Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1863-03-17
For The Enquirer.
CONSIDERATIONS ON PRIVATEERING-A VOL
UHTERR NAVY

For The Enquirer.
CONSIDERATIONS ON PRIvATEERINa--A VOL.
UHTEER NAVY.
Tho European powers, whi!o with good
sense SUSTAINING ~ n means Of var the right
to capture the private property Of baliige-
rents on tho sea, are tndeevoring 10 make
this right useless to sm'l MA 'itimc powors,
by preventing thei: Use Of ,Iivateec., ~ aid
them in thsir navsl ~a,iire.
If tho latter expect neither TO find shelter
in insigniiirancc, nor to bend the neck to
every passing caprice of maritime potency,
they 'uu-t either cypress their people by
tox"A :" keep up formidable Dsvy. which
il liable - obstruction az tho first encnun:"r
with suc!i power "a England OF France
or fhsy must use pTirTeers, or a ''ynluntcnr
navy" Ehen Tar comes.
Nearly TIT Gmirn sil Of cisiirzsn Spyu,e,r.. or
States 5aH" used priysierrs in war, ard have
continued 20 JUSTIFY it ill quite recently. Fog
lard did sr until she tbour h. herself navslly
strong enough II tako " the vain Tile OF lard
| of the ss., aud arbiicr fwsr, when. prn>t;
shc began to disspprovs Of this "pr!vs;s
war" IL the ds'k ages. and to denrl'nr" II
al fe"nh ooiing,' "legslzed r.'tnery," and
even "Pi'acy," while the others or some Of
chem, seamed happy in pa'roting her phrases.
Eng'anh Icing practiccd privatocfIns, ma
king ua.," AZ Bynkorshock says "of thu aid
of individuals against her e.:cHiss, ~ auxiliary
to :ha public force" Privateerf, indeed, M ade
much OF hor glorious nsval history. Sir
fr.ncis Drake, IN lifting ou. great (and
su ,ce3 fuD rxprdGtlnn to attack SPAN in heT
h"me dolninions, eCoiycI irnTu Elizabeth
Go 900 and fay shi,@ lie and his assc :
cistes furnished all The rest--thg man portion,
ind"'d. The profits were equally divided be-
tween theM add the Queen. Other instances
might be gi=en Suffice it to NAV. Enc@nl
used privateers down To the pacific ;lI,n If
Europe Ill 1915; AM 1t gave her much 0f
her naval success, groat influx OF wealth, and
was in largo m-ssure the cause Of her gra'lu-
ally growing naval supremacy.
But whom Britannia battered herself she
could rule The main" with her regular navy,
and with 1t iniurc, to hsr hearts content an
enemy q canlmerce--and remembered, at The
Same time. the imlnearso injury by piivalerrs
to her trade in bath American wars, and the
danger from the SANS sources in inturp---
she won't to Ps'is, as to a trading msrts, nnd
swapped tiI barren claim tho right to seize
enenys goods in neutral 7nssc!s) f,- a..
Invaluable immunity, TO wit the exemption
of hr- commerce from thu scoutgn of priya-
,aoring OF she succ.cd IN sholsnirg prira-
t:critg, s'.e gains irtiaIt,ly; and the minor
pawer., lose p6tent bond. controlling hor to
! peace ard nor -1ggresSIon.l
France ua-d IiivatvnttEE, but having in
C, eased h.r navy, pa,i l,us$H with England,
sac asscnted to tn, abolnlnn: though as lHDg
az private property is Snh jact to war on the
ocean, she would probably he willing to have
piivatGeIing remain. if propu ly regulated.
pru STA, Austria ,nd Denmark. CT ais, pro
baby y.olalsd To "moral sussion." The in
stjtution. under tae shadnw Of England Il
power. could not bc thought valuable TO
them.
