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tion in France, only in the manner and in the cases set forth by articles 2123 and 2128 of the Civil Code.'

"And it is further provided by the laws of France, by article 2128 [2123] of the Code de Procedure Civile [Civil Code], 'A lien cannot, in like manner, arise from judgments rendered in any foreign country, save only as they have been declared in force by a French tribunal, without prejudice, however, to provisions to the contrary, contained in public laws and treaties;' [and by article 2128 of that code, 'Contracts entered into in a foreign country cannot give a lien upon property in France, if there are no provisions contrary to this principle in public laws or in treaties.']

"That the construction given to said statutes by the judicial tribunals of France is such that no comity is displayed toward the judgments of tribunals of foreign countries against the citizens of France, when sued upon in said courts of France, and the merits of the controversies upon which the said judgments are based are examined anew, unless a treaty to the contrary effect exists between the said Republic of France and the country in which such judgment is obtained that no treaty exists between the said Republic of France and the United States, by the terms or effect of which the judgments of either country are prevented from being examined anew upon the merits, when sued upon in the courts of the country other than that in which it is obtained; that the tribunals of the Republic of France give no force and effect, within the jurisdiction of the said country, to the duly rendered judgments of the courts of competent jurisdiction of the United States against citizens of France after proper personal service of the process of said courts is made thereon in this country."

The answer further set up, by way of counter claim, and in detail, various matters arising out of the dealings between the parties; and alleged that none of the plaintiffs had since 1881 been residents of the State of New York, or within the jurisdiction of that State, but the defendants were and always had been residents of that State.

The answer concluded by demanding that the plaintiffs'

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complaint be dismissed, and that the defendants have judg ment against them upon the counter claims, amounting to $102,942.91.

The plaintiffs filed a replication to so much of the answer as made counter claims, denying its allegations, and setting up in bar thereof the judgment sued on.

The defendants, on June 22, 1888, filed a bill in equity against the plaintiffs, setting forth the same matters as in their answer to the action at law, and praying for a discovery, and for an injunction against the prosecution of the action. To that bill a plea was filed, setting up the French judgments; and upon a hearing the bill was dismissed. 42 Fed. Rep. 249. From the decree dismissing the bill an appeal was taken, which was the second case now before this court.

The action at law afterwards came on for trial by a jury; and the plaintiffs put in the records of the proceedings and judgments in the French courts; and evidence that the jurisdiction of those courts was as alleged in the complaint, and that the practice followed and the method of examining the witnesses were according to the French law; and also proved the title of Guyot as liquidator.

It was admitted by both parties that, for several years prior to 1876, the firm of Alexander T. Stewart & Co., composed of Stewart and Libbey, conducted their business as merchants in the city of New York, with branches in other cities of America and Europe; that both partners were citizens and residents of the city and State of New York during the entire period mentioned in the complaint; and that in April, 1876, Stewart died, and Hilton and Libbey formed a partnership to continue the business under the same firm name, and became the owners of all the property and rights of the old firm.

The defendants made numerous offers of evidence in support of all the specific allegations of fact in their answer, including the allegations as to the law and comity of France. The plaintiffs, in their brief filed in this court, admitted that most of these offers "were offers to prove matters in support of the defences and counter claims set up by the defendants in the cases tried before the French courts, and which or most

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of which would have been relevant and competent if the plaintiffs in error are not concluded by the result of those litigations, and have now the right to try those issues, either on the ground that the French judgments are only prima facie evidence of the correctness of those judgments, or on the ground that the case is within the exception of a judgment obtained by fraud."

The defendants, in order to show that they should not be concluded by having appeared and litigated in the suits brought against them by the plaintiff in the French courts, offered to prove that they were residents and citizens of the State of New York, and neither of them had been, within four years prior to the commencement of those suits, domiciled or resident within the jurisdiction of those courts; that they had a purchasing agent and a storehouse in Paris, but only as a means or facility to aid in the transaction of their principal business, which was in New York, and they were never otherwise engaged in business in France; that neither of them owed allegiance to France, but they were the owners of property there, which would, according to the laws of France, have been liable to seizure if they had not appeared to answer in those suits; that they unwillingly, and solely for the purpose of protecting their property within the jurisdiction of the French tribunal, authorized an agent to appear, and he did appear in the proceedings before it; and that their motion to compel an inspection of the plaintiffs' books, as well as the suits brought by the defendants in France, were necessary by way of defence or counter claim to the suits there brought by the plaintiffs against them.

