Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1863-01-22
Of their commercial relations with the States engaged


Of the groundes pretsnsions of the United States
It a refusal TO treat as independent govern
ment If we were independent States the refusal tc
entertain with the same International intercourse
was maintained with enemy unjust, aud WA
injurious in its effects whatever may have besn the mo
tive which prompted it. Neither was it in accordance
with the high moral obligations of that interuationa
code whose chief sanction the conscience Of
reigns and the public opinion Of mankind that those
eminent powers should decline the performance Of a
duty peculiarly incumbent them, from any appre-
| henson of the consequences 20 themselves. One I'M
mediate and necessary result of their declining the
sponsiby Of a decision which must have been sdverEe
TO thu exravagant preensions Of the United States
was the proongation Of hostides to which our ene-
mics thereby encouraged and which have resulted
in nothing but Of carnage and devastation on
this continent, such have scarcely parallel 10 his
tory Had those powers promptly admitted our rght 70
be treated all other independent nstionE, none can
doubt that the moral effect Of such action would have
been to dspel the deiusiOn under which the United
States have persisted in their efforts TO accomplish
subiugation. To the continued hesitation OF the
powers in rendering this act Of simple justice toward
this COnfedeTaey is still due the continuance Of the
lamities which mankind suffers from the interruption of
worlds
There are other matters in which less than justice has
been rendered 70 this people by neutral Europe, and
undue advantage conferred the 2ggress0rs in wick
ed war. At the inception of hostides the inhabita1
Of the COufederacy were almost exclusively agricultu-
rasts those Of the United States TO great extent,
mechanics and merchants We had no commercial ma.
rine while their merchant vessels covered the ocean
I We were without a navy, while they had powerful
fleets The advantage which they possessed for irict
1
balanced in some measure by the exposure or their
commerce to attack by private armed vessels. It
known Europe that within very few years past the
United States lad peremptory refused to accede to pro
posals for abOishing prvsteering the ground,
alleged by them, that nations owning powerful fleets
would thereby obtain undue advantage over those pos
sessing inferior naval forces. Yet sooner
hsgrant between the Confederscy and the United States
than the maritime powers Of Europe issued orders pro
hbitng either party from bringing prizes intother ports
This prohibition directed sYith apparent impartiaity
against both beligerents was in reality effective against
the Confederate ates alone for they alone could find
a hostile commerce on the ocean. Merely nominal
against the United States the prohibition operated with
intense severity the Confederacy, by deFTving it of
the only Of msintaing, with approach to
equality, its struggle the against the crushing
superiority Of naval force possessed by Is enemies
The value and efficiency Of the weapon which was thus
wrested from our grasp by the combined action Of neu
tral EurOp can powers ia favor Of nation which pro-
f-ssss openly its intention of rsvagng their commerce
by privaeers in any future war Is iringy illustrated
by the terror inspired among the commercial classes OF
the United States by single cruiser of the Confoderaey
One national steamer, commanded by officers and man
ned by who are debsrred, byshe closure. Of neu
tral ports from the opportunity of causing captured
sells b. condemned in their favor prizes, has suf
feed 10 double the rates of maritime insurance in North
ern Ports and eonsgn to forced nsciion numbers Of
Northern vessels in addition TO the direct damage nc
ed by captures at sea How difficult, then, to Overes
mate the effects that 1nust have been produced by the
hundreds OF private armed vessels that would have
swept the In pursuit Of the OF our enemy
if the of dispOng OF their prizes had not been
withheld by the action of neutral BurOpel
But is especially in relation TO the socaled block
ade Of coast that the policy Of European powers
has been so shaped as TO cause the greatest injury TO the
Oonfederaeyi and to confer signal advantages on the
United States The importance Of this subject reg ures
some development.
Prior to the year 1856 the principles regulating this
subect were to be gathered from the writings of emil
nent pubcsts the decisions Of admiralty courts inter
national treaties, and the usages Of Harons The
certainty and doubt which prevailed in reference to the
true rules of maritime law, in time Of war resulting
from the discordan and often conflicting principles
nounced from such varied and Independent sources had
become a grievOus evil 20 mankind Whether block
sde was allowable against port not invested by land
well by sea- whether blockade was valid by sea
the investing feet merely sufficient to render in
gress the blOckaded port evidently dangerous, or
whether it further required for its legality that it
should be sufficient really prevent access" and
merous other similar questions, had remained doubtful
and undecided
Animated by the highly honorable desire to put an
end tO differences Of opinion between neutrals and
begerepts, which may occasion serious difficulties and
even Conflicts q quote the official anguagel the f7e
great powers Of Europe, together with Sardinia and
Turkey, adopted in 1856 the following Solemn deca
ration Of principles;
/ Privsteering is, and remains sbolishe5.
