The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1805-05-10

might be rvpre!ented and perhaps may &c pro-
we'd to violate the facred law of nations, and
which was effected by the precept of Governor
M'kean, fhould have excited 70 much diicuiIion
and feeling in Penniyvania.
| The cafe in i,felf, is both complicated and
important. 1t is found to involve a principle OF
the laws of nations, which has never yet been
iettled by pubiiciGs, apd which has not been
even anticipated by the aet of Congrefs relating
to foreign ambaiIadors; at the fa,re time Il
| 1t relates to the rights of embafiy, which are of
all others the mott delicate and mott iuStua;-
! ing. Some of the writers on the laws of nations
| have drawn their opinion from abitraGt and I'M
fettled PRIMARIES and others from hi.tor,cal
facts, fufceptIble of very different contributions
They have Aligned very different boundaries 10
the rights of foreign minihers one clafs of
writers giving them an ndeGuite extent, ncom-
patible perhaps with the fovereipnty of the,
Rate, where they reiide while another has cir
cumfcribed them within limits, which are p,r-
haps incompatible with the dignity and fIfrtv
of the m;ni0er.
1t is not my purpote to exarinc at prcf.nt
the origin or the extern OF theie rights Il is not
efential to the Prcfent cafe to enqnire, whether
the immunitles OF minilter dre derived froal
the legal fiction of his being reorejeut0t;,., of
his fovereign, or from the universal prnciple of
utility, which is the itandard ard the offence of
every rule, however minute or comprehensive.
from this rule, the facrednefs of the minileria,
character appears to me to have been truly de-
rived for according to the maxim of Grotius.
winch is evidently deduccd from this prncinr
or utiity; fecuritas legatorum utitati, our
ex poena eft, preponderat ode lure b. D. ~. 4
50 the JeeM1ty OF ambaffadors is of more i'm
portance than the punilhment of particular.
crime From this fngic principle or frcnstsy
what an lmmenie variety of immunites has ken
derived! By the act of Congrefs of 1895, re-
ipeetiDg crimes, which as far as it relates 10 the
privileges of an ambaiiador appears to be
Transcript from the Englilh Code, not only the
Perion and property of an accredited ambaiIa-
dor or other public rfiniiier, but even of his
domefics, If their names have been properlv re-
offered in the office of iecretary of fate, are
exempted from all civil procefS. In fact, pub.
lie mnfter may DC con6dered as wheel within
wheel; as petty but aknoR perfect fovereirn
within thelimitsof another fate. He NAV be faid
according TO the language of the pubicfs to
be cxter2Ttorfal; and hence that expreiiiop &,
familiar in diplomatic ufe " **t Ats mar the
government of the u. So
Had Joief Cabrera thesefore been the mean
eft domeftic in the retinue of the Marquis d,
Yrnjo, he would have been compleatIy placed
without the jurifdidon Of our laws. Had 90.
vernon MKean pretended to have orieiuatea
any precept for arre!ting or imprifoning his Der
ion, or for diftraining or-feizing his property.
he would have obviou(ly violated the general
law OF nations, as wei! as the particular act of
Congrefs.
But this hypothesis does not correfpond with
the Preient cafe, bccaufe governor MsKean did
not originate the precept, but merely ifIued it
IN compliance with the erprciJ wihes of the Spa
Nth miniiter. Had Cabrera been limple do.
meftic, there can be no doubt that d. Yrnio
would have had the power to ak and the 90.
vernon 'oeItendthe aiii;tance of the civil autho-
rlty. For the fame principle of utility. which
exempts mniter from the jurifdi6tion of the
tate. exempts the fate from the dangers which
would menace her tranquility from the fiipport
OF guard, maintained by miuifer for the Dur
pole of regulating the jurifdi6tion of his houE.-
hold.
But even this hypothesis does not exactly cor
refpond with the prefent cafe. Cabrera, it is con.
tended, is not mere domeftic of the Spapijb mi
nifter: he is not one of his retnue He is Ger.-
fa,y Of legation, being altogether or aimoft in.
dependent ofthe ambaGador. "The f.crctarirs
ofemba0y and legation Gays Martens b. 7. c.eI
who mutt not be COMPOUNDED with the brivafefe.
cretarieS of the ambaiiador or miniAer, are mon
commonly appointed by the court. They are
under the particular protection of the law OF ma
tons, and enjoy the perfonal inyiolability due to
their quality. This inviolability is due ain as he
ing comPrehended in the retinue of the miniNer.
hey perform many parts of the ceremonial,
! iuch as notifications, compliments &c. and o..
| theirs relative to the milton, fuch AS keeping tbe
minutes of the dispatches, fometimes of the cv
pher, the archives of the ambaqy, the journal
&c" Yattel aJt0 fays, that he " enjoys immu-
mites in6ebendent the anba1ado, to whor.
orders he is indeed but imperfe6tly fnbie6ted.
| iometimes not at all, & always according to the
determination of their common MATER"
Under thele authorities it would appear, that
Cabrera was independent of the Spanif, miniper.
If he were indeed the fecretary of the LEGATION.
This fact is however denied. Don IoGbb Bru-
ma MGgdaienH is iaid to be the only fecretary of
the Spanih legation in this country. Yet tbofe
who have read the report of the trial will re-
colle9 the ailerton of Mr.. Dallas 1.-THE att orncv
generaD that "the fecretary :ihip of Legation had
been an Office fnce MIR. Yruio's coming to this
country and filled by two perfons'' Should
thefe be facts, the conclufion is rreifible tha,
under the common practice of nations, JoCcf
Cabrera was independent the Spaniih ambaf
fador unefs there had been fome fpecial DOW
| err delegated to him by the Spanih Court ::
| which however is not to be Inferred from any
| thing in the letter of Yrujo TO Cabrera, which
fmply derives the right of arreRation from
the mott accredited publicits."
For more satisfactory view Of the priv
liges of Cabrera, we refer the reader to his
-, a..