Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1811-10-25
(CoxTINUEp.)


nroyisions OF the British treaty, Mr.. Genet has'
with diplomatic subtlety, endeayored to secure
. retreat, and at last taken shelter among the
writers upon public law. But here too ne IS
equally unfortunate For in the hurry ut ms
a,e,ht. he has left behind him all the most an
hroped zyriters upon the law OF nations, oo'h Oh
ancient and moderE times. Ii might DC d.
leyed., saws he. in his second letter, :" that
the modern Law of nations has altered the an
Gent state of things; thatthe dominion q
country over the adjoining seas does not now
extend fnrtherthan thar fos9sr Can MAKE II
resDected, and that the common bearing OF
cannon from the shore, or marine league
mr.. The most natural extent OF maralme urls
a;ct;on. But th5se theories are farJron 6e"1S
.vb.ort.d by Substantial DIPLOMATIC autho'7-
,,rs.n ! should be glad to know from this
60, civilian. ON what authority he bottoms
th;s assertion. Dare he pretend that Grouus,
Ryrb .eshoek, Hubner, Vdttel, Vain, Martins
and Azuni. are not substGn!ial dE9!0maf'e eH-
tborjties 30 II this doughty champion OF our
rights, instead of sporting naked before the
nnbic. with wanton assertions and the quo
HES of his own giddy brain, had only Clothed
himself with knowledge before he venturcd a.
broad or if he had even looked INTO late
writer Of his ogun country, Zone OF the most
systematic and authentic publlcists OF any age
or country toos) am persuaded that he would
10. have dared, audacious as he is, TO usher
into the world, under his name, such para
orr, nh &c this. For he would have found, that
%, these respectable and celebrated writer's,
without exception, and two distinguished bfi,
fish civilians, David Hume and DIR. brown
besides. have, 7viih one accord, ascertalhed aho
fixed The almost ertent OF maratlme sove-
reignty and territorial Jurisdiction at the dis
lance of one marine league or the reach %
csnao7, sh5t, from the shore. And that aH
of them Law it down as an established and IN
Sontestible principle that beyond this distance
,ayioation is entirely Tree and equal to all ma
,;ons and Can never be restrained or em0ar-
rassed in any way or by any power whatsoe-
yer. without the most eXtravagant ana unWaf-
r,rtah,e encroachment upon the common
,;,hts of mankind. Nay more-he would
he found that this extent of maritime do
ninion was precisely fixed and expressly a.
aopted nv the Empress Catharine OF Russia,
Iono after the armed neutrality, In her IN
e,r1ctions 10 her cruisers, In the year 1857;
hv I. eopo,d the Grand Duke of Tuscany, In
he maritime regulations vi August l770; by
the Republic Of Genoa inlts famous NANTES
70 of tbe lst of July l778, and by the Republic
&c Venice. in its manifesto OF the 9th OF Sep
+ember in the same year-and yet to all tins
mass of tliplomatiC authority, Mr.. Genet docs
not hesitate to oppose his own crude opinion
founded upon particular clauses IN one or
.,vo Russian treaties which have not the least
hearing unon the subject. OF what avail 1t is
tba, he has +" examined the treaties concud-
ed Inv the Europeon powers before and since
the principles of the armed neutrality ;'-that
he has discovered 6 that Russia by her treaty
with England, and with Denmark, and by her
treaties of 1897 with France and the king OF
the two Sciiies; stipulated that her men OF war
should observe the jar1sdicf1on OF those re-
snectiye countries oper their surrounding seas
Should maintain the most perfect neutrality
m all the ports, coves, gnlPhs and seas De-
lons;nr TO them respectively, and that the u
S.a1 compliment of salute should be paid TO
,bs focal sopereignty" Does this prove the
local sovereignty TO ertend beyond the reach
80 c,nncn shot, or 10 the distance Of tpenty
,errues /? Is it that Mr.. Genets perceP-
.;ons are too obtuse for plain distinction, that
he still "darkens counsel by words without
lnawleape''-stillc onfounds the existence and
,,ekrczrLsdsmsnt of maritime dominion with
the erteat of it Or does ne not wilfuily mis-
< r-oresent-for the only parts of those treaties
which relate at all to the point in question, he
.edulously shuts out of view-Since in all of
them it is expressly stipulated, that the ex-
tent of that maritime dominion, which is so
Guaranteed by Russia, shall not exceed the
reach of cannon shot or one marine league
80, the shore. A claim therefore to twenty
iaoo,ues Of territorial seas, is not only repug-
nsn3 to the established law Of nations, but is
a,toeether unwarrantsd by any treaty that MIR.
Azuni, senator and judge of Bonaparte's,
whose authority therefore Mr. Genet will not
drs to deny.-In Johnson translation On OF s mus
- as;,srssd a. large, and all the opinions of
-. r,.St ce,ebrated writer's upon the law of
s.:ia,,s sais$tiouIArly detailed.