ons
on that subject. But, as the War went on and the naval and
military strength of the United States increased and became
more manifest, Great Britain became more careful. At last
some Rebel rams were built by the Lairds, ship-builders of
Liverpool. Mr. Adams procured what he deemed sufficient
evidence that they were intended for the Confederate service,
and made a demand on Lord Russell, the British Foreign Minister,
that they be detained. To this Lord Russell replied that
he had submitted the matter to the Law officers of her Majesty's
Government, and they could see no reason for interfering.
To this Mr. Adams instantly replied that he received the communication
with great regret, adding, "It would be superfluous in me
to point out to your Lordship that this is war." Lord Russell
hastily reconsidered his opinion, and ordered the rams to
be stopped.

He afterward, as appears in his biography by Spencer Walpole,
admitted his error in not interfering in the case of the vessels
that had gone out before. But the mischief was done. The
terror of these Confederate vessels had driven our commerce
from the sea, or had compelled our merchant vessels to sail
under foreign flags, and had enormously increased the rate
of insurance to those who kept the sea under our flag.

After the War had ended a demand for compensation was earnestly
pressed upon Great Britain. A demand was made to refer the
claims to arbitration, and a Treaty negotiated for that purpose
by Reverdy Johnson under Andrew Johnson's Administration,
was rejected by the Senate, on the ground, among other reasons,
that the element of chance entered into the result.

Thereafter, in General Grant's time, a Joint High Commission
to deal with this controversy was agreed upon between the
two countries, which sat in Washington, in 1871. The Commissioners
in behalf of the United States were Hamilton Fish, Secretary
of State; Robert C. Schenck, then our Minister to England;
Samuel Nelson, Judge of the Supreme Court; Ebenezer Rockwood
Hoar, lately Attorney-General, and George H. Williams, afterward
Attorney-General. On behalf of Great Britain there were Earl
de Grey and Ripon, afterward Marquis of Ripon; Sir Stafford
H. Northcote, afterward Earl of Idesleigh; Edward Thornton,
then the British Minister here; John A. MacDonald, Premier
of Canada, and Montague Bernard, Professor of International
Law at Oxford. The two countries could not, in all probability,
hav