1767 of irregularities of this kind, in the conduct of the Court of Portugal towards Your Majesty's Subjects, have of late years grown much more numerous and oppressive, and therefore, that, to relieve Your Majesty's Subjects in these instances from suffering any greater degree of hardship than what the nature of their situation must necessarily expose them to, may be an object well worthy Your Majesty's attention. The Laws which are complained of, as affecting the jurisdiction of the British Judge - Conservator, as they appear to be without example in former times, so do they, in our opinion, utterly defeat the very purpose and end of the institution of that Office; and, by depriving Your Majesty's Subjects of their best security, for the enjoyment of every privilege to which they are entitled, must render their residence in Portugal altogether unsafe and intolerable. The establishment of the Company for the culture of the wines of Alto Douro, appears also to be a project of a very modern date; and is evidently so constituted as to make it impossible for Your Majesty's Subjects at Oporto to carry on that branch of trade in competition with this Company. The number of British Ships trading to that Port is already very considerably reduced, since the establishment of the Company, as appears by the List hereunto annexed; and, should this institution be much longer continued upon its present footing, it cannot fail, as we conceive, to put an end to the existence of the British Factory at Oporto. But that which appears to us, abstractedly considered, to be by far the most important object of all that have fallen under our consideration, is what respects the trade to The Brazils. The irreconcileableness to Treaty, of the methods taken to force this trade out of the hands of Your Majesty's Subjects, we have shown at large; the certainty that these methods will produce that effect is admitted, even by those who differ with us upon the former point; and, in forming our opinion of the importance of this branch of the Portugal trade, we rely, not only upon the present earnest and importunate representations of the British Merchants, but also upon the uniform and more deliberate declarations made by Your Majesty's Subjects residing in Portugal for a long course of years past, who have always concurred, as well under their more prosperous, as under unfavourable, circumstances, in representing the improvement or diminution of the Brazil trade as that upon which the value of Great Britain's commerce with Portugal must chiefly depend. The only particular remaining to be considered, is the Law which compels Your Majesty's Subjects to receive the Actions of the abovementioned Company in payment of their just debts; a proceeding utterly repugnant, we will not say to Treaty, but to every principle of justice, and so directly subversive of that good faith, without which all commercial engagements, instead of promoting mutual advantage, must prove to every one who embarks in them the most dangerous of snares, that it is altogether unnecessary to expatiate further upon it; and therefore we have only to add, that, in order the better to judge whether those pro ceedings on the part of Portugal, which we have represented to 1767 be both unwarrantable in themselves, and fatal to the interests of Your Majesty's Subjects, have already in any considerable degree actually affected the Commerce of this Kingdom with Portugal, we did obtain from the Custom-house, a State of the Exports and Imports to and from that Kingdom, from Christmas 1750 to Christmas 1765, an Abstract of which, together with a calculation delivered to us by the Merchants, of a more comprehensive kind, are hereunto annexed. The vast diminution therein stated of the Exports to Portugal is undoubtedly, in a commercial light, most alarming; and, whatever other circumstances of disadvantage may have attended the trade of Your Majesty's Subjects in Portugal within that period of time, we cannot entertain the least doubt but that this diminution is in great measure to be imputed to the Regulations and practices above mentioned. All which is most humbly submitted. CLARE. SOAME JENYNS. WM. FITZHERBERT. The Trade of this Nation with Portugal has generally been rated at a very high estimate; some Persons, not only computing the annual amount thereof at millions, but even pretending that the very Balance paid by that Country in specie amounts to no less; every one speaking according to the impulse of his own fancy only, without ever having formed any account whereby to fix their judgment. The difficulty of procuring materials for such a purpose has indeed been so discouraging, in a Country where the most minute trifle is kept from the knowledge of Foreigners, that it is not surprizing no one has hitherto undertaken a task, which must be troublesome, and produce so small advantage to the undertaker. The apparent necessity however of such an Account has at length induced me to try how far I could succeed in such an attempt, in order thereby to acquire, if possible, a more just notion of what has hitherto been always so imperfectly known, or at least to stimulate some other person, perhaps more able than myself, to produce a more correct Account, or, pointing out any errors found in the one produced, bring the matter in the end to a certainty. I must own that the result has surprized me, the Balance of the whole being but L. 105,000, and some friends to whom this has been communicated have been equally surprized; yet, when they looked over the different articles which form the Account, they declared they could not object to any, and therefore, that being the case, the Account stands unreproved. The quantity of Portugal coin circulating in this Kingdom has always influenced the opinion of People concerning the trade 1767 of that Country, and may be said to have formed a prejudice which will not be easily overcome in the minds of the