outhern shores of the Mediterranean sea, whose princes were
fattening upon the spoils of piracy, were marauding upon American
merchant-vessels with impunity, and carrying the crews into slavery.

The younger Pitt, in 1783, had proposed a scheme in the British
parliament for the temporary regulation of commercial intercourse with
the United States, the chief feature of which was the free admission
into the West India ports of American vessels laden with the products of
American industry; the West India people to be allowed, in turn, like
free trade with the United States. But the ideas of the old and unwise
navigation laws, out of which had grown the most serious dispute between
the colonies and the mother-country twenty-five years before, yet
prevailed in the British legislature. Pitts's proposition was rejected;
and an order soon went forth from the privy council for the entire
exclusion of American vessels from West India ports, and prohibiting the
importation thither of the several products of the United States, even
in British bottoms.

Notwithstanding this unwise and narrow policy was put in force, Mr.
Adams, the American minister at the court of St. James, proposed, in
1785, to place the navigation and trade between all the dominions of the
British crown and all the territories of the United States upon a basis
of perfect reciprocity. This generous offer was not only declined, but
the minister was haughtily assured that no other would be entertained.
Mr. Adams immediately recommended his government to pass navigation acts
for the benefit of its commerce; but the Confederation had not power or
vitality sufficient to take action. Some of the states attempted to
legislate upon commercial matters, and the subject of duties for
revenue; but their efforts were fruitless, except in discovering the
necessity of a strong central power, and putting in motion causes which
led to the formation of the federal government.

The earliest efforts of the new government, as we shall perceive
presently, were directed to the maturing of schemes for imposing
discriminating duties; and the eyes of British legislators were soon
opened to the fact that American commerce was no longer at the mercy of
thirteen distinct legislative bodies, nor subject to foreign control.
They perceived the importance of the American trade, and of a
reciprocity in trade between the two countries. They perceived, also,
that the interests of American commerce