.

In order to remove and prevent on both sides every difficulty and misunderstanding, that commonly happen respecting merchandise heretofore denominated contraband, and which shall be judged such by the powers of Europe in their respective treaties, that is to say, arms and warlike stores, it has been agreed, that in case where one of the contracting parties shall be engaged in a war against any other nation, none of these articles carried in the vessels, or by the subjects of one of the parties to the enemies of the other, shall be considered contraband under any pretext whatever, nor be confiscated or taken away as such from any individual. It shall, nevertheless, be lawful to stop such vessels, and to detain them as long as the captors shall think necessary to prevent the inconveniencies or damages that may result from the continuation of their voyage, by paying, however, to the proprietors a reasonable compensation for the loss, which such detention may occasion; moreover, the captors shall be permitted to use, in whole or in part, the warlike stores thus detained, provided that they pay the full value thereof to the proprietors.

ARTICLE XIII.

All vessels and merchandise of whatsoever kind, that shall be recovered from pirates of the high seas, shall be brought into some port of one of the two States and delivered to the care of the officers of the said port, in order that they may be completely restored to their true proprietor, as soon as he shall have duly and sufficiently proved his property.

ARTICLE XIV.

None of Her Most Faithful Majesty's subjects shall take a commission or letter of marque to arm any vessel or vessels for the purpose of acting as privateers against the United States, or any of them, or against their subjects, people, or inhabitants, or against their property, or that of the inhabitants of either of them, from any prince whatever, with whom the said States shall be at war. In like manner, no citizen, or subject, or inhabitant of the aforesaid United States, or any of them, shall demand any commission or letter of marque to arm any vessel or vessels to cruise against the subjects of Her Most Faithful Majesty, or any of them, or their property, from any prince or State whatever with whom the said Queen shall be at war; and if any one belonging to either nation takes such commission or letter of marque, he shall be punished as a pirate.

ARTICLE XV.

In case the vessels, subjects, and inhabitants of one of the two contracting parties shall approach the coasts of the other, without designing, however, to enter into the port, or, after having entered, without intention to discharge their cargo, or to break bulk, they shall be at liberty to depart or to pursue their voyage without molestation.

ARTICLE XVI.

It is stipulated by the present treaty, that free vessels shall secure the liberty of the persons who shall be on board, even should they be the enemies of one of the two contracting parties, and they shall not be taken out of the said vessels unless they are military characters, and actually in the enemy's service.

ARTICLE XVII.

The two contracting parties mutually grant permission to maintain in their respective ports, consuls, vice consuls, agents, and commissaries, whose functions shall be regulated by a particular convention, whenever either party may be pleased to establish it.

ARTICLE XVIII.

The present treaty shall be ratified on both sides, and the ratifications shall be exchanged in the s.p.a.ce of eight months, or sooner if possible, reckoning from the date of the signature.

ARTICLE XIX.

Her Most Faithful Majesty, the Queen of Portugal and Algarva, and the United States of North America, agree that the present treaty shall be in full force, reckoning from the date of its ratification, and the two contracting parties reciprocally promise to observe it exactly.

FROM THE POPE'S NUNCIO TO B. FRANKLIN.

Translation.