New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1858-05-29

tkrouab Great Britain, aud supJec' W suon o""oo
a. the British Government might see Mt to impose
upon it. All neutral vessels whatever Their car
goes, bound to any port Of France or her allies,
were required by these orders under pain OF capture
and cor demnatop, first to touch at some British
or Iri,h port to pay such reeNportstion duties as
might be imposed. and to procure British license
TO trade to tie Continent, only granted, however,
on the payment of fee for it. Nor did these
orders allow any export from the territories of
France or her allies Of any produce of those csun-
tries except in vessels which had complied with
the above me ntioned regulations; all such vessels
being further required to touch on their passage
home at some British or Irish port, and there to
unlade their csrgoes, as q preliminary to shipment
to the neutral country.
1t was to compel the resentment of these orders
and of Bonspartes DEGREES by which they were
preceded and vllowed-invasions not less atroci us
Of the rights Of neutral commerce-that We resorted
first to an embargo, BY which the sailing Of any YES
sells whatever from our ports WAS prohibited; then
to non intercourse with Great Britain and Frances
and when these measures, distressing as they were
10 US, failed to produce any coerciye effect to an
authority vested in the President in case either Of
the seressing nations should recall its Objectionable
eiicta, to announce that fact by proclamation, and
il the other nation should not do the same thing
within three months, to establish system of non
importation az against that other. Under this last
act, President Madison issued, Nov IL, 1910,
proclamation announcing, on the strength OF
commune alton made by the Duke Of Galore, Bona
parties Minister Of Foreign Afairs, to our Minister,
Gen. Armstrong, the repeal Of the French DEGREES.
The British, however, objected to Cadores cOmmu.
nication that it was merely conditional promise,
and refused to recall their orders until decree Of
repeal was produced This led to a new proclama-
ton by Madison, issued Feb. |, 1911, establishing
system OF nOn.importatiOn as against Great Britain
This not producing the desired effect, the House
Committee of Foreign Relations, in report made
in the following observation-disclosures having been
called together by proclamation on the 4th Of that
mobth-rec ,mmended preparations for war.
This repor. recalled attention to grievance Of
older date than the British orders u Council,
namely, the impressment of seamen from American
vessels; but the complaints on which subject
g had of lite ben drowned such were the
words Of the Commttee--"in the louder clamorS
/" of the loss of property" On these two grounds,
viz the British orders in Council, aud the impress
mert Of our seameD, war was presently declared.
Before the declaration was made, the British Gov
eminent had, however, recalled their orders in
Council though the fact was not then known in the
United States. On the basis Of this repeal some
attempts were made on both sides toward an arms
tee. But as no satisfactory arrangement OF the
impressment question could be agreed upon, the
war fiji ally proceeded on that ground alone. Up
ward of SIX thousand cases of alleged impressments
of American citizens were recorded in the Depart
ment Of Stae and il was estimated that at le st as
many more might have occurred of which no infor-
melton had been received. Lord Castleresgb, then
the EDgl III Foreign Secretary, admitted on the
floor of the House Of Commons, that an Inquiry
instituted early in the preceding year had discov-
cred in the British feet thirty-Gve hundred men
claiming to be impressed Americana. 1t was set
up, indeed, that this claim Of American citizenship
was often unfounded, yet after all allowance on
this score, it was admitted even by Castlereagh
himself that at the commencement Of the year
1911 there might have been as many as sixteen
hundred bona fide American citizens serving by
coDpusion in the British feet; a slavery from
which relief was never granted except upon posi-
tive proof Of American ctizeDsbp-prOOf which,
so long as the sufferers were forcibly detained on
board British ships of war, it was seldom possible
for them to obtain.
The British Pretended indeed, to no right beyond
that of taking British subjects out Of American
sells. The improvement Of Americans they affected
to regret and attempted to excuse as unavoidable
accidents, which they protested the greatest ankle
ty to remedy. In point of fact, however, these
impressments were often made with the greatest
careessness, not to say wantORness, while every
obstacle was put in the way of discharges, which
could only be made by the Admiralty authorities at
London No commander of a ship had power to
grant discharges, even though furnished with the
cesrest evidence of the Anne ricsn citizenship OF his
sailors of which several very affecting instances oc
CURED IN board British ships Of war cruising of the
American cOast
II was not seainst the right Of British ships-ot
war to search and detan the merchant vessels of
"other nations" as The Union alleges, that the war
of 1912 was undertaken. That right for certain
purr oees and to certain extent was fully admitted.
It was sgainst the right to deprive American mer-
chant ships of portion of their crews and that too
at the risk of the frequent subsection of American
born citizens to life of slavery in the British navy,
that the war of 1912 was persisted in; and twas in
the character, and in the character alone, of war
on behalf of sailors rights against British press
sspe.. that it took such hold on the hearts of
the people. There is not the least ground to say