es, cannot
see with indifference its territory or jurisdiction violated by either;
that the government will therefore proceed to inquire into the facts,
and for that purpose will receive with pleasure, and consider with
impartiality, any evidence you will be pleased to have them furnished
with on the subject: and the President hopes that you will take
effectual measures for detaining here the vessel taken, her crew and
cargo, to abide the decision which will be made thereon, and which is
desired to be without delay.

I have the honor to be, with great respect, Sir, your most obedient and
most humble servant,

Th: Jefferson.

LETTER CXLVI.--TO MR. PINCKNEY, May 7, 1793

TO MR. PINCKNEY.

Philadelphia, May 7, 1793.

Dear Sir,

Since my letter of April the 16th, yours have been received of March the
12th, 12th, 13th, 13th, and 19th. Before the receipt of these, one of
which covered the form of your passports, it had been determined here,
that passports should be issued in our own ports only, as well to
secure us against those collusions which would be fraudulent towards
our friends, and would, introduce a competition injurious to our own
vessels, as to induce these to remain in our own service, and thereby
give to the productions of our own soil the protection of its own flag
in its passage to foreign markets. As our citizens are free to purchase
and use foreign-built vessels, and these, like all their other lawful
property, are entitled to the protection of their government, passports
will be issued to them as freely as to home-built vessels. This is
strictly within our treaties, the letter of which, as well as their
spirit, authorizes passports to all vessels belonging to citizens of
the United States. Our laws, indeed, indulge home-built vessels with the
payment of a lower tonnage, and to evidence their right to this, permit
them alone to take out registers from our own offices, but they do
not exclude foreign-built vessels owned by our citizens from any other
right. As our home-built vessels are adequate to but a small proportion
of our transportation, if we could not suddenly augment the stock of our
shipping, our produce would be subject to war-insurance in the vessels
of the belligerent powers, though we remain at peace ourselves.

In one of your letters of March the 13th, you express your apprehension
that some of the belligerent powers may stop our vessels going with
grain to the ports of their