multitude; but to those conversant in commerce it is well known, that the excess of the amount of the commodities sent by this Kingdom over those it receives, which is called the balance of the trade, must be the standard of the bullion that will remain, but not rice versa, that the bullion should be a proof of the amount of the balance of that particular trade, when it can be proved that the same is increased from other channels. Accordingly, let the high estimation of gold above silver, different from that in other Countries of Europe, be lowered; let the low price of carriage of money from Falmouth, and the freight of our Packets be raised, and we should soon find that the Portugal coin would be equal only to the balance of our trade to that Country. Whereas, at present, it must be regarded as the amount of all, our Foreign trade with the verious States of Europe; for Portugal, taking from them the different commodities and manufactures necessary for its use, makes payment thereof inco in, which, from accidental circumstances of advantage to the Foreign Proprietors, circulates through this Kingdom; and those same States find it more to their advantage to receive their remittances from England in Bills of Exchange, or other commodities, than in the specie which has been sent for their payment. So that it may be easily conceived, that this Kingdom might have the same quantity of Portugal specie (the difference of the trade to Portugal excepted) even though it had no communication with that Country: the only difference in such a case would be, that those States which would take our commodities, would then send us the gold which we now receive from Portugal: the truth of this is evident from what happens in Holland, the whole trade whereof with Portugal is but of a small amount, yet the coin of that Kingdom abounds there almost as much as in England. 8. 75 Supplément au Traité de paix conclu (Traduction de l'original Mandschou.) Par ordre du grand Empereur de l'Empire de Daitsing, les personnes suivantes se sont réunies pour régler les affaires des frontières: Le premier adjoint du président du tribunal qui gouverne les provinces extérieures, Karatsin; Le gosai beise des Dchasa, Khouton rinkga; L'adjoint du côté gauche du président du tribunal qui gouverne les provinces extérieures, Kinggoni; Watsirai batow Tousiyetou Khan Tschendon dordzi, officier de la garde de l'intérieur du Palais, adjutantgéréral et command de l'aile gauche des Kahlas; Le Sous-inspecteur du mont Khanoola, membre du Dchasak et Cousin de la famille impériale de la sixième classe, avec Le Commissaire Kropotow, Envoyé de l'Impératrice regnante de l'Empire des Oros (des Russes). Après en avoir délibéré ensemble, on est convenu de ce qui suit: on Quoique les onze Articles du Traité de paix dussent être considérés comme maintenus invariables, a trouvé néanmoins nécessaire de faire retirer les Oros du voisinage du mont Bourgoutai, de Bisitktou, Khochoo *) Voy. le Traité du 21. Octobre 1727 dans l'Appendice. On s'était flotté que la conclusion du Traité de 1727 terminerait toutes les discussions entre les deux Empires. Cependant souvent le nouveaux différends s'élevèrent, et les sujets respectifs passaient les frontières, sans en être punis. Le traité mentioné en effet était bien vaque à ce sujet. Cela décida I'Impératrice Cathérine II à ordonner en 1767 au Commissaire Kropotow, d'aller examiner et réformer ce Traité conjointement avec un Plénipotentiaire Chinois, envoyé dans le même but à Kiachta, pour mettre fin à toutes les plaintes. En conséquence ils redigèrent ce supplément au Traité de 1727, en y changeant en entier l'article X. 1768 、 1768 et autres places, afin que la frontière passât sur l'autre revers de la montagne. Toutes les choses demeureront d'ailleurs dans l'ancien état auprès des deux dépôts de commerce à Kiachta et à Tsououikhaïtou (Tsouroukhaitou) où l'on ne paye pas de droits d'entrée. Des erreurs s'étant glissées dans la copie latine et russe du traité de paix, et plusieurs points essentiels y ayant été oubliés, on a jugé convenable de les rectifier et de les corriger. De plus, les discussions qui s'étaient élevées entre les deux Etats doivent être vouées à l'oubli, et les déserteurs ne seront pas réclamés pour le passé. Les dispositions de l'article X de la convention primitive à l'égard du mode d'empêcher les vols et les désertions parmi les sujets respectifs, sur les frontières, ont paru trop équivoques et trop peu précises: c'est pourquoi l'article X est rayé. On y en a substitué un autre pour faire loi. Selon la convention actuelle, chacune des deux parties surveillera désormais ses sujets pour prévenir le retour de semblables événemens. Si, à la réunion qui doit avoir lieu tous les ans à la frontière, on aperçoit les traces de pareilles choses, les commandans limitrophes sont tenus de les examiner sans délai et avec bonne foi. Si, guidés par leurs intérêts privés, ils manquaient à leurs devoirs, chacune des deux parties les punira selon les lois. Quant à la recherche et à la saisie des brigands, et au châtiment de ceux qui passent illégalement la frontière, on a adopté les dispositions suivantes: Article X. Les gens armés, qui passent la frontière en évitant les maisons de garde, dans un but de brigandage, doivent être, soit qu'il aient commis des meurtres ou non, saisis et rigoureusement détenus jusqu'à ce qu'ils avouent de quelle maison de garde ils viennent et s'ils étaient avec ou sans compagnons. Après qu'ils auront subi un sévère examen à la maison de garde respective, on mettra par écrit les noms des brigands qui n'ont pas été arrêtés et on communiquera cette liste à toutes les maisons de garde, mais particulièrement au taidzi principal du Dchasak et aux commandans des Oros. Les chefs du Dchasak doivent venir à l'instant même sur les lieux et examiner scrupuleusement l'affaire avec les commandans des Oros, puis ils feront immédiatement un rapport qui doit être envoyé |