Alexandria daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1803-1808, 1804-08-28

49,
n know of. brcathed a doubg upon it.
"The right must sunques'ioaably be ex-
ercised with as little of personal hafsnress
and Of vexation inthe mode as possible !;
but soften it as much as you can it is still
riehtof force, though Of lawtul force
Something In the nature of civil process
where force is employed, bot a.lawtul force
which Cannot lawfully be resisted.
ssasdly. That the auth ority st the soHe-
reign-of the.aeutral country being interpos-
edins any: manner Of mere force, cannot Is
caly5vsry the rights of lawfully conmls-
stoned bclligerent cruizerss; say legally
because, what may given, Or be ut pc CIV
en- in the administrator Of this species OF
law, to considerations OF comfy, or natlonl-
z al policy, are views of the matter which,
{ sitting in this court, | have no right to en-
terrain. All that assert IS, that legally, II
cannot be maintained, that II Sweelsh
commissioned cruizer, during the wars OF
! his own country, has Alright by thelaw otna-
tons to visit and examine neutral shlps, the
king Of England being neutral TO Sweden,
| is authorised by that law to obssruct the
exercise of that right with respect TO the
merchant ships Of his country. add this,
that Icannot but think, that If he obstruct-
| ed it BY force, it would very much re
.emble, with all due reverence be It
spoken) an opposition of illegal violence to
regal right. am not ignorant that a
mongst the loose doctrines which ntodern
! fancy. under the various denominations
| of philosophy and philanthropy, have
]sthrown upon the.world, it has been within
these few wears advanced or rather lnsina;.
ated that it might possibly be well if sucha
I security were excepted. Upon suchunaa-
| thorised spesulations it's not necessary tor
me to descant: the law & practice ofnations,
include particularly the practice Of Swe-
den, when it has happened to be bellfger-
ent, givs them no sort of countenan &C and
until that law and practice are new mo-
/ delled in such away as NAV surrender the
known ancient right of some nations TO the
present convenience ofother nations (Which
nation may perhaps remember to forget
them, when they happen to be themselves
| beliigerenO 70 reverence IS due to them ;
they are the elements Of that system, which
fit is consistent has for its real purpose, an
/ entire abolition Of capture In war--that is,
| In other words, to change the nature Of no.
tiiity, as it has ever existed amongst man
| kind, land to introduce q system OF things
not yet seen in the world, that of mill
tary war, and commercial peace.
| !" 3dly. That the penalty for the violent
contravention Of this right, is the confsca-
ton ofthe property so withheld from visi-
tation and search. 1t is a principle, not
only of tue civil law, (on which great part
Of the law OF nations is founded) but the
private jurisprudence of most countries in
Europe that contumacious refusal to
submit to fair inquiry infers all the penal
| ties Of convicted guilt. Conformably to
this principle, we and in the celebrated
! French Ordinance of1o33, now in force.
I Article IL, q That every vessel shall be
! good prize in case OF resistance and COM
| bat" and Vain, inhis smaller coKmen-
tary, p. 81, says expressly, that although
the expression is in the sconjunctiye, yet
that the resistance a!onsi IS sufficient. He
/ refers to the Spanish Ordinance in 171s,
| evidently copied froan.it, in which it is ex-
pressed in the Distinctive, il ease ofre-
i .sistance or combat" I'D recent instances
are at hand and within view, in which ii
! appears that Spain continues to act upon
/ this principle. The first time in which it
occurs to nav notice, on the enquiries haze
{, been able. to make, in the institutes of our
own country Pectsag matters Oft his ma
/ ture, except what occurs in the Black Book
of the. admiralty, is in the order of Coun-
| Gil 1864, article II. which, directs, /" That
when any ship met withat by tEe Royal
I Nayy 0y ofher chin Z oi,, mic ioY,rd soau