Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1811-06-13

uccessiul titan any otllcrbudy CT citizens.
ScLOE.
FRoa THE EATIorAL observation-disclosures.
MR.. Caleb,
know that it is i;iailihS noun
tain Of a mole-liill, to use home,y phrase,
! TO say 50 much about so trivial an affair as
that which lately Cccurred On our coast be-
tween an american and British vessel &C
war; but cannot refrain from, expressing
my disgust when the conduct OF sur naval
officer is censured, and :. dispassion riani
tested otsacriiicc onr inalienable tights rG
Their than admit that an &fepissa officer
could be right in a contest with a British
lcommander,
| Why, Sir, what would these caviilers have
had Commodore Rodgers to do !? Was he,
because a neutral, to strike his iiag when a
British frigate, belligcrent, honurcd him
with a.lotS With 4 great affcctati5n OF
patriotism. the opposition writer's viii ar
J swer no Guk Rogers ought to have answer
t ed first, because he 7ras ,serfrai
! believe, sir, that it is the universal Gus
i tom when two vessels neec at sen, whose
sovereign authorities IRE or good terms, for
the vessel Of the greatest force TO receive
the first salutc If that be'truc, Rodgers was
lunqucstionajiy entitled to an answer to his
hail. But il may be SAID that the affliroc-
Cured in the night, and the British frsate
/ could not discover his force; it was on n
Ineutral coast, however, the British captain
knew that no French fri5ates were ont, and
fcUaht to have presumed that he was hailed
| by friendly vessel, OF at least equal force
he ought to have presumed o}untiI ccEyiri-
ced he was in error. Ifthe practice te.wcen
| two vessels Of nations ct arlity, meeting At
sea, be Gs have stated il, what IS there, in
the rotation between a neutral ard ? bclli-
gerent,% which can change the state cf the
caSes Because cue nation engages IN de-
structve and perhaps vindictive war, arc. its
vessels therefore t. rake precedence Of tkos:
S7ho do not ebusc To join them n the frav.
Th. fact is,thAt Captain Bingham must have
known the vessel TO be an American vessel.
IL Could only nave been an American or an
I English vessel; because thehaH was;n Enc
iish Tlle <csIaRGader ef The Little Belt
Ilust have discovered, from the Presidents
not answering Signals, tl,as she was net 6
| British vessel tie therefore knew, when he
| iircd his Joriy tzyo h0L1ta slot aboard the
President, (not a-head or a-stcrli Of her) that
ne was committing an outrage as wei against.
humanity end dcceney al against The 1aws &c
Nations. And, sir when an american ves.-
eel shall refuse 10 return shot for shot IL such
. case, ard chsstise the agsressor If she can,
trust She viii be sent TO the bottom
| But thas been insinnated, and doubtless
will be insisted on, by those who love TO PER-
| pick their coultTys cause that the President
| had no right to chase al armed vessel at
such a distance from our coast. IN vour
paper a few days age, Sii', you published
fsoine documents which arc explicit MS TO tic
usage of Great Britain on this head, wiicn
/ she herself was q neutral. The jurisdiction,
iwithin which cur revenue laws have opera
! zion, IS limited totwelye miles from our coast
! But cur maritime jurisdiction for The pur-
! poSc ct securing trcde from depreciation
or piracy is not conhncd to these narrow lin
| its. Civilians have never agreed on any pre-
else Emit to such Jurisdiction. The sea is
free TO all who navigate it, and no nation can
| enjoy exclusive privilege inrelGti6n 10 it, t;-
lcept within slch distance from Der coast as
! is necessary to the due execution of her rev
| enuc laws, and preservation uf peace and
order within her waters. Great Britain her
self claims Jurisdiction over the Britisb CHAM
mel, and ker tight has been acknowledged
10y treaty with some powers. If she, so IN
sulariy situated, surrounded BY independent
Ipowers, claimed and exercised jurisdiction
almost to tlcir shores, surely the U. States,
whccc extent OF coast is nearly two thcusand
miles, and whose jdlisdictioIl, we're it extern
| ced an hundred miles from the coast, would
not clash With that Of any ether nation;
surely they have an unqucstonable right to
examine all vessels coGfsing alorg their
shores, rowing or lowering about the moths
lofthe:r rivers WITHIN such distance as to
enable them to molest our Coasting traaef
Particularly when ejch vessels refuse TO shew
their cotorr, :sappears to me that their char
lactcr ought to DC asCertained, aud if the
power 20 make such examination we're with
Sc Nc act, ev's7 tie ts4sf ci9ient, 7plich
Hcig7D8 II zyaT ai!0uy e 5uinst az cAr8ty, can
.6e ferbiiiird agoflf ncitiyuk }lt O.lyAf
tn c0joy, IN HcH faH e.rffHf, fbe gfehts he
hosgsSgcd bcJoTe the zeaf, qnd lie 6cidgerenf
P1syer5 can t7ho5e IA o6Hg0fion9 uti9R lin
by 7ohich he geas :laf bound 6GJors tie raf-
hlre." Azdni.
-
81 aqGoa may efiytfri9fc Hngs.
svteTs hte. |ree md cOWB1o51 usc offic7 vouiG
! be mr. udiciqi or dang, rous. THfs is n 6e-
card reas5n far zetich fogoeTs erfead their
d5mi51i2H opcy he 8ca oioag mir coa8t, az
far as Mcyarc o5tefo frofecf Mcf- stsht. II
concerns their Safcky and nc 7vbLflte of he
slate, that me g,'h0c 7yorid Be nat fcrDuftcd
70 come 50 rear their fo8ses8i1Hs, esfcciGYg
Nth men Of zrar, 40 y lind r tie ahfrCach
y kudizg 9ati0uS, and disfurJ naUigati0n.
During tfe 7yar II Sfofn gsih me Urffcf
Provinces, Jamcs Ling " Eagl1nd, [thcss