The Arkansas banner., 1843-09-23

papers or not, Ii must be apparent that the only lav
 as aattn:ted discretion, ,chaout responsibility WheI we know that British navy officers have little els,
 but pride, that tie race of Nelsons has given pace [, men who cannot be raised to consequence even b, the hlgh-soundlng name of Lord Admiral we ma,
 well conclude that piracy itself would be but ittlt worse than that discretion Indeed, the pirate oc cupies better ground. He visits and searches in the character ot an enemy-no shallow pretext to cove, or gloss 1t over. It is, with him. question of ohy. seal force only. successful, he escapes-if other. Wlse, he IS punished, as a common enemy of all mankind, and he makes no complaint He acts al the peru Of his life; with that at stale he preys on the commerce of all nations-confscates Without law or admiralty courts-in word like the British subaltern prudence and discretion, such as he may see ht to exercise. the only laws for his govern ment.
 Ii we would refuse to permit pirate to visit our ships, we ought, on the same principle, to prevent the British officials from doing so because the rioht ot one IS no better than the right of the other
 ,' The right we claim,' says Sir Robert Peel is 10 know whether vessel, pretending to be Ameri- can, and hosting the American flag, be bona ide an l American
 ''The right of search,'' he continues is not con-
 fined to the yericaon of the nationality of the yes se but also extends to the object of Le royage and tbe nature ot the caygo. The sole purpose of the British cruisers IS to ascertain whether the vessels they visit are really American, or not The right asserted has, In truth no resemblance to the right of GilleG III pI1nClple or pGdcllce It IS SmDlV a right to satisfy the party who has legitimate in terest ill knowing the truth that the vessel is actual ! ly what her colors announce.''
 The only part of this ministerial performance which is really admirable, is it's cool impudence- disclaiming thing in form, and insisting on it in substance.
 -aiittii.ousfl ne cannot diltel things
 By Cd we'll change their names, sir ;
 Now, it is perfectly apparent from Sir Roberts own showing, that visitation and search depend ent upon each other, in the very nature Of things and that to treat of them in a separate sense is to insult the understanding. We know that there can be no search without visit; and should be blind indeed, to believe that there would be visitation without search of some kind. The British right would be truly an idle ceremony, and fall far short of what they understand by it, if boarding vessel only were allowed, without any farther inquiry= This Is not the meaning, because nothing more use less ridiculous could be imagined, than right to board vessel, and after that being obliged to stand stockst as to the real object of the visit with li- berty only to gaze around, ike country pumpkin, and ask few common place questions.
 It is not meant that the visit shall be of the social or eonyivia kind, in which the parties respectively amid the feast of reason and flow of sou will in yoke the spirit of by gone days; that shall be of your fashionable kind to show the very latest fashion in dress, the cut of skirt the change in button, with little scandal, . finishing stroke to the whole
 Ii Is none of these, but on the contrary embraces every object, animate and inanmate, calculated to verify the nationality of the vessel.
 Now, what is the evidence of Che nationality of the vessel according to the British doctrine: 1t is not the flag at the masthead, because that 1t is said, may be lraudulently assumed, and prores aottiag.
 Next in order are the ship papers. They can be fraudulent, as well as the flag; and it is believed to be true, that slavers frequently carry different sets of ship papers, to elude detection at all events 1t easy to forge these papers, 1t is to aldu- ently use flag; the temptation to do so is just as strong. the hope of success just as well founded so that 1t is just as reasonable to suppose that the one would be resorted to often the other; the con sequence of which Is, hat te sAp papers pf0Ce ao- Hj8e.
 Next the crew, from commander to cabin-boy are soemnly paraded before the British subatern for his scrutiny and he Is to decide from their appearance whether they are Englishmen, Frenchmen, Portu- gHese, BIazliahs Turks, Americans, of any other country. National costume would be but an oX- trene1F uncertain guide, because that too could be assumed for the occasion. Physiognomy would be little less uncertain, on account of the great similar fly between the American and English people, which requires, to say the least of it, judgment critically accurate to decide. But if found to be Britons or of any other nation, another insuperable difficulty arises, which is, that under our nauraza- ton laws, foreigners may become citizens of the United States, compliance with certain prescribed requisites and as such may serve in naval or merchant vessels. It might, therefore, be strictly true, that every being on board might have been born in any other country under the sun than Ame- riea and still the vessel be American property, pro- teced by our flag and our laws, and the crew owing obedience to those laws, and punishable, by their provisions, for crimes and misdcmcanors committed on the high seas.
 Again, the crew might be composed fnatiye-born Americans, owing no allegiance to our Government, and the vessel foreign, since acknowledge the doctrine of eXpatriation in it's fullest extent as be- longing to freemen. Onr language is, we do not de- tain you against your will; there is principle in our form of government, which compels you to live under it, if you think you can more eiectually pro- mote your happiness in other lands if through plea sure interest caprice, you desire to transfer your home to the old world-if it is your wish to throw of ancient ties, and contract ones, no tyrants proclamation, no iron-handed law, deprives you of the right; the wave of the ocean is not more free.
 therefore, on view of all these difficulties, the appearance of the crew, the country of nativity even when indubitably ascertained, pf0eeS lille or nothing iolcarts satietyjRg he eiSitor.
 The next step is to overhaul the cargo, or, in sea- mans language, breqk bulk, and minutely inspect contracts of aitreightment policies of insurance n sealed letters would be protected from violation, or indeed that any thing, public private, would be shielded from British rapacity?
 Tine extent of the examination of the cargo, would be matter of discretion merely, and that it would possess all the characteristics of British custom- house scrutiny, is more than probable. If that should be the prototype, nsoence of ofice,' dis regard of private property rights, and feelings, and insulting conduct, would follow, as legitimate con sequence; any other, indeed, would be unnatural
 After all the examination that could be made, be it ever rigid, the cargo might be of such descrp ton as not to indicate the nationality of the vessel Supposing it to consist of American products still the vessel and crew might be foreign and the cargo purchased in foreign country, since our commodi ties are found in almost every part of the world- The documents and papers relating to the cargo, might in the estimation of the British subaltern, be all spurious and fase that, amid all these per picking circumstances, the cargo and papers relating thereto, do mol pfore to his setiyacoa, 10 achat lion tbe ueSseI belongs.
 l suppose the next inquiry would be into the oJ- jects of he uoyage, An inquisitorial investigation into motives, aad conduct and movements-being compelled to give account of every transaction, of future intentions--this is the meaning of it. We have constitution, Great Britain magma charta, whereby no man can be deprived of life, liberty, or property without the judgment of his peers, or the law of the land; and yet here is proceeding in traventon of both, utterly at variance with the first principles of justce proceeding whereby hun