Case Name: Lapeyre v. United States
Court: Supreme Court of the United States
Jurisdiction: United States
Decision Date: 1872-12
Citations: 17 Wall. 191
Docket Number: 
Parties: Lapeyre v. United States.
Judges: 
Reporter: United States Reports
Volume: 84
Pages: 191–206

Head Matter:
Lapeyre v. United States.
1. A proclamation of the President relieving parties who had been transacting business in ignorance of it, from penalties, and restoring to them their rights of property, held, under special circumstances, by the judgment of the court to have taken effect when it was signed by-the President and sealed with the seal of the United States, officially attested.
2. Publication in the newspapers held, in the same way, not requisite to make it operative.
Appeal from the Court of Claims ; the case being thus:
By the act of 13th July, 1861, the President was authorized to proclaim, “ that the inhabitants of a State, or any part thereof, where such insurrection exists, are in state of insurrection against the United States;” and thereupon, “all commercial intercourse,” between such inhabitants and the citizens of the rest of the United States; “ shall cease and be unlawful, so long as such condition of hostility shall continue.”
By the act of July 2d, 1864, provision was made for the transmission and sale of cotton from the insurrectionary States. Among other things it was provided that a person having cotton in the States west of the Mississippi, might transport the same through the lines of the armies of the United States to the city of New Orleans, and there deliver the same to an agent of the United States, who should buy the same and return to the person producing the cotton three-fourths of the market value thereof in-the city of New York. In substance this act permitted the introduction and sale of cotton from an enemy’s country, subject to a tax of 25 per cent, on the value thereof.
On the 6th of April, 1865, Lee, commanding the body of the rebel forces at Richmond, surrendered. Johnson, With another part of them, surrendered on the 26th of the same month; and Kirby Smith, who commanded west of the Mississippi, did the same on the 26th of May following.
On the 10th of May, 1865, the President issued his proclamation that “ armed resistance to the authority of this government may be regarded as virtually at an eud.”
On the 18th of June, 1865, one Lapeyre caused to be shipped to New Orleans, from some point west of the Mississippi River, 476 bales of cotton, and consigned the same to the purchasing agent of the government. This cotton reached New Orleans on the 24th day of June. On the 26th the owner executed a bill of sale of the same to the government agent, who returned to him 367 bales, being three-fourths thereof, and retained 119 bales, being one-fourth, under the provisions of the act referred to. At this time neither the'claimant nor the agent had any knowledge of the proclamation now to be mentioned.
This proclamation, following one which had been issued on the 13th of June, 1865, removing all restrictions on “ in ternal domestic and coastwise trade, and upon the removal of products of States heretofore declared in insurrection east of the Mississippi River,” removed the restrictions upon the trade and intercourse from the States west of it, and restored the former relations between the States. It ivas an instrument by the President, bearing date June 24th, 1865, in the usual form of a proclamation, and was made by authority of the Congress of the United States. It was headed:
“By the President oe the United States:
a proclamation.”
After making various recitals it proceeded:
• “ Now, therefore, be it known that I, Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, do hereby declare,” &c.
It closed thus:
“ In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed. Done at the city of Washington, this twenty-fourth day of June, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, and of the independence of the United States of America the eighty-ninth.
“Andrew Johnson.
“ By the President:
“ W. Hunter, Acting Secretary of State.”
It was a fact undisputed, and was found by the Court of Claims, in one of its findings — the third—
“ That this proclamation of the President, of June 24th, 1865, was not published in the newspapers until the morning of the 27th of the month, nor was it published or promulgated anywhere or in any form prior to said last-named' day, unless its being sealed with the seal of the United States in the Department of State was a publication or promulgation thereof.”
It was equally undisputed and found' that the Secretary of the Treasury sent a telegram to the treasury agent in New
Orleans, on the 27th. June, and also a letter on the 28th June, informing-him that the exaction of 25 per cent, on cotton had been rescinded.
The transaction now. under consideration had been entered into by both parties ignorant-of the removal of the restrictions.
On a suit brought by Lapeyre in the Court of Claims, to recover the proceeds of the 119 bales' which had been sold by the -United States, the question arose whether this instrument, prior to its being published anywhere, or in -form otherwise than as mentioned, had- the force and effect of a proclamation. The Court of Claims was.of opinion that it had not; and decided against Lapeyre. He now brought the case here for review.
