to the recognition of an English vice consul in this city, the government cannot submit that question to arbitration, because it is indispensable that all nations should, in the plenitude of their sovereign rights, exercise the privilege of admitting diplomatic agents or of rejecting them.

Art. 7. At all events, the commissioners will not consent to the occupation of the islands of Salvador which the consul has effected in the name of the British government; and if the latter should agree to raise or suspend the blockade until the decision of the chambers has been ascertained, or until the arbitrators have come to some determination-on the condition, however, that in the meanwhile the British government shall take possession of the islands, although that possession be intended as temporary, provisional, by way of security, or to be otherwise effected under any pretence whatever the commissioners, even if they should thereby lose all hopes of accomplishing the object of their mission, will positively not be at liberty to agree to any such arrangements; because the slightest concession, in this respect, on the part of the government of Salvador, or of its agents, would tend, in a high degree, to prejudice her territorial rights, and to affect her independence, the integrity of which must be preserved at all risks.

Art. 8. In case the consul should refuse to enter into any arrangement agreeably to the spirit of the foregoing instructions, the commissioners will then address him an official communication, urging him, by means of fresh arguments, to accept the alternative of arbitration, with a view of obtaining written evidence of his refusal in the reply.

Art. 9. When the commissioners shall have lost all hopes of effecting an adjustment, they will place into the hands of the consul a formal protest in writing, which shall embrace all the ideas intended to be conveyed in that which the President of the State will issue in the same case; to effect which object they are confidentially provided with a copy of the same, in order that they may have nothing to do but to alter the form and the language. In this manner both documents will be conceived in the same spirit, and express the same sentiments, each having, however, a distinct bearing.

General DePARTMENT OF THE SUPREME

GOVERNMENT OF THE STATE OF SALVADOR,
Salvador, November 3, 1849.

R. PINO.

A true copy: Leon, December 13, 1849.

C.

MORALES.

The undersigned, commissioners of the supreme government of Salvador, having been fully authorized to treat and to arrange with Mr. Frederick Chatfield, her Britannic Majesty's chargé d'affaires residing at Guatemala, and consul general for Salvador, on the subject of the pending claims which are the cause of his continuance in this bay-after having conferred on the subject, and in consideration of the precedents in the case-in order that there may again be established, between the governments which the two parties represent, those friendly relations which are of so much interest to commerce, have agreed to the following terms:

1. All the British claims which were presented in the official note of October 10, 1848, and which were recognised by the supreme government of Salvador on the 28th of December of the same year, amounting to sixty-six thousand and twenty dollars and sixty-two and a half cents, ($66,020 621,) with corresponding interest up to the period of final pay. ment, are recognised anew, such being the agreement expressed in the third paragraph of the note which the aforesaid government of Salvador addressed to Mr. Chatfield on the 21st of last October; the payment to be made punctually, and in the same manner as agreed upon in said arrangement.

2. The claim which Mr. Chatfield presented on the 29th of last June, for the sum of twenty-three thousand one hundred and seventy two dol lars and twenty five cents, ($23,172 25,) taken from the custom-house of Acajutla in British goods, which had been included in the failure of Espada and Piloña; it appearing that the government of Salvador agreed that this should be referred to the consular tribunal of Guatemala, which, as Mr. Chatfield asseverates, is proved from a note of the supreme gov. ernment, bearing the same date as above, December 28, 1848, (conforma bly to which this article has been framed;) and that the aforesaid tribunal ordered the goods in question to be delivered over to the foreign own. ers, which was not done; but that, on the contrary, they were sold by the order of the government for this reason;-the aforesaid demand is like. wise recognised, together with the corresponding interest up to the day of payment, which will be effected in the same manner as above, by adding the sum to the amount claimed in the preceding article; always understood, however, that out of this sum there shall be deducted the amount due for duties on importation and the corresponding interest, according to the tariff of Salvador.

supreme

3. Should any mistake be found in the amounts named, the government of Salvador reserves to itself the right, without discontinu ing the payments according to the rule laid down, of making a representation to that effect to Mr. Chatfield within the period of six months, trusting that the reasons which may be urged in support of the existence of such mistakes will be fairly and equitably examined.

4. On these terms the present difficulties are ended, and the port of the Union, together with its islands, remain free; always understood that to the government of Salvador alone belongs the right of disposing of such islands in behalf of Salvadoreans, while no formal arrangement exists with Mr. Chatfield in regard to the remainder of the English claims. In witness whereof, the undersigned have signed duplicates of these presents, one for each party, on board of the steamer Gorgon, in the port of the Union, the 12th of November, 1849.

J. M. MONTOYA,

J. ANT. ALVARADO,
FREDERICK CHATFIELD

True copy: Union, November 13, 1849.

J. M. MONTOYA,
ALVARADO.

True copy: Leon, December 13, 1849.

MORALES.

D.

SAN SALVADOR, November 24, 1849. MY ESTEEMED FRIEND: The day following my receipt of your esteemed favor, which brought me

The arrangement which the commissioners have made with Mr. Chatfield, consul in the Union, and of which you will have been informed, although it was the means of causing the blockade to be instantly raised, is not in conformity with the instructions which you have also seen. The subject is one of sufficient importance, and as no time has been specified for ratifying the arrangement, I have thought it proper to consult the opinion of that government, and that of Honduras, as I think it af fects the independence of Central America, from the bearing it has upon those islands which remain in pledge, and which cannot be disposed of until the amount of the debt has been entirely paid. I have abstained from expressing an opinion on the aforesaid convention, because I am desirous that the governments above mentioned should pronounce theirs. without the least restraint, assuring you that my hand shall never sign any act of a humiliating character, and which may prove antagonistical of the sovereignty of the State.