As TO lIallsnd and Belgium. Bynksrshoek
| says: Formerly, III tho tnitod Neither
| lauda. there weio 10 vessels O! war, but such
"a wore owned BY private persona, to whom,
besides hounties ont nf tho captured and 10
captured property, the State paid certain
gum by way of indemnity, from tn: public
| Treasury, prnportioush to tho expense which
they wa:r It. and 10 tho time which they
wnr- cmp!oyrd in hostile expeditions. A
great use wss made Of these prlvste-armed
| V, ssels by tho States General IN thei. war
with Spain" They, tno, have assented to
| the abolition.
Al these nations have, within tn" present
J century, practiced pure and simple p'lvst+rr-
| ng. which is described ny the sam. author
| AZ follows: "Vcsscls are fitted Out, manned
and armed by private adventurous, at their
own expense, with which they attack the
enprny'E vessels at sea, with no other induce
! ment thaa the captures they expect to make"
Ql" ignores one Of tho most powerful mo-
! tlv-H OF every t'un citiZen--a patriotic zeal
| tnr the cause Of his country. OfcOurs'6uch
! commissions should bs confined 10 citiz ans.
Hon atly, then, tho motives should he thus
stated patriotism and the desire Of gain
particularly 40 10 our citizens, as VII! b"
s10En)
But while disusir,g, they still fear tho iasti,
tus;on, and not only sttcnpt to cast dow"
and destroy il, nut against truth. justice and
eysn deem their "'g.n7 "sl rrivatccrs "free
hooters" 'fegalized robbers, 'lu!rnnculi,
and gVr., ''piTstos.'
Say. r. nkerehnek: This Is s. very sl-
| surd thsT Ii does not need q sernus ..futa-
tlo;l IuS after Ill, what tn Re mel dn IS mn-
der the sarct;aH Of public authority. In this
! county (Netharlands) thsr arc not allowed tn
s,il Without 3 commission fro a tho State i
Gorerai, o. the Amiral count. rSgned By the
Lieu,..,,?ri. # the Admiralty Of their par
t;culsc district. nor without first having
made oath AMI given satisfactory security
that thy will not do any injury 10 ucutra's y
p. l40
This not only rnhuke7 tho aspersion, but it
shows hor carefully p.ivstsering may BIO
guarded agains. abuse; and it is historical
! that Dutch irivstsrring vas tie 20 at liable to
CT sure.
Azuni (vol. II, p. 350) says: "They arc
worthy Of praise, who generously expose
their lives and fortunes to the dangers Of
priyatcerin.." And Vain says: As lhe :
tYe in better eituaio,l, in some Respects. IL
anp"y the enemy, than the government with
It's apparatus OF formidable fleets, they rem
der an additional ssryics TO their country, BY
relic wing It frnn, thu burden of aiming, At it's
own expense, great number ofvesses, which,
without their All, w"plh b, obliged to Fl: out
IA cfui:e,s.'
Ate, tie clG-ar of the war If 1872, Niles
declared thet our priyateera in general had
conducted themselves with marked proprie:y
in many ca>-s receiving the pubr3 thsnks ui
, the cantmrnd.'
Not n:ly IT. tho abGrc extracts Jas we'll as
law and leXicGstaphy) show those 0pprnhri.
! qua ter.rs /" H., false bus they ehnw the
!: utility fpriva,eering, and its general exs,np-
, zion from censuTc. They also show it to be
I. IMPROBABLE; and that, no doubt if Christon-
: dom wishes TO reform and not destroy it.
|. excuses con he prevented and the right Of
neut,sls preserved.
! And it must ho that, if prioate armed res
| sells are rendered to the Government, incoruo.
/: rated into the Macy, and subjected to regular
norai lars and regulations, the officers being
commissioned, tho excuses that msrked the
privateering of old, will beavoided Hence
lei US wslcoms the Volunteer Navy.
! IL Adds 10 tn. merit of the scheme tia; we
! har' no commerce to suffer from similar
warfare, while the enemy's ssils whiten e7-
cry sea. thu object ef the war is to COM
MI