The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1857-08-05

aesirA --
The Privateer Question.
This cuestion. one of the most important to this
oo,r,rx "a a means of annoying aud chastisng an
.namy in time Of war, and which was, in our hum
HE oninion rather awkwardiy handled under the
tatA administration has come mp lately IN the Brit
n un,.o of Commons II will be remembered that
= Corgross IN Paris composed of representatives
~ the Great powers Of Europe, which was held e.
make mace with Russia. and without any re'"r-
enee 10 making maritime laws, and at which this
country was not, and did not desire 10 be repre-
sented took upon itself 90 pass certain resolutions
Relating 10 the question Of neutral rights and pr.
yilcges and. among other matters, abolishing pri
Watering which we're communicated to the govern.
mcnt of the United States. The American gov
eminent replied asserting 10 the majority OF the
resolutions, and expressing a will ingness to agree
g. the proposition In reference 20 prrateering pro
yided private property at sea no longer to be
subject to capture. The imprudence Of thi" con
cesson was strikingly shown in series Of articles
in the National Intellgencer and Washington
Union 10y ". Cary Jones, demonstrating that the
effect would be- in the event of war with the United
States. 10 relieve the immense navies of the grea;
maritime powers of Europe, from the necessity of
defending their private property, and place them
in position to throw their undivided strength
upon the blockade of our ports and the desolation
of our seacoast We had not heard Of the fate Of
this American concession until the recent debate
in the House Of Commons, in which, in reply 10
call of Mr.. Lindsay for copies Of Mr. Marcys letter
in answer 10 the resolutions Of the Paris Confer
ence upon the subject Of priyateeriug, Lord Palm
erston stated the nature OF the American PROPOSE
ton which, he said. had been under consideration
when the new American administration came into
power and desired tie British government 10 con
slider the proposition suspended The country
will be glad TO hear this and certainly it is Singh
lar that in matter fatally compromising ali
.he great commercial. naval and maritime interests
of America and that the present administration has
made haste to request Great Britain not to consider
IL, only one voice of warning aud remonstrance
was raised at the time in the whole country, and
that was contained in the letters Of Mr.. Jones in
the Intelligencer and Union
There was however. no difference Of sentiment
in the United States TO the value Of privateerng
to this country, in time of war. Mr.. Marcy only
proposed 10 surrender it on condition that private
property at sea no longer to be subject to cap
ture though even In that modified form, the pro
position would have materially damaged American
interests. Privateering has always been our chief
means of annoying the commerce of an enemy,
and dverting the attention of his government
vessels in time of war. writer in a late Intel
ligencer, who from the initials, infer to be the
gallant veteran Commodore Thos. Ap. G. Jones'
says that, according to Coggshalrs history Of
American privateers, an aggregate Of ten thousand
sail of British shipping were captured by our little
navy 1cih the aid Of prirat'rs and letters Of mdrqa
exclusive of captures made on the great Northern
lakes. OF these two thousand captures upon the
high seas, thirteen h,1ilred and thirty were taken
by prirdte armed reSselS. Mr.. Coggshall further
states that Il have found it difficult to ascertain
the exact number of our own vessels taken and de
stroyed by the English, but. from the best infor-
nation can obtain, l should judge they would
not amount to more than fgshu1dred SIH,' leaving
us clear gain fifteen htn{rsd British ships, which
rs being taken from the enemy and appropriated to
our own wants, could fall but little short In value
of the cost Of the war TO US. To the actual value
Of ships taken from the enemy it is hut just to add
Mt least 80 per centum for protection afforded to
own commerce and coast trade by the full employ
ment our pricdteers gave the British navy, remeln
herring, too that these private armed yessels-only
$50 Of them-cost the Government nothing save
only the parchment witch their commissions
were printed. In the capture or the Guerrero by
the Constitution there forty-six Englshnen
killed and sixty-nine wounded in n single battle
the effect Of which was to excite the spirit:
whilst the capture Of fifteen hundred British mcr
chantmen, worth probably near hundred million
of dollars. striking to the British Govern
ment, her capitalists, and her subjects of every
class was doubtless accomplished with far less loss
of life and human suffering"
1t Is very clear from tho debate on this subject
in Parliament, that John Bull is fretted and in
censed at the course of his own representatives in
Do Lindsay JarIa a6 hat in
a state of war, Great Britain could not stand by
the declarations which 1t had made at the Paris
Conference. Mr.. BentinCk contended that the de-
Claration, if carried out in time of war; would be
fraught with the greatest injury TO the naval and
mercantile interests of Great Britain and eventu-
ally end in destroying its maritime supremacy
Lord John Russell was even more explicit and en-
phatc. 1t appeared to him, he said, that when
England was engaged. in conjunction with France
in a war with Russia, il could hardly do otherwise
than carry on the war upon the same principles
France. The principle adopted during the was
that free ships free goods But at the end of
the war said Lord Russell, Great Britain was not
under the necessity of making any concession Of
the opposite principle, which was certainly in
conformity with the law of nations, and to which
England had hitherto adhered. There no no
tice given to the people in either House of parla-
ment, that any such question should be discussed
at Paris; there was no preparation in the public
mind. 1t was supposed Lord Clarendon went to
Paris, with Il view to make peace with Russia
These declarations received with cheers. "The
whole matter" continued Lord Russell, sis most
unsatisfactory and most grave i'll its bearing upon
our maritime supremacy. l quite agree that the
way in which we have been able to finish wars
with great Powers, especially with France, has
chiefly been by destroying the enemy's trade We
have brought the Powers with which We have been
at war, of such state that their finances have be-
come disordered. They have then been ready to
listen to terms of peace and thereby the have
been terminated. But now, if were at war
with America or France, they could maintain their
trade in full yigOT, because manufactured produce
throughout the world could be sent in neutral ves-
sells in perfect safety They would have no reason
for making peace. They would not De distressed
We might gain naval victories, but our successes
would not produce peace We might drive all
their vessels of war from the seas but we should |
not thereby gain the end of all war, which Is AN
honorable peace The state Of this question is to
me very alarming but do not that breach |
Of faith would at all mend our position fCheersl
1t is fortunate that the American blunder in di-
plomacy did not proceed far TO put us in |
the unluoky predcament of England, with no
chance Of extrication except by breach Of faith
The Mutiny in India.
We give place to the communication of An intel |
lgent correspondent, correcting what he considers
mistake in the cause assigned by u.s. for the mn. |
tiny in India. Our statement in regard to the |
Governor General was founded on the declarations
of prominent members of the British Parliament, |