| PREVIOUS | NEXT | NEW SEARCH |
A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774-1875
Journals of the Continental Congress --WEDNESDAY, MAY 12, 1779
An appeal from the judgment of the court of Admiralty for the State of Massachusetts bay, on the libel George Wait Babcockv. shipNancy, was lodged with the Secretary and referred to the Committee on Appeals.
A letter, of this day, from Leonard Albouy, was read; Whereupon a motion being made,2
[Note 2: 2 This letter is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 78, I, folio 249.]
Ordered, That the letter and motion be referred to a committee of three:
The members chosen, Mr. [Nathaniel] Scudder, Mr. [Henry] Laurens, and Mr. [William] Paca.
A letter, of 7, from Board of War was read;3 Whereupon,
[Note 3: 3 This letter is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 147, III, folio 311.]
Resolved, That the resignation of Lieutenant Vallance and Ensign Brush of Colonel Warner's regiment, be accepted.
A memorial of Pierre Dereville was read:
Ordered, That it be referred to the Marine Committee, and that they take order thereon.
A memorial from the Rev. Eleazar Wheelock was read:4
[Note 4: 4 This memorial, dated April 2, is in thePapers of the Continental Congress, No. 41, X, folio 383.]
Ordered, That it be referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
The Committee of Foreign Affairs laid before Congress a letter, of April 13, from W. Bingham, at Martineco, which was read:
Page 580 | Page image
Ordered, That the intelligence therein contained respecting Count d'Estaing be communicated to the honble Sr. Gérard, minister plenipotentiary of France.
Congress proceeded to the election of a Brigadier for the State of Pensylvania, and the ballots being taken,
Colonel William Irvine was elected.
Resolved, that the Reports of the Boards of Treasury and of War be postponed.
Congress resumed the consideration of the report Of the committee on the communications from the Minister Plenipotentiary of France, &c. and some time being spent thereon,
Congress resumed the consideration under debate on the 8th instant; and the proposition being read, "That the right of fishing," &c.
A substitute was moved by Mr. [Thomas] Burke, seconded by Mr. [James] Duane, in the words following, to wit:
"That the ministers of these United States be instructed "on a negotiation for peace, to obtain for "these United States an explicit acknowledgment of a "common right to fish every where on the high seas, "and as near the coasts of the territories which shall "remain in the possession of Great Britain as is permitted "to any other nation; provided always, that "all exclusive rights to fishing of the allies of these "United States shall not be affected by any such acknowledgment. "And in case such acknowledgment "shall be refused, and our allies can be prevailed on "to assist in the prosecution of the war, no peace be "agreed to on the part of these United States. But in "case our allies shall not agree to assist in prosecuting "the war, the said ministers be instructed to consent to "a peace without such acknowledgment; provided, "that the claim of these states to such right of fishing "shall, in no event, be given up."
Page 581 | Page image
After some debate, another substitute, in lieu of the whole, was moved by Mr. [Gouverneur] Morris, seconded by Mr. [Meriwether] Smith, in the words following:
"That if the court of Great Britain shall immediately "acknowledge the independence of the United "States of America, then, that an equal share of the "fisheries with Great Britain, as far as the same can "be obtained consistently with the treaty of Paris between "France and the United States, be required and "insisted on; but that, if Great Britain shall continue "to prosecute the present iniquitous and destructive "war, then, that eventual engagements be taken to "exclude her from the fisheries, and divide the same "equally between France, Spain, and America."
A motion was made by Mr. [Richard Henry] Lee, seconded by Mr. [Roger] Sherman, to strike out the words, "that if the court of Great Britain shall immediately "acknowledge the independence of the United "States of America, then."
The question, Shall those words stand, passed in the negative; and the words were struck out.
Another amendment was moved by Mr. R[ichard] H[enry] Lee, seconded by Mr. [Elbridge] Gerry, to strike out the words "as far as the same can be "obtained."1
[Note 1: 1 These proceedings were entered only in the manuscript Secret Journal, Foreign Affairs.]
Adjourned to 10 oClock to Morrow.
PREVIOUS SECTION .. NEXT SECTION .. NAVIGATOR
| PREVIOUS | NEXT | NEW SEARCH |