2 The neutral flag covers euemys goods with the ex-
eeption OF contrebaud Of war.
3 Neutral goods, with the exception Of cOnTab6nd Of
war not liable TO capture under enemy's flag.
f. Bloekades, in order to be binding, must be efec
tive; that is TO say maintained by force sufficient
really to prevent access 20 the coast OF the enemy.
Not only did this solemn declaration announce to The
world the principles to which the signing powers agreed
to conform in future wars but il contained cause 10
which those powers gave immediate effect and which
provided that the States not parties to the Congress Of
Paris should be invited aecede to the declaration
Under this Invitation every indepent Stats in Europe
yielded its assent at east no instance known TO me
of refusal; and the United ates, while declining to
assent to the proposition which prohibited pvateering
declared that the three remaining principles in en-
tire accordance with their views of international
lew.
No instance !, known in history Of the adoption
rules Of public law under circumstances Of like solemn
ty with ike unanimiy, and pledgng the faith Of ma
tons wish sanctity so peculiar
When, therefore, this Confedersey formed, aud
when neutral powers. while oeerrng action on its de-
maud for admission into the family Of nations recog
nized belgereut power, Great Britain 7nd France
made Informal proposals about the tine that their
cedng begerents to the declaration of principles
made by the Congress Of PariS The request was ad-
dressed TO sense Of Justice and therefore mms-
date favorable response in the resolutions of the Pro
Yisions Cong Of the 18th August 1861 BY which
all the principles announced by tue Congress OF Paris
were adopted as tie guide OF our conduct during the
war, with the sole exception Of that relative Prigs.
teerng. Aa the right to make Of privaeers Vgas
one in which neutral nations had TO the present ar
no interest; as was right which the United States
had refused to abandon aud which they remained at
liberty to employ against ne as it was right Of which
we were already IL actual enjoyment. and which we
could no. be expected to renounce aaats be0 against
an adversary possessing overwhelming superiority of
navsl forces it was reserved with entire cone that
neutral nations could not fail TO perceive that just
son existed for the reservation. Nor was this conf
hence misplaced for the official documents published by
he British government usually called " Blue Books
contain the expresi of the satisfaction Of that gov
eminent with he conduct Of the officials who conducted
zee sfully the delicate business confded TO their
,hsrge.
T6ese solemn declarations Of principle this implied
lgreement between the Confederscy the two pow
srs just named have been suffered to remain inopera
live against the and OutTages neutral rights,
committed by the United States with unceasiDg and .
progressing arrogance during the whole period Of the
war Neutral Europe remained passive when the
United States with naval force insufficient to block
ade, effectively the coast Of single State, proclaimed
a paper blockade Of thousands Of niles Of coast,
lending ON the cspes OF the Chesapeake to those Of
Florida and sncirCing the Gulf of Mexico from Key
West TO the mouth Of the Rio Cranda Compared with
this monstrOus pretenson of the United States the
blockAdes known in history, under the names Of the
Berlin and Milan DEGREES, and the British orders in
council in the years 1896 and 1907 sink into insignif-
cancel Yet those bloekades were justified by the
powers that declared them on the sole ground that they
were retalaory yet those boekades have since been
by the pubcists Of those very powers
violations Of international law; yet those blOckades
evoked angry remonstrancas from neutral pwerB among
which the United States were the most conspicuous vet
those bOcksdes became the chief of the war be-
tween rea Britain and the United States in 1912; yet
these bockades of the principal motives that
led 10 the declaration Of the Congress of Paris in 1885,
in the fond hope Of imposing an enduring check the
very abuse of mHFit power which is now renewed by
the United States in 1851 and 1862 under circumstances
snd with features Of aggra aed wrong without prece
dent in his ory
The records of our State Department contain the evi
dence Of the repeated and formal remonsrances made
by this TO the neutral powers against the
Of this blockade 1t ha been shown By
dence not capable OF contradiction and which has been
furnished in part by the officials Of neutral nations that
the few ports Of this CoRfederacy, before which suv
naval forces At all have been stationed, have been IL
vested inefieenty that hundreds Of entries have
been eff -cged them since the declaration Of the
blockade; that have themselves admitted
the ineficlency of the blockade in the most forcbe
manner by repeated official complaints of The sale, to
us, Of goods contrabald of sale which could not
possibly affect their interests if their pretended block
ads was sufficient really to prevent access to
coast that they have gone farther and have alleged
her INABILITY to render their paper blockade effective
as the excuse for the Odous barbaty Of destroying the