No. 677.
Mr. Thompson to Mr. Bayard.
Port au Prince Hayti, November 16, 1888. (Received November 30.)
Sir: Referring to my No. 217, wherein the case of the schooner William Jones of Boston, Mass., is alluded to as having been captured when sailing for Gonaïves on the 20th ultimo, I have the honor to inform you that to-day I have terminated the affair, having succeeded in proving to the authorities of this city that such ship was not legally notified of the blockade, because no notification was inscribed on her papers as law requires; that she was ordered to Port au Prince arbitrarily, for after the notification that a port is blockaded the ship should have been allowed to proceed to any other open port of her choice; that having been brought to this harbor notwithstanding my protests in the premises, a guard was kept on board and the captain and crew treated as prisoners for some twenty days. Being ordered by the Haytian gunboat Toussaint L’Ouverture, she proceeded to this harbor and accepted the treatment of a prisoner. I claimed damages to the amount of $10,000, and the ship is allowed to enter this port free of duties on her cargo and for her tonnage. In fact, in round numbers, the indemnity with these privileges amounts to about $20,000. I have paid over the sum of $10,000 to Captain Collins, who is the principal owner of the ship. I have his receipt in duplicate for the amount. The ship is now being unloaded at the wharf.
I have, etc.,