New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1861-12-13

cling and enthusiastic cheers. Fortbe negative only
| a few hands were held W.
! At the confusion OF the meeting which was nj !
o'clock, number OF the older merchants on Change
privately their conviction that the meeting
and its proceedings bad been premature.
EDITORIAL OF THE LONDON TIMES Nov. Is
IL requires strong effort Of relfresrnt to discuss
with cooluess the intelligence we publish to-day.
An English mail steamer sailing under the British
flag, aud carrying letters and passengers from
spanish port TO England, has been stopped on he
high seas and overhauled. -Four Of the passengers
have been taken ont and carried of as prisoners,
claiming, and vainIy claiming, as they Were beng
forced away the protection OF the Tag OF Great Brit'
ain. These arc tie naked acts. We put ont OF seht
the accidents that lie four gentlemen thus kdnapl ed
were accrt died with "a diplomatic mfion from the
Confederate States of America TO the Courts OF En'
rope, aud also tie peremptory sinner in which the
Federal frigate acted IN making her seizure. Inc
intention OF the Federal Government evidently was
to act upon their strict night, and to do in as little
ceremcDous manner GB q light be. IL they are jus
tiled by their rights az belligerents in what they
have done the manner OF dong IL ID mere question
! of good or bad taste. II q ruCe fellow cLlns LID
rights coGrsely mnst ye 1--WE BIN his rights aud
il we would not find Ourselves ia the wrong We must
not quarrel VITA him account OF hls Ill inaDuers.
lie It. then, true that every oGler of The America
Navy eau ,op and overhaul oar stips wherever they
nav he found Gud cal take ont Of them any person
wbt Ii lie nay claim 10 be duzets oi Tie United
Ststes or officers Of the Confederate Government 7
Ii we Were 10 admit he Federal view of their own
position il would he plain that no such night exists
Ttey tell us that they not at war, but o0ly
putting down rebellion. They say, or said, that
they are not blockading their ports but rim
| ply enforcing law Which has co,ed the Southern
| ports ports OF entry. Th,y in,ist upon putting
their quarrel upon the same ground rs II HE Queen
I OF England were putting down rebellion III tie
lsle Of Wight Now, il this were 20, it ID clear that
ibe Federal States Of America have IN stoppiog our
mail steamer been guilty OF au act of aggression
which could only be properly punished by laylng
all embargo on every American sip ID British
ports and sweeping their little Navy IRON the seas
! They would, According 10 their point OF view, hot
| be at war, ard would have none Of the rights Of
beligeTonts over neutrals. They would no more be
begeTents than England was after the celebrated
| Smith O'Brien battle 10 the cabba6e-9ardeu, and
they would have 10 right 10 stop cur slils and
carry OF out passengers tbsn We should have had 10
stop French sbip and take Mr.. Smith UBrien ont
OF Ier. But this sssumpl ion Of tie Fcdeial Govern
neut has been dieallOwed. The world generally has
refused 10 In THIS disruption and reconsituton Of
the North American Republic a mere rebellion. We
have recognized both Republics Us bolligerent
States. We declare neutI atty between them ss DO
tween two warning Powcrs. Wemete ont lrecise
degree OF equnl consideration for tire ships OF
war Of each. Ia ever thing but our diplomacy we
hesr ourselves exactly equal between them.
Whenever the Southern States shall have gwen
ptoof of such stability as may make IL sure that
they can ,ustan therindepeIdence we shall doubtless
recognize them AUTOMATICALLY, NJ We already do de
faci0 Tus is the Test ap led By all writers on In
ternstional Law. 10 sCpport clam to enter into
the comfy oi laiOua the only proof eluired oil any
reople il that they able To make their iDdepenG-
ence respected. Kiogs and Emp and even Dukes
Ii.,f Ii.S % "a "
the Government for the tiGe being OF England or
France OF Italy but only to tier own ultimate Eldl-
Guile. We have already recognized tDere Conieo e,o'e
States M a beligerent Power, aud we shaii, "neu
the tue COME, recognize ,heir Government HERE
fore We have imposed upon ourselves Ill the duIies
and incony enienoes Of Power neutral between TWO
DelhgereLie.
Unwelcope az the truth may he, IL IL nevertheless
a truth ths, We have estSblirLed system OF Inter
national Law which now tells sgsinst us. In high
handed AID almost despoic manner, We lave In Iof'
ner dayr olaued privileges over noutrs winch
have AT different ti,s banded all tie maritime row
err Of the world against us. We have insisted even
upo1 stopping the rbils-o.-war oi heutnl nations
ard taking British subjects out OF them; AID an m
stance - liy,n hy jeff m Bis {" Memoirs Ia
which tw o nophews OF Waslington were Impressed
by our cTuisera they were returning from Europe,
ana placed IA cominon HsAnen under the nircipIine
OF sGil.-cf.Nar. We have always been The slTens-
ous as.tterp Of tie risbts of tegereuts over neu-
trials and The decisions VI our courts 81 law "a they
must now be cied by our law officers, have been
IN continuation OF these unreasonable claims, which
have called iuto being Con!eceraiions and armed
renir. lies Agpinst us, sud which have alwaye been
uodiRsa IN practice when We were not supreme IN
our dominion az sea. Owing 10 theee facts the an-
thorities which may be cited Oh tti question are Il o
numerous and too uniform as 10 Tue rgbt OF scaiCn
BY bellieereni ships OF war over neutral erohhLt
! yrs,els 10 be disputed. "ihe only security that
nothing il TO be found inconsistent With hnlity
L ,Aa lam If
nations," said Lord stowell IN the celebrated
case of The "MAria," "is the right Of per-
sons visitation and search TO be exercised by those
who have al interest IN making IT, Again, LORD
house OF all the Enpluh law on the subject, says:
+" lie the shirs, the cargoco, aud the destination
what they may the right at visit shd search
are the in,Ontestsbe right Of the cruisers
OF q b.lligeIent nation. I'LL they are v1iied
shd searched il does not appear what the
ships or tie destination are and il is for the purpose
Of entertaining these pcirts that the necessity OF this
right Is clear in prneipl that no man eau deny IL
who admits the right Of maritime capture; because,
il you are not at liberty TO ascertain by sufficient
inquiry whether there Is propet that be legally
captured, it lie impossib to capture The many Euro
mean treaties which refer this right refer IL
pre-exsing and merely regulate the exercise OF It, All
writers uron the law OF nations unanimously acknowl
edgei" The great American authority, Kent treaiing
upon the same subject in bis Commentaries, tays
1.-THE duty Of selfpreeeryation gives to belllgerent
nations this right The doctrine Of the English Ad-
niraity Courts on the right Of visitation aBG search,
aud on tho limitation OF the right, has been Iocog-
nized In its fullest extent by the Courts of Justice IN
this country. so far the authorizes so the tee
tmony of international law writers Is all one way
that belligered war cruiser has tie right 70 sop
aud visit aid search Guy merchant ship upon the
high seas.
that upon matter so important as th =, now before
us the public mind should be well informed. But ii
must be remembered tlst these decisions were given
under circumstances very different from those which
now occur Steamers in those days did not exst,
odd mail xlssela currvinz leiiera wherein all the