The semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1882-1886, 1882-08-23
sBORBT War HISTORY.

0SSO1k8X WAN 8349xO6Y.
A Chapter in suprsn ne Court An
nab-A Decision that
Saved the Country.
Charles Gibbons, Of Philadelphia,
communicates the following to the
New York Tribune: In 2 Blacks
Reports, page 635, may be found the
report Of the ''Prize Cases." argued
and decided in the Supreme Court Of
the United States at the December
term Of lS0::. The opinion Of the
Court, delivered BY Mr.. Justice Grief
Of Pennsylvania. and the dissenting
oPiui"n delivered Ly Mr.. Justice
Nels.,n Of New York, both reported
ut length, gave the history Of the sew
eral c..ses, and the questions raised
and decided in each Ol them. 1t will
be seen by reference to those opinions
that the great aud vital question,
applicable to all the cases, whether
The United :: a,ts had the rights Of
the Oeiligereh; IN tile war declared
aud pr.'sxcutet! againet them by the
Southern States then confederatesi in
rebellion. Little did the people Oi
the loyal Sta,cs know, when the
Court Was In private consultation on
this question in the early par: Of the
year lstis. that our national existence
was depending upon the decision Of
nine Judges, aud that IL was saved ~
the vote OF one MAN. That page In
the history Of the rebellion has new
eF been written, aud l propose to
write It now, l".cause it Is FULL OF SOL
s,l,n warming 10 the people against
an impending danger which 1t il in
their power To avert on Tuesday
next.
The Supreme Court of the United
States at the December term Of 1856.
Was composed "! nine Judges, ~ fol-
lows: Chief Justice, Roger b. fancy,
Of Maryland Justices, Janlea NJ.
Wayne, Of G~'rgia, John Catrcn, o!
Tennessee, Samuel Nelson, O! New
York. Roi,ert L. Grier. Of Penn-yl-
vsnia, Nathan, Clifford, OF blaine,
Noah NJ. Swayne. Of Ohio, samuel
F. Miller, Of Iowa, David Davis Of
Illinois.
Prcsiden, Lincoln, rs the Chief Ex-
ecutivo Of tho Government; and. COME
mander.in Chief of the Army and
tile Navy, had declared and notified
. blockade Of the ports in the seccsled
States in the month Of April, 1861.
Not Ions, SfterwartA aM English lark,
u Mexican schooner AMI two vessels
owned In Richmond, Virginia, we've
severally captured h.; slips Of the
United States. and in eaci, CAGE there
was de..n.e 81 condemnation III the
Dis, tict Court. The Claimants o: the
vessels and c:,rgoe., appealed 10 the
Supreme Court, and Il Us the Yucs-
tons were raised touching the valid
ity Of the blocSakc and the rights Of
tile Government in the war then
pending.
Every Judge Oh the krnci. knew
aud appreciated the nlo,len:uus int
pUitance OF these questions. They
knew that Il decision adverse 1" the
claims Of the Government would A.
nicst certainly result in the irrctriev-
able ruin VI the country. 1t would
he Il declaration to all the world h!
the Supreme Court Of the United
States, from whose Judgment there
was no appeal, that the Court WAS OIL
the side oil the rebsiliOn; that the war
was ouly un insurr.rtiOE which was
to bc suppressed hy the application
of the Necessary force again.t the isl
dividuals concerned in it, and not -
war, in the legal or technical sense,
drawing, after il the b. li.crcnt rights
rccogn:xv.' ~ the laws Of mai i.,,-,
AID tia: tho declaration of the block
udc O! lac Southern ports Was nn au-
ihOrizCd ami la|lrs> act ri President
Lincoln, wh!ri, foreign governments
were net imund to Respect. III Was
all the South wanted. II was all that
anylMNiy wanted (iro,l the SaprtiIe
Court wl,n desired to- so, the Union
finally and forever destroyed, and IN
independent eEspir" ri slavery and
cotton t"htrOllin: the commerce ant!
Destiny at what an En:li~h states
man was pleased T., d..~i. na,e during
the war ~ 1.-The late United States
When the nine JUDGES met in ST.
cret consultation. after the argument
q: council, the fac: WIS developed
that Chief Justice fancy, Justice t'a-
tron. Justice Nielsen, :nd Justice
Clifford Were prepared t. decide the
questions against the Government.
They were ready with an csiUj"n,
written Il. til" opinion ri the t.U'r;,
without the SN"wlcil:e If some VI
their associates. that President Lin
coin mad no power I" recognize the
existence Of III. rebellion as u war
within ikc meaning nf:hc law "i ls:s-
tin,.>; lad II" power I" blocka,ic the
southern ports, and that tie cap
tErrs for trrat;, nt hlW !l:lt!c or a. IL
cn,is:.' property were s,l,>e%;sl .nl:y
III: "a! and void. and that ti,r .::'cr,es
%: condemnation should :~ reversed
aud the vessels u:.,! ..;r;.,w:i r,.Sior..i
tH ti!ei: Owncrs. 49, i'3gt:' h-S.? Gi
the vc::i,e cited, Justice Wayne,
h.ing = Southern n.an, tl:;'yrxmr;ri
him, us:, BATTER o.! curse, t. ..::...:
i, ::.e;r Oriu:nn. But u. VIA. :.,'i
:a,:,:,i and intimate frieu.l I'll Justice
Grier, Of Pesn-ylvan,a, who was :;
Northern Democrat. loyal I" the con-
<titu::om and his country. Tina! in-
iil,I..cy saved the ration. .'Is,ier.
Wayne vote: with Ills friend. ard
the count st:rsl ti-c in 'av..r q" ,l,c
Government and sour against it.
Defeated and vexcd =: this uLcx-
pcc!..i result, the Ch;.tjI>iice
sought IT, secure the iina. adjourn
men, Of the curt for the term with
U,it IN announcement, ~ lis decision.
He persuaded Justice NaxEctO c',:.-
sent 1" il and Iii. v"t" il It's iav"r
would carry the ~c,.sinc through.
hut lN:orc that .;uc.!s., w"s .c!'i:,:
Justice Wayac tn!i his friend what
hv had :;-::et 1" H.. Just. Crisr
in,n,c.iiatrl., ard earnestly s.n''Hn'-
c,l the supposed sui':.-r.~!'.'. M the
opinion q: tie Court, W'ii,:r.i OF; the
fatal re- siits IT, the n"i',lai c,ilS-
which would ;.!l:n,>. certainly 1lo,:
from il. and injured Jniicc Navnr
to rei-a.'' the i,r"h::.e IT,. hail i'.ds.
to the Ciief-ju-,:cr. Thus tn: d.
wee IT, withhold the '!,,.i>;un from
tile country fer nearly ni;,c lA"n:h.
was ;iua:iy defeated.
1t only remained now e. :;pl,"i.t ::
member -! the t.,lrt to writ" and :ic-
liver the o;'inis4,. The t:,ie!-Ju>ti,-
resigned Justice Wa: u. i.,;:,ai '!i,".
lie was Im aged hG,n, ia cry feeble
and Whatever might have
tecn the motive that jnsr;.'! ~: Ils-
i. was nrit;l-:: :. Kind nor
!, proper one. Justice l;,i: cs,i,.e L.
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