Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1861-06-04
War Its Domestic and its FOreIgn
Aapecta.

Civil War-Its Domestic and its FOreIgu
Aspects.
Our ~neighbor, the Gazette, seems a little
inclined to take airs upon itself, in a critical
review Of some of our remarks touching the
position assumed by Great Britain, on the
score Of superior age, which-by a mistake
very common 10 old ladies and gentlemen
it treats as equivalent to superior force and
sagscity. We admit the age; and, further.
more, must confess that our neighbor does
recently give evidence of having gained-to
borrow a phrase from the short haired profes.
sor- a sort of second wind" which has
some Of the symptoms of q general rallying
Of its faculties. We hope that these symp-
toms are not deceptive; and that we may be
permitted to look upon them as harbingers
of renewed vigor, and years of future use
fnlness.
The Gazette is not satisfied with the Queens
proclamation Of neutrality, and seems to
think that it was the duty of the British
Government to have placed itself in a differ.
emit relation to ours from that which it has
determined to hold. If the Gazette would
take upon itself to show distinctly what that
relation should be, it might either convince
itself that it is in the wrong, or us that We
are; and good would be the result. We are
sincere in requesting it to try the expert
ment.
We are in a state of civil war: so much the
Gazette viii not deny. We present all the
phenomena which writers upon the laws of
nature and nations cite as belonging to that
condition. Now a civil war inevi ably pre-
sents itself to the Government against which
it is wsged, in one aspect, and to the govern
ments of other nations in another. If we
forget the distinction, and confound the two,
confusion will arise, and our reasoning will
be Of no value.
"When," says Vattel, "a party is formed
in a State, which no longer obeys the
sovereign, and is of strength sufficient to
make head against him; or when, in q
Republic, the nation is divided into two
opposite factions, and both sides take arms;
this is called Civil War" We find in this
sentence an apt description of the state of
things in the United States; the nation is
divided into two opposite factions, and both
sides have taken arms; and furthermore, the
q insurrectionary side is Of sufficient strength
to make head against the other.
But, however strong and well. organized
may be the insurreetionists, they are still
nothing more than rebels in the eye of the
Government. "The sovereign" says the
sam author, "indeed never fails to term
rebels all subjects openly resisting him;' but
he can not oblige other nations to consider
and treat them as such; for "When these
become Of sufficient strength to oppose him,
so that be finds himself compelled to make
war regularly on them, he must be eontented
with the term ciVil tVaF.
Tit aspect in which a nation involved in
civil war presents itself to other nations, is
laid down in the following sentences:
"When a nation becomes divided into two
perties absolutely independent and no longer
acknowledging a common superior, the
Stale Is dissolved, and the war between the
two parties, in every respect, is the same
with that Of q public wal betWeen two diff
terent nations. Whether q Republic be torn
into two factious parties, each pretending TO
form the body Of the State, or a Kingdom
be divided between two competitors 70 the
crown, the nation is thus severed into two
parties, who will mutually term each other
rebels. Thus there are two bodies pretend
ing 10 be absolutely independent, and who
have no judge, they decide the quarrel by
arms, Ike tUO different HGtiOns."- VattsL p.
629.
The duty Of other nations in respect 10
those involved in civil war is stated as fol-
lows:
"FOreign nations are not TO interfere in
the constitutional government Of an indie.
pendent State. Il is not for them 10 Judge
between ~coRteadiag citizens, nor between q
= prince and his subjects; 70 them the two
parties are equally foreigners, equally indie
pendent Of their authority ."-B. p go.
Far more, then, is the case with civil
Wars in general, the conflict now going on
In this country resembles, to outside OBJ
servers, q war betWeen two distinct ma
tons. The people Of . very large section Of
The national territory have split OFF from the
rest, haze obtained complete possession oi
that territory bsYe declared their independ'
encs, established q Government, and created
an army to defend the Independence which
they have declared.