Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1861-09-12
THE NATURALIZATION AOT-'-CON"
FTkCATION IN GENERAL

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may be thought proper.
The act ssguestsrs The property Of all alien
enemies, whether real, personal or mixed IN
Guiding stocks Of all kinds, except Confederate
and State, and embracing all debts owing TO
citizens Of TIE United States. 1t directs the
dividends upon stocks, the interest upon deois'
and the rents accruing from real estate to
Maid into the hands Of a Receiver appointed
by The court, VINO will be required to pay the
ssme into the Confederate treasury. 1t Is
atrcflv retaliatory in its character, being de-
signed to compensate the citizens Of the Con-
federate States fer any aEd ali losses which
they may sustain by the sweeping conhscation
act Of the LrScOLN government, which de-
elarss forfeited for federal use property of
every kind employed in any manner to assist
in prosecuting the war for Southern independ-
epce. The decree Of the Court Of Claims,
which sdiudicates matters of this sort, is to be
deemed prima faciG correct, from which we
infer that it is the design of the act to throw
upon any contestant CT a claim, the burden of
proof that the claim is incorrect.
A brief aIIusion to the former doctrines and
practice on this subject, under the c%ircumstan-
ces, may not be without some degree Of in
terest:
During the war Of the revolution, in the
year III, the Legislature Of Virginia enacted
a law, declaring that citizens of Virginia
owing debts to British subjects, might pay the
same into the treasury Of the STATE, and be
thereby discharged Of liabilities to the British
creditors. HYLToE a8d EPPEs, citizens of
Virginia, were indebted by bond to VIZ. S.
JOKES, a British subject, f2976, ard they paid
the amount into the Virginia treasury and re-
ceived from the Treasurer a discharge from
the debt. By the Treaty Of Peace, in 1873,
it was stipulated between the United States
and Great Britain that creditors on either
side should meet with no lawful i~mpediment
to the recovery of ali bona Jfss debts hereto
fore contracted" Subsequently JoEEs brought
his action Of debt in the Circuit Court of the
United States for the district Of Virginia,
against HYLToE and EPFEs upon the bond, to
which they pleaded in bar the Act Of Confs-
cation, and the payment into the treasury Of
Virginia, the money. The case went finally
from the Circuit Court into the Supreme Court
OF tie United States, aad vas there decided in
favor of the British creditor, that the debtors
should pay to him the amount OF the debt. Il
may be found reported in 3 Dallas reports,
I99.
Judge Patterson in the course Of his opin-
Ion said "The truth is, the cOnfscstion of
debts is at once unjust and impolitic; it
destroys cor fdence, violates good faith, and
Injuries the interests of commerce. It is also
unproductiye, and in most cases impracti-
cable"
Judge NELSON said: "By every nation,
whatever lis form Of government, the confs-
eatisn Of debts has been long considered
disrepu' able, and we know that not a single
confscation Of that kind stained the code Of
any Of the European powers, who were engaged
10 TIE war which our revolution produced"
Judge CUSHING added: "What has SOM
force to confirm this construction, is the sense
Of all Europe that such debts could not be
touched by States without a breach Of public
faith, and for that and other reasons, no doubt
this provision was ins sted upon in full
latitude By the British negotiators."
Chancellor KENT considers the mere right
OF coufscstion fully established By several
leading cases, in toe Supreme Court of the
United States, but thinks that through these
decisions "a great point was gained over The
rigor and violence of the ancient doctrine, by
making tue exercise Of the right to depend upon
a special act Of Congress-" It is usual in
modern times for nations to s~tipulste by
treaty against indiscriminate cCnfseahon in
the event Of war, and a treaty between Great
Britain and The United States, during WASH
IxeTos's administration, contained a clause
proBounciGg this custom 'impOlitic and IN
Just where it subjected to forfeiture property
that was in the country at the commencement
Of the war.
Upon the whole it may be assumed that gov
eminent possesses the power, according to the
law Of nations, to confscate all debts due an
alien enemy; and it is probable that in a case
where a debtor pays money into the treasury
pursuant to the act OF Congress, such pay
men5 will discharges him from slIliability to the
creditor after the restoration of peace, in an ac-
tion even in The courts Of the country of tie
creditor. It is too much, however, to say that
the Law upon this subject, stated by Lord
ELLENBoRoUGH, in the case Of WOLF rs. OK
HOLM, reported in MAULE and sELwYE's Re-
ports, is Jet fully settled. The authorities
seem to show that, were it On original ques-
ton, all con6scstion Of debts due before the
commencement Of war would be void, at least
everywhere else than in the courts Of the gov
ernment By which the act was passed.
The custom, however, is universally sane
toned as both proper and legitimate when
adopted only by way OF retaliation, as in the
ease Of the Confederate ssquestrstion act.
In conclusion, we would call attention TO the
distinction between debts and contracts incur
red before the war, and those Incurred after
wards. The latter kind are absolutely void,
by the universal law OF nations, without sBv
special act Of Congress-the former are oply
suspended during the war and revive upon the
cessation Of hostilities, unless confseated as
before mentioned by positive legislation. The
payment Of q debt to On enemy citizen during
the war, it may be added, is utterly unlawful.
at whatever time it may have been contracted.
1Ue pfAlCiplb5 we nave eLdLedy no doubt mol
lifted the action Of our Congress. Nolwith-
standing The fact that conGscation in its broad
est sense would have been in perfect accord
ance with the law Of nations, as a rctaliatory
mesturc, that body has seen fl to mitigate the
rigor OF The law, and only take such steps as
a Just regard for self-protsction absolutely dc
tated.
eZ We notice from the Allocate that q
public meeting was held in Huntsville on The
9th inst, at which proper tokens Of respect
were paid to the memory Of the lament
ed Egbert G. Jones, late colonel Of the An
Alabama regiment. Eloquent and sympathiz-
ing speeches were made by Hons. Jere. Gle
mems, Mich Davis AMI S. D. bale.
Peace to the sacred ashes Of the gallant
hsro-among the noblest Of bis raeeI
~ The Richmond Eraminer asserts that
the Potomac is now efectuslly bloeksded by
our batteries, and the river is no longer nsvi-
gable 10 LlneOln's craft.