Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1815-04-15

| time this letter of the law. wish your rea :
| ders, would give themselves the trouble 10
place blank sheet OF paper before them.
| and write down their ideas OF the nature of
| the invitation. and the extent Of the pledge
here proffered to the foreign seamep, before
| they look to any comment upon il from my
pen. or from any other source and If they
do not find the nation pledged TO protect
the men so invited-if they do not And
the rights Of natural born subject ac.
tually native within the kingdom of
! Great Britain" to include the protection
| due to such in the very act to which the
adopted seaman is invited, shall only
say they see with other eyes than mine
Words cannot be stronger; no sophisiry
can Change them and If il were possible,
| by any distorted construction of them, to
pervert their logical meaning. it would on
" follow that atrap has been laid for these
poor fellows for above century, in which
they have been led 20 believe themselves
nncer The protection of the mighty arm of
Britain, against that forfeiture Of their lives
to their former governments, which they
must have incurred in any other charac-
ter than that Of British subjects.
We have accused the Americ leans Of en-.
tcing our seamen into their service but
we look in vain in the statute book of the
United States for any such enticement as
this" And while our navigation act has
been SO relaxed as to admit a large majority
oil foreign seamen into our mercantile ma
rine, and our 6avy has been half manned
with Observation-Disclosures with whose pa
rent states we We're actually at war, we
have been issuing proclamationa, threaten
log our own seamen with punishment for
| the very act which We have thus so strong
ly, and for so great length Of time, en-.
couraged IN others. And nov that we are
at peace with all Europe. and have turned
the impressed American seamen into prison
ships. We have found it convenient to dis
cover that by the ancient law of this realm
founded or the fsriuciaies of general iagy,
the natural bern subjects of his Majesty
cannot discharge themselves from the alle>
glance which from their birth they owe TO
lis Majesty"
ihere was another act Of Anne, passed
The year following that we have quoted !;
by which, because I" the increase OF people
is means of advancing the wealth and
strength OF nation. it is found very lawful
by the ancient law of this realm Ct is not
said, founded upon the principles of gene,
raj law to invite all Protestants to trans
port themselves and their estates into this
Kingdom" 1t is true that this act was re.
pealed az the end of three years, on account
OF divers misch;cfs and nconveniences
having BEEN found TO follow FROM it.'' But
the mischiefs and Inconvenience of the act
did not end with the repeal oft: it has the
rnisch,eyous tendency to demonstrate to the
world that we can pass laws against the
principles of general law" VIII. they can
be made means of advancing the wealth
and strength of the nation and repeal them
when they are found mischievous and incon>
veuient, "to the detriment of the trade
and wealth thereof" There is another mis-
Chief yet unrepealed. BY the necessity we
fouhd ourselves under of repeating this act,
which made subjects of foreigners abroad,
While we mainla ned the former we let in
strong collateral argument to the Amer
can doctrine OK the jurisdiction of the flag
not over enemy's goods, or military. serv-
Ing IN the war, tor to these as we have
shown, they pretend not,) but over sailors
embarked under lawful contract, and re-
ceiVing vlctuaIs and wages from them, to
whatever nation they may belong. The
protection which we found we had no right
to extend, and Could not extend to the 70.
feigner abroad "who took the oaths and the
sactament, and was deemed and adiudeed
natural-born subject" we have thus vir.
tuaiiy declared our right to extend, after
mature deliberation, and have continued to
extend to the seamen under oRr fag, mill.
tary or mercantile, to which we have invi.
led him.
But am afraid that the Americans are
not the only people that will mark the Con-
tradiction between our law aud our procIa-
nation other foreigners will find IN this
last plea for recalling their eameD from
our service 10y general order, in spite of
any engagements they may have contract.
cd with Us: aud thus will be found very diff
ferent from the little niobling by which an
Individual sailor is redeemed III the rare .n-
stances when number of accidents combine
to give his coasdi notice OF hts situation aud
desire of relief; and which is perhaps done
once year, to give the Secretary OF the
Admiralty an opportunity of saying it is the
practice.
know there is a sophisticaI mode of ar
gument by which we are persuaded Q lay
we are persuaded, though we ought not to
6e) that no other nation has right TO draw
inierences from the laws that we make tor
ourselves. But the child who has learned
the doctrine inculcated by the sage proyerb
that sauce ter goose is sauce tor sdnder, can
be at no loss to Getectits sophstry. If i be
SAID that no nation is bound TO adopt the
laws OF another, | am ready to subscribe 70
the doctrine in the fullest exteat. l will go
farther and say that oar invasion of the
rights OF third party is very far from au-
thorlsing a similar invasion ou the part Of
our enemy. You win be surprised when
tell you that with ali E,ulope against ms on