, 1861-10-22

The Con cation Act-0p1n4oN OF
Judge Ware Of Maine.

ubeued under the recent acts Of Congress OF
August 9Th and July 18th, 1861. The opinion
Is important In two points Of view frat, as
an elaborate and conclusive judicial exposi- t.
tion Of the. laws; and in this connection We
may state that several members Of the Cab
met have expressed themselves highly pleased
with it and secondly, for its impressive state
meut OF the duties Of our Government in the
unused position in which it finds itself We
can barely state the principal points decided
In the case, which are as follows:
The Judge says: It Every nation, Of common
sright, may declare what shall be ports Of |
"entrE and delivery, aud participate IN trade |
"by Law, and enforce those laws by such !
"means and penalties SIS she p1eases. II she |
"places armed ships before them, this does not
accnstitue blockade as understood By pub
"lic law, hut is mere municipal regulation,
| <sthough faniliar1y called blockade,''
IA neutral, or neutrality, always implies
"three parties; two be1ligerents, and third,
"a common friend, all acknowledged as inde-
"pendent nations. But In civil war there Is
"only one party. Insurgents are not ac1nowl-
"edged as ration, but to foreigners they are
"mere malefactors." In enforcing this point
she Judge cites the declaration Of war made
by England against France for having allied
herself with Us In the war Of the Revolution.
and says, with much point: "Thl5 declaration
"emanated from the British Cabinet, Of which
"Lords Thurlow and Loughborough formeda
"part, and clearly show that In her ua-
"dgstanding Of the law Of nations, re-
} "golted nations are not acknowledged
"as a natIon under that Law, I think
"cor1ect1y. The practice Of nations L.
"not always, / know, in harmony with the
"law. Rome extended her empire not by
"just WEI, as We now understand 1t, hut By
}, s'fhe minority againet the majority, and finally
"reducing both to slavery; and perhaps some
l "may think that England hos followed the same
"rolfes in Tic Ea*t But this believe to be
stthe law Of the Christian world in the West
: "BelleYirg this. the rights Of blockade aud
It <'aud neutrality have no application in these
"cases- The laws Of July 18th and August
Il .'6th are purely municipal regulations, and as
If he Court decides that the words "aid,
d abtt, and promote" In the conhscasion act,
n are to by taken In their largess extent, and in
,e discussing this point he says:
'S "The second medium Of Interpretation is
'e the mischief to be suppressed OF the good to
be obtained, fsr every law onght to be 80 in
terpreted that the object Of it may be accom-
D. p1ished and not defeated The object Of this
" law ia to put an end to the insur1ection,
/. snd this insurrectioa Is against all the 1aws
:. Of the United States md not one only. The
u insurgents deny the whole authority Of ths
20 United states- They deny the rsghtful power
It, ! Of the GoVeFnmenE itself The: struggle Il
rot then pro aris It toeis, to have possession
- thin, but whether We shall have affairs AMI
4 bearths to contend for"
"When insurgents have thrown of au law
-. ec1upn1ous es to the means of executing thei
rs purpose. They avail themselves Of any mean
ng in. their power which will eerve their turf
les and those who oppose them must draw th
"a sword and throw away the 6cabbard. Mha
"o' made even legitimate wars In ancient tiuae
sse 60 fierce and bloodys 1t was because th
kk- con,batants knew they we're fighting not onl
her fer national Independence but for everTthfn
valuable that belonged to themselves, for t4e!
beBrtts snd homes, for their wives and Chi
'Es epoils fer the victorz, Tha insurgents ha,
nd, 70 public treasury out Of which to pay the
azy followers. They pay only II promises an
zht the3i purposes mnss oe Inas Fhe sGn5ug1 5a11e
the Of Philadelphia, and New York, and Bosto
nth would 20 far towards this. So the hlibuste
m. | OF buccaneers Of a century sgo, as we are Il
b.s formed, being without resources q t tnem or OF
rith the p}pp1er and plantations Of Cuba In sut
lew cases It is always Pae psef's woe to the co
the quered."
q $AA~'
/ in statee. They had LEARNED that William
eut. Normandy with 10000 adyenturers suhdu
s,ns the wAole OF England, seized the wealth Of t
~ue inhabitants, enriched his followers, and !
cay duced the whole people to slavery. Three
G to four hundred years we're hardly sutd eient
12Eh raise the saxons to the condition Of free G
e;n,r tigstors, and the nobility coming from t
s1As Normsn law still continue priv1leged c1a
'cfet In wer, aud especially il civil War, boldnt
aris, and audaetty are very apt to be successful
eaen civil var Insurgents -seize- on avery oppor'
nily that God and nature put in the WaJ
ana take advantage Of it. If Legitimate govs
-, is mtnt will not DO something of the same XII
Nea, the people must take the Consequences. G.
~l gress, af.er pouring all the resources Of I
onel, country into the LAP Of the executive, both
tenn men aud money, have shown disposition
reg. use all legitimate means to put down the
:. Aee ep1rectio1. The confiscAtion '3ct, operzt
to OF o. the field where the Insurgents secz
long. ther armies, il \ part Of the means to G.
.ratS. and put m end to this insnnection, aad
-. mischief which the l.w WAS Intended to n.
noo' would not lead us 10 curta1 1t Ct ang Of
esc.' efficiency. 1t would rather tend - gre t.
u for words :he.r lsrgest meaEias,