Among the matters which the defendants alleged, and offered to prove, in order to show that the French judgments were procured by fraud, were that Fortin & Co., with intent to deceive and defraud the defendants, and the arbitrator and the courts of France, entered in their books, and presented to the defendants, and to the French courts, accounts, bearing upon the transactions in controversy, which were false and fraudulent, and contained excessive and fraudulent charges against the defendants, in various particulars specified; that the

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defendants made due application to the Tribunal of Commerce to compel Fortin & Co. to allow their account books and letter books to be inspected by the defendants, and the application was opposed by Fortin & Co., and denied by the tribunal; that the discovery and inspection of those books were necessary to determine the truth of the controversies between the parties; that, before the Tribunal of Commerce, Charles Fortin was permitted to and did give in evidence statements not under oath, relating to the merits of the controversies there pending; and falsely represented that a certain written contract, made in 1873, between Stewart & Co. and Fortin & Co., concerning their dealings, was not intended by the parties to be operative according to its terms; and, in support of that false representation, made statements as to admissions by Stewart in a private conversation with him; and that the defendants could not deny those statements, because Stewart was dead, and they were not protected from the effect of Fortin's statements by the privilege of cross-examining him under oath; and that the French judgments were based upon false and fraudulent accounts presented and statements made by Fortin & Co. before the Tribunal of Commerce during the trial before it.

The records of the judgments of the French courts, put in evidence by the plaintiffs, showed that all the matters now relied on to show fraud were contested in and considered by those courts.

The plaintiffs objected to all the evidence offered by the defendants, on the grounds that the matters offered to be proved were irrelevant, immaterial, and incompetent; that, in respect to them, the defendants were concluded by the judgment sued on and given in evidence; and that none of those matters, if proved, would be a defence to this action upon that judgment.

The court declined to admit any of the evidence so offered by the defendants, and directed a verdict for the plaintiffs in the sum of $277,775.44, being the amount of the French judgment and interest. The defendants, having duly excepted to the rulings and direction of the court, sued out a writ of error.

Argument for Plaintiffs in Error.

The writ of error in the action at law and the appeal in the suit in equity were argued together in this court January 19, 22, and 23, 1894; and, by direction of the court, were reargued in April, 1894, before a full bench.

Mr. James C. Carter and Mr. Elihu Root for plaintiffs in error and appellants. Mr. Horace Russell was on their briefs.

There is scarcely any doctrine of the law which, so far as respects formal and exact statement, is in a more unreduced and uncertain condition than that which relates to the question what force and effect should be given by the courts of one nation to the judgments rendered by the courts of another nation. Very numerous decisions have been had, especially in England, relating to this question in the various forms in which it has arisen; but if we should undertake to learn from the opinions of the courts in these cases what principles had been decided, we should find ourselves in utter confusion. On some occasions judges have said that the judgments of foreign tribunals should be treated as being as conclusive as those of our own; on others, that they are at most but prima facie evidence, and are subject to examination generally to ascertain whether justice has been done in them or not; and on others, that whether they are open to examination or not depends upon the circumstances under which they were pronounced.

In the learned notes to the Duchess of Kingston's case, in Smith's Leading Cases, a very minute reference is made to the various decisions in England and in this country, and some attempt made to group and classify them; but the reader will scarcely gain any assistance from them, and will, after perusal, feel certain of one thing only, viz.: that the subject is involved in great confusion.

The natural and obvious method of doing justice between two contending parties is to examine their allegations, to ascertain the facts respecting the matter in dispute, and to declare the law arising upon these facts. Aside from reasons of policy, this is the only course which should be pursued. It would be quite irrelevant for one of the parties to say,