Mr. P. Phillips, for the appellant; a brief of Messrs. PL. p[. Blackburn, W..H. Lamon, and C. E. Hovey, being filed on the same side:
The- prohibition of commercial intercourse provided for by the act of 1861, continued ouly so long as hostilities existed, and was to end when they ceased. The proclamation of the President declared that they had ended on 10th May, 1865. '
The ground for taking from owners of property the one-' fourth of its value, was, that the condition of hostilities.deprived them of the right to sell it, and the one-fourth was ■the consideration for the special privilege to do so. .As soon ■ as hostilities ceased, the rights of commercial intercourse .returned, and there was no longer any consideration upon which-the claim of the one-fourth could be rested. The •¡two proclamations were issued but to give full effect to this -result of the law of July 2d, 1864. They were a formal ¡notification that the prohibition under that act -no longer ¡remained.
The department, charged with the execution of the laws ¡respecting such purchases, has given its construction, and .holds that these proclamations operate from their date.
. The judgmént should in any event be reversed, for the parties acted under a mistake of fact against wliicb equity-will relieve.
Independently of ail this, the present is not a case where a penalty is imposed, and where natural feelings of justice would influence the court to seek escape from inflicting punishment on parties for an act which they believed to be innocent. To the contrary, giving effect to this act from its date restores the party to a right which, in justice, he is entitled to, and which the law of the land intended to confer upon him.
If the matter is placed on technical grounds, the well-known case of Marbury v. Madison, may be relied on.
Mr. G. H. Williams, Attorney-General, and Mr. O. 11. Ilill, Assistant Attorney- General, contra.
12 Stat. at Large, 257, § 5.
13 Stat. at Large, 377, § 8.
Ib. 757.
Ib. 763.
13 Stat. at Large, 769;
Hunt v. Rousmanier, 8 Wheaton, 174; S. C., 1 Peters, 1.
1 Cranch, 137.

Opinion:
Mr. Justice SWAYNE
delivered the judgment of the court.
The only inquiry presented for our consideration is, when the proclamation, which is the hinge .of the controversy, took effect. The question arises on the third finding of the Court of Claims, which is as follows: "The proclamation of the President of June 24th, 1865, was not published in the newspapers until the morning of the 27th of that mouth; nor was it published or promulgated anywhere, or in auy form, prior to said last-named day, unless its being sealed with the seal of the United States, in the Department of State, was a publication or promulgation thereof."
There is no act of Congress, and nothing to be found in American jurisprudence, which bears very'directly on the subject. In the English law the instrument is thus defined: "Proclamation — proclaniatio—is a notice publicly given of anything whereof the king thinks fit to advertise his subjects. And so it is used, 7th Richard II, chap. 6."
Proclamations for various purposes are mentioned in the English authorities, but it could serve no useful end partic ularly to refer to them. In England they must be under the great seal. If their existence is intended to be denied, the proper plea is mil iiel record. It is a part of the king's prerogative to issue them. It is a criminal offence to issue them without authority. By the 81st of Henry VIII, chap. 8, it was enacted that the king, with the advice of his council, might issue proclamations denouncing pains and penalties, and that such proclamations should have the force of acts of Parliament. This statute, so fraught with evil to the liberties of the subject, was repealed a few years later in the succeeding reign of Edward VI, and during his minority. A very careful and learned writer says: " A proclamation must be under the great seal, and if denied is to be tried by the record thereof. It is of course necessary to be published, in order that the people may be apprised of its existence and may be enabled to perform the injunctions it contains. In the absence of any express authorities it should seem that if the proclamation be under the great seal it need not be made by any particular class of individuals or in any particular manner or place, and that it would suffice .if it were made by any one under the king's authority-in'the market-place or public street of each large town. It always appears in the gazette." This is the only authority on the subject here under consideration which our researches have enabled us to find. The writer refers to no other author and to no adjudicated cases in support of his views. The third section of the Documentary Evidence Act, declares that the copy of a proclamation purporting to be printed by the queen's printer shall be sufficient proof of the existence of the original. Under the circumstances it may be well to look to the analogy afforded by the promulgation of statutes. At the common law every act of Parliament, unless a different time were fixed, took effect from the first day of the session, no matter how long the session or when the act was passed. This rule was applied to acts punishing offences of all grades, including those which were capital and even attaints. The authorities ou the subject are learnedly collected by Mr. Justice Story in the case of The Brig Ann. Such was the law in England until the passage of the 33d George III, chap. 13, which declared that the royal assent should be indorsed, and that the act should take effect only from that time.
