pension of £3,000. The tribunal should also have a chief secretary, appointed for life, but removable by a two-thirds vote of the senators. This secretary would have charge of the general staff; his salary should be £5,000 and his retiring pension £2,500. All expenses of the tribunal, including the cost of suitable buildings, should be paid out of a common fund, to which each first class power should contribute the same amount, and the second and third class powers each a half and a third as much, respectively. To the tribunal so created and maintained would be referred "any and every question between the adhering powers on every failure by ordinary diplomatic effort to effect a settlement." When necessary, a committee of the senators, not including the nominees of the parties interested, might establish a modus vivendi pending a final decision. This decision should represent the absolutely free judgment of each senator, and in order to avoid the exercise of personal influence by one arbitrator over another in the rendition of final judg ments, each senator should, after the discussions were ended, himself prepare a draft judgment which would be deposited in a common receptacle, like the Lion's Mouth at Venice, from which it would be taken and printed anonymously. Each senator, after he had been furnished with printed copies of all the draft judgments, would then settle and prepare his own final judgment, which would be deposited and printed in the same manner as the draft. The majority would become the judgment of the tribunal. The publication of the several judgments, unsigned or signed, would be within the control of the tribunal. If, in case each adhering nation should nominate a member, the number of senators should become very large, a tribunal of first instance might in each case be formed of seven members, two of whom should be of the nationality of the disputants, the judgment of such tribunal to be subject to the revision of the rest of the senators. Such was Sir Edmund Hornby's "broad outline of an international court or college for the determination of disputes between nations, and for the gradual development of a system of international law."

The commissioners appointed as secretary or clerk Nathaniel L. Upham.

The Agents.

The convention provided that the commissioners should, if required, hear "one person on each side, on behalf of each government, as counsel or agent for such government, on each and every

separate claim;" and each government was authorized "to name one person to attend the commissioners as agent on its behalf, to present and support claims on its behalf, and to answer claims made upon it, and to represent it generally in all matters connected with the investigation and decision thereof." To discharge this duty on the part of the United States President Pierce, on the 19th of April, 1853, appointed John Addison Thomas, of New York.1

Mr. Thomas, who was born in Tennessee in 1811, graduated at West Point, where he was successively an assistant instructor in infantry tactics, assistant professor of geography, history, and ethics, and commandant. In 1846 he resigned a captaincy in the Army to practice law in New York City. Later in the same year, the Mexican war having broken out, he became colonel of the Fourth New York Regiment; but it was not mustered into service. After serving as agent under the present convention, he became Assistant Secretary of State of the United States, a post which he held till April 4, 1857.

As agent on the part of Great Britain, the Queen appointed James Hannen, whose commission bore date November 16, 1853, and whose recent death has deprived the English bench of one of its most illustrious members.

1 His commission was as follows:

"Franklin Pierce, President of the United States of America, to all who shall see these presents, greeting:

"Know ye, that reposing special trust and confidence in the integrity and ability of John A. Thomas, of New York, I do appoint him to be agent of the United States under the convention with her Britannic Majesty of February 8, 1853, on the subject of claims, and do authorize and empower him to execute and fulfil the duties of that office according to law.

"And to have and to hold the said office with all the powers, privileges, and emoluments thereunto of right appertaining unto him, the said John A. Thomas, during the pleasure of the President of the United States. "In testimony whereof I have caused these letters to be made patent and the seal of the United States to be hereunto affixed.

"Given under my hand, at the City of Washington, the nineteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fiftythree, and of the independence of the United States of America the seventyseventh. "FRANKLIN PIERCE,

"By the President:

"WILLIAM L. MARCY,

"Secretary of State."

(S. Ex. Doc. 103, 34 Cong. 1 sess. 19.)

Private Counsel.

It is proper here to state that in various cases the commissioners heard private counsel for claimants, such counsel being introduced to the board by the agent of the government of which the claim. ant was a citizen. Among the counsel who so appeared were Messrs. Cairns, Reverdy Johnson, J. C. Bancroft Davis, and Rolt, Q. C.

mission.

The office of the commission was established

Organization of Com- at 9 Wellington Chambers, Lancaster Place, Waterloo Bridge, London. Here the commissioners, on September 15, 1853, held their first formal meeting. At this meeting they exchanged their commissions and, after subscribing the declaration required by the convention' and deliberating on the question of an umpire, they severally addressed to their respective governments a communication, stating the time and place of the meeting and requesting that notice be given to claimants of the pendency of the commission. At a subsequent session of the board it was determined that meetings would be held daily from 12 to 3 o'clock until otherwise ordered. Rules also were adopted for the regulation of business and the government of procedure.

pire and Commissioners.

