The republic., 1851-09-08

Spanish vessel. On this state of facts
the Supreme Court held that SMITH and his
associates were freebooters upon the sea, and
pirates, for the reason that they ''were not un-
der the acknowledged authority, or deriving
protection from the flag or commission of
any government" And in his very learned
and elaborate note upon this Judgment. Mr..
Justice STORY says: pirate, Latrones, Pre-
dOneS, are used to denote the same class OF Of
tenders; the first term being applied to rob
bers or plunderers OH the sea, and the other
TO robbers or plunderers on the land"
The whole doctrine in the view we contend
for is very clearly and succinctly summed up
in the article WAR in the Encyclopedia fine
ricarla, from the pen, we presume, OF Mr..
Justice STORY, who furnished many of the pa
pers in this department Of that valuable work:
''Individuals have no right to commit acts of
hostility, except in selfdefence, pithom a
commission from the proper authorities, and
ere liable TO be treated as pirates and robbers
If they undertake hoStilities on their olcn re
spOnsibiity." So Mr.. JEFFERSON, then Sec
retary of State, in his letter or June, IL,
1898, to Mr.. GENET, denying the right of
foreign government to enlist citizens of the
United States within our territories in her ser
vice, places his denial upon the ground that, by
the law of nature, "Man is at peace with
man, till some aggression is committed which
by the same law authorizes one to destroy an
other as his enemy. For ON citizens then TO
commit murders and depreddtions on the
members of nations at peace with us, OF 10
combine to do it, appeared to the Executive,
and to those whom they consulted, as much
against the laws OF the land as TO murder or
rob, or combine to murder or rob It's Oiom citi-
sens, and as much to require punishment, il
done within their limits, where they have n
territorial jurisdiction, or on the high seas,
where they have personal jurisdiction, that
is to say, one which reaches their own citizens
only; this being an appropriate part of each
nation, on an element where all have com
mon jurisdiction. So say our laws, as we
understand them ourselves. To them the
appeal is made, and whether we have con-
strued them well or i'll, the constitutional
Judges will decide. On the first attempt that
| volving in the censures of the law as few as
might be. Such of the individuals only as
were citizens of the United States were sin
gled out for prosecution. But this second at
tempt being after full knowledge of what had
been done on the first, and indicating dspo-
sitlon to go on in opposition to the laws, they
are to take their course against all persons
concerned, whether citizens or aliens; the lat
ter, while within our Jurisdiction, and enjoy
6 ing the protection of the laws, being bound to
obedience to them, and to avoid disturbances
of our peace within, or acts which would
commit it without, equally as citizens are"
In his proclamation, therefore, the PRESIDENT
denounced the offences therein contemplated,
by the terms employed by the civil law, the
law of nations, the Supreme Court of the Uni
ted States, and Mr.. JEFFERSON himself, to de,
note the crimes against which he solemnly
warned his countrymen. He designed to open
the eyes of men to the gulf of crime into
whicn they were rushing. If he had been
listened to how much blood would have
been saved-how much misery averted! And
how fearful is the responsibility that rests upon
the heads of those men who even now seek to
excite hostility against the PRESIDENT, because
he is simply discharging his duty in executing
the will of the People as embodied in the laws
of the People!