Your true and affectionate friend,

LA UNION, November 13, 1849. SIR: We have the honor to inform you, for the knowledge of your government, that yesterday we concluded an arrangement, relative to the claims of sundry British subjects, with the consul general, Mr. Chatfield, who has lately blockaded this harbor with the steamer "Gorgon." We encountered no great difficulty in regulating said claims, but with regard to the restitution of the islands of this State serious obstacles were opposed. Prohibited by our instructions from making any arrangement unless with the full restitution of said islands, we were involved in a grave and protracted discussion; but considering that this harbor continued to be blockaded, and that we were obliged to pay the expenses the forces which should continue to occupy the islands, with the expenses of the vessels which might come from Valparaiso; and considering that the chargé d'affaires of the United States, by official communication received yesterday, (the 12th,) which was read by Mr. Chatfield, giving to him, in good Spanish, satisfaction, (satifuccion) and acknowledging the soundness of the reasons which said consul had given him for occupying the Tigre, and supplicating him to come to Realejo in order to pay him a visit;-from this and other data we inferred that the protection of the

of

United States is very remote, and that the Americans would not be willing to pledge themselves to reconquer and restore to us our islands without a previous indemnity of the millions which they might have to expend. We were also aware that while these questions were being considered at Washington, we should become the victim of oppressing circumstances. Mr. Chatfield also showed us the order which he had from Lord Palmerston to occupy the Tigre and its dependencies, at least until the questions between England and these governments should be settled. We have judged proper to inform you that, Mr. Chatfield demanding a mort gage on the islands of our State until a final settlement, we offered to guaranty all obligations by our property and that of our friends. This difficulty being thus removed, Mr. Chatfield availed himself of the pretence of the hostile spirit of the government of San Salvador against Great Britain to insist on holding the islands. Having given all proper explanations on this point, and having removed, as far as possible, all bad impressions, he replied, that for less reasons than those which he had given, England had, on several occasions, taken, and held possession of, important acquisitions, against strong powers in Europe, Asia, and Africa; but that his government and nation had no interest to take away from us nor to possess a single palm of our territory, provided we should not cede to, or deposite in power of any other nation, our islands, or any portion of our coasts. It was, therefore, indispensable to accept this condition, for it was not possible to consult with the government of Honduras in the matter, for the consul had directed his ultimatum to the executive of San Salvador, and could not be detained more than three days, counting from yesterday.

We have a well-founded presumption that should the government of Honduras enter into a corresponding arrangement with the consul, the island of Tigre would be returned to it upon the same conditions with the islands of San Salvador, while in the mean time final arrangements should be made.

We have the honor to subscribe, &c., &c.,

DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN RELATIONS,

REPUBLIC OF COSTA RICA,

National Palace, San José, October 20, 1849.

I have had the honor of receiving the note which you addressed me on the 1st instant from Leon de Nicaragua, and I take pleasure in replying to it, informing you that it was not for the sake of mere etiquette, a matter of no importance to my government, but out of regard for those formalities and prudential considerations which all governments are bound to respect in treating on public matters, that I suggested to you, much to

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my regret, the necessity of establishing your official character, according to well-known usages, before attempting to engage us in serious controversies, as you had begun to do from a neighboring country. It is true, that before making the aforesaid suggestion to you, I had had the honor of treating you as a minister plenipotentiary; but you are too enlightened to be ignorant of the fact, that there is a vast difference between a simple note of courtesy, which no civilized government ever refuses, and the positive admission of a diplomatic agent to discuss, in a formal manner, matters of a difficult character, which implies a recognition of said agent, and also of the power, on his part, to treat on such subjects. You are aware that, according to established usages, when a diplomatic agent enters the territory of the government to which he is accredited, he becomes entitled to those immunities and considerations which belong to his position, without any other guaranty than his word; and yet, notwithstanding this, his public character is not considered established except from the day of the formal delivery of his credentials. You are also aware that all writers on international law agree upon this point. Therefore it was not on account of my greater experience, but out of regard to my duty, and from considerations of prudence and necessary foresight, that I made to you the suggestion, which I deemed indispensable.

You say that you had confined yourself to simply asking me for some information, in order that you might proceed understandingly in the important mission which has been confided to you, and I beg you will be pleased to recall to mind your concise note of the 13th of August, in which you requested, as a preliminary condition to entering into relations with my government, that I would answer the two questions to which you had confined yourself. It appears to me-and you will not deny the fact that there is some difference, both in form and matter, between an innocent anxiety to obtain a simple information and harsh and unusual interrogatories--between the desire to possess such information, in order to act understandingly, and putting categorical questions, as a positive condition to entering into amicable relations. You must, then, acknowledge that a condition so hateful, and a tone so imperative, are not in accordance with a liberal policy, nor in conformity with established usages. You observe, further, that my government questions the right on the part of diplomatic agents to ask for information; and I take pleasure in assuring you that my government neither denies this right, nor does it question the right which is inherent in all governments, either to give or to refuse such information, according to the nature of the thing asked, and the manner in which the requisition has been made. What I have doubted, and still doubt, is whether a foreign chargé d'affaires have a right to address himself to the government of an independent country with the direct purpose of insisting upon certain questions being answered, as a preliminary condition to entering into friendly relations with it; and to do all this from the territory of a neighboring republic before having established his diplomatic character. If a foreign chargé d'affaires, stationed at the capital of Canada, or that of Mexico, had addressed himself to the cabi net of Washington for the purpose of putting similar questions on a subject of a corresponding character, and under the same circumstances or conditions, before having been recognised, there can be no doubt as to the sensation which such an occurrence would have produced among the