The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1864-12-19

1t is at all events, a very serious thing for
belligercnt power to commit acts Of hostility
within the territory Of neutral on any pre-
text, or under any circumstances whatever;
and IL was distinctly admitted BY the Govern
ment Of the United States, in its controversy
with England in the case Of the steamboat
Caroline, that "just right of selEdefsnse
attaches always 70 nations as we'll as to indi-
viduals, and Is equally necessary to the
preservation Of both; but that the
extent of this right is a question to BE-
judged by the circumstances Of each
particular case and when It's alleged exercise
has led to the commission Of hostile acts
within the territory ofa powcrat peace, nothing
less than a clear aud absolute necessity can
afford ground of Justification" 1t viii be
rpcocctcd that the Caroline, employed at the
time by Rebel Canadians, aided and abettcl
by a number of American citizens, in making
war upon the Provinces, was seized by a mill
tam force Of the latter at SchlOsser, in the
State of New York, on the night Of the 2Jth
ofDccember. 1881, taken out into the stream,
set fire to, and with al on board 1Jlted over
the FAILS Of Niagara. The British Government
avowed the proceeding as planned and exc
cutei by persons duly empowered by Her
MqicstJ's Colonial authorities to take any
cps, and to do any acts, which might be
necessary for the defense OF Her MJesty's
territory, and for the protection Of Her
MacsGy's Subjects But Mr.. WEBSTER, as
Secretary ofState, in letter on this subject
to the British Minister, Mr Fox, dated April
"A, 1S41, said 1T will be for Her Mljesty'5
Government to show upon what state Of fIcts
and what rules Of national law the destruction
Of the Caroline is to be defended. twill be
for that Government to show necessity Of
selEdeten8e, instant, overwhelming; teqcinJn0
choice Of means and no moment for detiberd-
tiOR.' This was the rule as regards the
kind and degree Of necessity that would jus
tify the local authorities Of Canada in entering
the territories OF the United States for bel
ligarent purposes; and it is certainly clear
enough that such an exigency as Mr. WEB-
sTER describes did not and does not now
eXis to warrant our military forces in cross
ing the boundary line in Canada and com
mittng there acts Of war, The President
NhNlO'NlN' llt'0 NNlJ plOi'Nlly NOhubOi Lltllusl
the order directing resort to so violent
remedy in the contingency indicated by Cen
eral DIX.
1t may be worth while to recall at this
time, one or two more of the opinions tha5
were avowed in the correspondence in thi,
case Of the CdrOliae, by the representative Of
our Government and that of Great Britai |,
touching the general subject of territorial
sovereignty. Lord AsIBURToN, in a letter of
July 2S, 1912, to Mr.. WEBSTER, said:-"Re-
spect for the invioaLlo character of the terri
tory Of Independent nations is the most essen
tial foundation of civilization. n. But
however strong this duty may be, it is ad-
mittod by all writers, by all iurists, by the
occasional practice of all nations, not except
ing your own, that a strong, overpower-
ing necessity may arise when this great
principle may and must beS suspended.
1t must be so for the shortest possible
period, owing to the continuance Of an admit
ted overruling necessity, and strictly confined
within the narrowest limits imposed by that
necessity" Mr.. WEBSTER, in writing to Mr.
Fox, at an earlier date, said :-"That on q lne
of frontier such as separates the United
States from Her Britannia M9lesty's North
American Provinces, a line long enough to
divide the whole of Europe into halves
irregularities, violences, and conflicts should
sometimes occur, equally against the viii of
both Governments, is certainly easily to be
supposed All that can be expected from
either Government, in these cases, il good
faith, sincere desire to preserve peace and
do justice, the use Of all proper means Of pre-
yention; and that, if olenses cannot, never
theless, be always prevented, the offenders shall
still be justly punished"
We may fifty close these quotations with
the following from the message of the Pres-
dent to the Twenty Seventh Congress at the
beginning Of its first session, The extract,
while asserting, very emphatically, the pur-
pose OF this Government to admit of no inya-
sion of its territorial integrity, yet expresses
the wise fofbearance which should be observed
with respect to any casual violations of the
law Of boundary as between Canada and the
United States. The passage is especially
important just now. 1t says" This
Government can never cOncede to any
foreign Government the power, except
in case Of the most urgent and extreme
necessity, Of invading its territory, either to
arrest the persons or destroy the property of
those who may have violated the municipal
laws of such foreign Government, or have dis
regarded their obligations arising under the
law Of nations. The territory OF the United
States must be regarded as sacredly secure
against all such invasions, until they shall
voluntarily acknowledge inability to acquit