Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1854-05-06
NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER.
PROPOSED REPEAL OF THE NEUTRALITY LAWS.

published remarks of Dir. SLIDELL in the Senate
on the resolution introduced by him for an inquiry
into the propriety of authorizing the President o.
the United States, in the recess of Congress, tc
suspend our neutrality laws as regards Spain, and
after dispassonate examination of the subject, We
can neither agree with his conclusions nor approve
of the proposed remedy.
We will not here attempt to combat the argu-
ments of Mr.. Slidcll For our present purpose We
are willing to admit that all his arguments are
sound and all his differences STRAINED and impro.
bable as they appear to us) are just and on this
admission we will ask is the remedy which he sug-
gests the proper one? Is it suitable, is it judi
cous, is it honorable or manly, as the course of a
great nation towards either weak or a powerful
nation !! A very slight examination Of the subject
will We think, induce an emphatic answer in the
negative to all these questions.
Our neutrality laws prohibit not only our own
citizens bat all Others from fitting out hostile expc
dtions within our own ports to wage private warfare
solely the personal responsibility Of tho parties
engaged, and thus to prey upon the commerce,
subjects or territories of other nations. A per-
son who, being armed, stops another on a public
road and forcbly despoiis him Of his watch or
his purse is called highwayman, and is by the
laws of all civilized nations subject to severe penal
punishment, in most countries to be ANONYMOUSLY
put to death. Parties who congregate for the same
purpose to proceed in armed vessels upon the high
seas, and there to capture private property of ind
yiduals, or to land upon foreign territories and
wage war; are by the acknowled ged law Of all nations
considered as pirates, and as such arc liable as
criminals to be executed by any nation into whose
hands they may fall.
The proposed suspension or repeal of our neu-
trality laws would then amount to a public and
official declaration on the part of the American
Government that our own citizens or foreigners
may fit out, without let or hndrance in our ports,
expeditions against the territories, commerce. and
subjects of Spain, which kind of expeditions every
civilized nation in the world by their laws have
declared to be piratical; and the proposition of
Mr.. Slidell, Invested of all attempt to cloak
it over with specious arguments, is nothing more
organization and equipment of pratical expeditions
to redress real or pretended, actual apprehended
national wrong. We are to invoke private indivi-
duals to congregate in ports for the purpose of
wagng war upon friendly Power with the full
knowledge Of the fact that all parties engaged in
such proceedings, who cannot procure national COM
missions and national authority are deemed and
considered as pirates, and liable to capital punish
ment as such if captured.
We should be very sorry to think that the Anne
rican people are willing to adopt such course to
redress any imaginary real injury or insult that
might be offered to us by any foreign nation We
have greatly mistaken their character if they would
not infinitely prefer to allow wrong, and even an
insult, to 90 unredressed rather than to employ
such means to attain satisfaction. 1t would, we
think, be considered by them alike cowardly and
dishonorabe thus to encourage individuals to fight
with halters round their necks, and to assume all
the responsibility to say nothing of the expense, of
such proceedings, while the nation avoided the con-
sequences and evils of an open and honorable war
for the redress of national grievances, for the
protection and promotion of national interests. 1t
would be employing in hazardous proceedings pri-
vate individuals, having before them the only in
ducement pirates reward, plunder-or pirate S
fate, the gallows.
Let us inquire, if private armed expeditions
should be thus fitted out in the United States for
the invasion Of Cuba and they should fall into the
power of the Spanish authorities, then to in
terfere nationally to protect them from the fate
which the laws of all civilized nations decree to
such parties or are leave them to the dreadful
fate to which we have brought them? On what
possible pretence could we, as matter of right at
tempt to interfere when at the time of leaving our
shores we refused to clothe them with the national
authority? How could we threaten war with or
retaliation upon SPAIN any other nation, because
they would not spare the lives of men acting on
their own authority in waging private war, and cap
tured red-handed in the fact? Would we listen to
any circumstances or threats of the kind in favor of
similar band which, under like circumstances and
for like objects, had landed upon our shores and
been captured with arms in their hands, waglng
war upon our citizens or property?
Even supposing it possible that Congress could
agree to such suggestion as the one brought
forward in the Senate, we have no idea that any
such expeditions would be attempted from the Uni
ted States The peril would be too great, and a
favorable result too uncertain, not to say impossi
ble The naval force which Spain has in and around
Cuba is too powerful to be overcome 5y any private
armed expeditions; but, in addition, if there is
the least foundation for the differences OF Mr. Sill
dell, the fleets of Great Britain and France would
aid in "crushing out " such attempts for, in
dependent of all the circumstances or differences
alluded to by Mr.. Slidell for the interference OF
these two Powers, they under the laws and prac-
tices of all nations, the United States included,
would be fully justified in capturing or destroying
all armed rovers on the high not provided with
national authority for waging
We intended to make some remarks on the fact
that the very result deprecated by Mr.. Sidell-the
Attenuation of Cuba and the establishment Of
another Hayti at our very doors-so far from being
prevented by the proposed measure, would, in al
probability, be fastened and made certainty by
such step but we have not the time or space t.
90 further into the subject to-day.