, 1861-04-27

The prospect Of hostillties between the
United States Government end the Confeder-
ate States renders some inquiry into the law
Of nations on this subject appropriate and In
teresttpg. Whist are the legal consequences,
and what the practical bearing, Of state Of
war upon the individual rights Of citizans Of
the two C3nfederacies having dealing, with
each other, are questions which should be
clearly understood. As . contribution from
standard authority to the general stock OF:
knowledge On the subject, we quote some e1-
tracts from Kent's Commentaries, as found In
Lecture Sd, on: the Law Of Nations, vol. l:
NTKRDIurIoN OF COMMERCIAL. INTERCOURSE.
One Of the immediate and important COZ.
sequences of the declaration ct war is the abb
aolute, interruption and lntecdict16n Of all
commercial correspondence, intercourse, and
dealing between the subj ects Of the t*o coun,
tries. The idea that any commercial fnter-
course or pacid3 dealing can Lawfully subsist
between the people Of the Powers as var, eH-
cept under the cie.r and express sanction Of
tie Government, and without special license,
is utterly inconsistent with the new class Of
duties growing out of state of Ear. The
Introduction flows, necessarily, from the prin-,
clp1e already stated, that q state of war puts
all the msmbers Of the two nations re-
speetiye1y In hostility to each other; and to
suffer individuals to GETTY On friendly Or.
CONNIE cial intercourse, while the two Gov
ernuents were at war, would be placing the
Gets CT Government. and the acts of iudirid-
uals in contradiction to each otter. It
would connteract tho operations of war,
and throw obsta7les in the way Of
the pnblic Efforts, aud lead to disorder,
imbeallity, and treason. Trading snpposes
the existence Of civil contracts and relations,
sud q reference to courts Of Justice; and it is,
therefore, necessarily Contradictory In state
Of war. l. afyrds aid to an enemy in IN ef-
teetual manner, By enabling the merchants Of
the enemy's country to support their Govern
ment, and it facilitates the means OF convey
Ing intelligence and carrying OH trattorcus
correspondence With tha enany. These con
siderattons apply With peculiar force to mari
time States WheEe the principal object il to
destroy the marine aud commerce Of the ene-
my IN order to force them to peace. 1t is a
Welsettled doctrine In the Eurlish courts and
with ths English jarists that there cannot *.
LIST, at the fa1ne time, war for arms and a
peace for couIuerc=. The war pnts an end at
once to nil dealicg arda1l communication with
each other, and pIaces every individual Of the
respective Governments, as well as the Gov
ernmsnts thtm selves, in q state Of hostility.
Th'sls equal ; ths doctrine OF all the author
itatiVe writ rs on the law of Eationa, and Of
the maritime ordinances Of al The great Pow
ers Of Europe. 1t is equally the received law
OF III country, aud WIS go decided frequently
by the Cotgress Of the United States during
the Revolutionary war, and again by the S1i-
preme Court Of the United S1atet, during the
course OF the last w:r; and it is difficult to
conceive Of point OF doctrine mare deeply or
txIenEive1y rooted in the general maritime
law Of Europe, and In the universal and isnme-
mortal usage Of the whole community Of the
civilized world.
lhe doctrine Of the islegalisy o; I'LL intercourse
or traffic, without express permission, that all
contract with the enemy, made during
war, are utterly void. The Insurance Of an enc.
my's property Is an illegal contrae: because it
is species Of trade and intertoure with the
enemy. The drawing Of 3 bill of exchange,
BY an alien enemy, on subject Of the adverse
country. Is an illegal and void contract, be-
cause it Is q communication aud contract The
purchase Of bills on the enemies country, or
the Remission or dep sit Of funds there, is q
dangerous and illegal act, because i: may be
cherlshing the resources and relieving the
wants Of the enemy. the remission Of funds
in money OF bills, to subj =cts Of the enemy, Ia
unlawful. The Inhibition reaches to every
communication, direct or eircuitous All In
deayors to trade with the enemy
by the. Intervention of third PEI.
Sons. or by partnerships, have equally failed,
and no arti1ce has succeeded to legaliae the
trada Without the express permission Of the
Government. Every relaxation Of the rule
teEds to corrupt the allegiance If the subject,
e-d prevents the war from fulfilling its end
Tha only exception to this strict and rigorous
rule OF international jurisprudence is the casa
OF ransom bills, and they are contracts Of ne
ceseitv, founded on q state Of war, and en9en-
dered BY its violence. 1t is also further con
seqasaes OF the inability Of the eub=cts Of the
two States to commune CT carry On any cor
re5poade1ee or business together that
oil commercial partnerships, existing he.
tween the subjects Of tie two parties
prior to the war are dissolved 6y the
mere fores and act Of the war itself; though
other contracts, existing prior to tha war, are
not ex;ingo1shed, but the remedy is only Gus
pended, add is from the inability Of al GLEN
enemy to sus Or 10 sustain, II ths laneusg7 Of
the ciViiiape, 0 Eersana s:a,sai in .iudicio. The
whole Of this doctrine respecting the lille
gallty OF any commercial intercourse bo-
tween the inhab:tlnts oftwo na.ippp at war was
extensively reYiewsl, and Tia principal au-
thorlties, ancie1t and modstn, foreign aud do
mestic, we're accurately examined, and the 20
sisiqns which have been laid down established,
in the case Of Griswo!d rs WaddiDston, de.
ti3ed in this Supreme Court of this State, and
afterwards afaeiued on error