Several cases were partially heard before Cooperation of Um- the umpire was selected. Subsequently, when certain cases were finally heard and the commissioners were unable to agree, the umpire attended and the cases were argued before him. In many cases, however, the hearing was held by the commissioners in the first

"We, the undersigned commissioners, appointed in pursuance of a convention for the adjustment of certain claims of citizens of the United States on the British government, and of British subjects on the government of the United States, concluded at London the eighth day of February, one thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, do severally and solemnly declare that we will impartially and carefully examine and decide, to the best of our judgment and according to justice and equity, without fear, favor, or affection to our countries, upon all such claims as shall be laid before us on the part of the governments of the United States and of her Britannic Majesty respectively.

"In witness whereof we have, this fifteenth day of September, one thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, made and subscribed this our solemn declaration.

"NATHANIEL G. UPHAM, "Commissioner on the part of the United States.

"EDMUND HORNBY,

"Commissioner on the part of her Majesty."

(S. Ex. Doc. 103, 34 Cong. 1 sess. 14.)

instance in the presence of the umpire.' The convention expressly required that the umpire should, if required, hear one person on each side, on behalf of each government, and that he should consult with the commissioners before rendering his final decision. This provision, or rather the wise practice under it, made the umpire substantially a member of the commission and did much to obviate the inconveniences, the delays, the double arguments, the waste of effort, the temptation to disagree, and the opportunity and incentive to claimants to attempt to concentrate personal influence, that generally and to some extent inevitably result from having two or four commissioners and an umpire, instead of a board of three or five commissioners.

Jurisdiction of the
Commission.

The jurisdiction of the commission embraced, as it was defined in Article I. of the convention, "all claims on the part of corporations, companies or private individuals, citizens of the United States, upon the government of her Britannic Majesty, and all claims on the part of corporations, companies or private individuals, subjects of her Britannic Majesty, upon the government of the United States, which may have been presented to either government for its interposition with the other since the sig nature of the treaty of peace and friendship, concluded between the United States of America and Great Britain at Ghent, on the 24th of December, 1814, and which yet remain unsettled, as well as any other such claims, which may be presented within the time specified in Article III. hereinafter." By Article III., to which reference was thus made, it was provided that "every claim" should be "presented to the commissioners within six months from the day of their first meeting, unless in any case where reasons for delay shall be established to the satisfaction of the commissioners or of the arbitrator or umpire, in the event of the commissioners differing in opinion thereupon; and then, and in any such case, the period for presenting the claim may be extended to any time not exceeding three months longer." It was expressly agreed "that no claim arising out of any transaction of a date prior to December 24, 1814," should be admissible under the convention. The commissioners were required to examine and decide every claim within one year from the day of their first meeting; and they, and, in case they differed, the umpire, were empowered "to

'S. Ex. Doc. 103, 34 Cong. 1 sess. 44, 46, 48.

decide in each case whether any claim has or has not been duly made, preferred, and laid before them, either wholly, or to any and what extent, according to the true intent and meaning of this convention."

Procedure.

In the investigation and decision of claims the commissioners were authorized to proceed in such order and in such manner as they might think proper, but upon such evidence or information only as should be furnished by or on behalf of their respective governments; and they were bound to receive and peruse all written documents or statements which might be presented to them by or on behalf of their respective governments in support of or in answer to any claim. All decisions of the commissioners or the umpire were required to be in writing, and to be signed by them respectively, and were to be final and conclusive on each claim decided by them.

Provision as to
Expenses.

It was provided that all sums awarded by the commissioners, or by the umpire, on ac count of any claim should be paid by the one government to the other, as the case might be, within twelve months after the date of the decision, without interest, and without any deduction, except that the whole expenses of the commission, including contingent expenses, should be defrayed by a ratable deduction on the amount of the sums awarded, provided always that such deduction should not exceed the rate of 5 per cent on the sums awarded, any deficiency to be defrayed by the two governments in equal moieties. As to the amount of the expenses, the convention provided that, while each government should pay its own commissioner, the salary of each commissioner should be the same and should not exceed $3,000, or £620, a year; that the salary of the umpire should be determined by mutual consent at the close of the commission; and that the salary of the clerk should not exceed $1,500, or £310, a year.

Extension of the
Commission.

As frequently happens in such cases, the amount of business that came before the commission was much larger than was anticipated. From the 15th of September 1853 to the 12th of June 1854 the commission held sixty-seven sessions, and on the latter day "took into consideration the propriety of requesting from the two governments an extension of the time originally assigned for the termination of the commission, the better to enable them