The act of Congress of July 27th, 1789, § 2, declares that whenever a bill, order, resolution, or vote of the Senate and House of Representatives has been signed by the President, or not having been returned by him with his objections, shall have become a law, it shall forthwith thereafter be received by the Secretary of State from the.President; and that whenever a bill, order, resolution, or'vote — having been returned by the President with his objections — shall have been approved by two-thirds of both houses of Congress, and become a law, it shall be received by the Secretary from the President of the Senate, or Speaker of the House of. Representatives, in whichsoever house it shall have been last approved; and it is made his duty carefully to preserve the originals. The first section of the act of April 20th, 1818, directs that the secretary shall publish all acts and resolutions currently as they are passed, in newspapers. The fourth section provides that he shall cause to be published at the close of every session of Congress copies of the acts of Congress at large, including all amendments to the Constitution adopted, and all public treaties ratified, since-the last publication of the laws.
Both those acts are silent as to proclamations, and we have been unable to find any provision in the laws of Congress touching the manner of their original promulgation or their subsequent printing and preservation. Numerous acts were passed during the late war authorizing proclamations to be issued, but they are silent upon these subjects. In the act of July 10th, 1861, under which the proclamation here in question was issued, the language is — "it may and shall be lawful for tbe President by proclamation to declare," &c. In the act of June 22d, 1861, the language is — "the President shall from time to time issue his proclamation." In the act of December 31st, 1862, the language is the same as in the act first.referred to. In the act of March 3d, 1863, the language is — " the President shall issue his proclamation declaring," &c. We havemowhere found in the legislation of Congress any material departure 1'rom this formula, nor anything further in anywise affecting the question before us.
We know that the established usage is to publish proclamations with the laws and resolutions of Congress currently in the newspapers, and in the same volume with th.ose laws and resolutions at the end of the session.
There' is no statute fixing the time when acts of Congress shall take effect, but it is settled that where no other time is prescribed, they take effect from their date. Where the language employed is "from aud after the passing of this act," the same result follows. The act becomes effectual upon the day of its date. In such cases it is operative from the first moment of that day. Fractions of the day are not recognized. An inquiry involving that subject is inadmissible. See Welman's Case, where the subject is examined with learning and ability.
Publishing by outcry, in.the market-place and streets of towns, as suggested by Chi tty, has, we apprehend, fallen into disuse in England. It is certainly unknown in this country. While it is said the proclamation always .appears in the gazette, he does not say that it cannot become operative until promulgated in that way. As no mode of publication is prescribed, and those suggested will answer, we do not see why applying the seal and depositing the instrument in the office of the Secretary of State, may not he held to have the same effect. The President and Secretary have then completed their work. It is there amidst the archives of the nation. The laws of Congress are placed there. All persons desiring i,t can'have access, and procure authenticated copies of both. The President signs and the Seeretary of State seals and-attests the proclamation.'1 The President and Congress make the laws. Both are intended to be published in the newspapers and in 'book form.. Acts, take effect before they are printed or published. Why should not the same rule apply to proclamations? We see no solid reason for making a distinction. If it be objected that the proclamation may not then be known to many of those to be affected by it, tli-e remark applies with equal force to statutes. The latter taking effect by relation from the beginning of the dáy of their date, may thus become operative from a period earlier than that of their approval by the President, and indeed earlier than that at which they received the requisite .legislative sanction. The legislative action may all occur in the latter part of the day of their approval. The approval must necessarily be still later. ' .It may be added, as to both statutes and proclamations, that even after publication in the newspapers, there are in our country large districts.of territory where-actual knowledge does not usually penetrate through that or any other channel of communication, until ,a considerably later period. It will hardly be contended that proclamations should take effect at different times, in different places, according to the speedier or less speedy means of knowledge in such places respectively.
But the gravest objection to the test of publication contended for by the defendant in' error remains to be considered. It Would make the time of taking effect .depend upon extraneous evidence, which might be conflicting, and might not be preserved. The date is an unvarying guide.' If that be departed from, the subject may be one of indefinitely recurring litigation.^ The result in one case would be no bar in another if the parties.were different'. ' Upon whom would rest the burden of proof, the party alleging or the party denying the fact of publication? If, after a lapse of years, .the proof were that a proclamation purporting to be published by authority, was seen at a specified time in a newspaper, but the paper were lost and its date could not be shown, would the proclamation be held to take effect only from the time it was so seen by the witness ? Suppose in the distant future no proof of publication could be found, would all the rights which had grown up under it be lost unless protected by. the rule of limitations? Would the instrument itself be a nullity? Would an exemplified copy from the proper office be an insufficient answer to the plea of nul. tiel record? According to the views maintained by the counsel for the plaintiff in error all these questions must be answered in the affirmative. The only way to guard against these mischiefs is to apply the same rule of presumption to proclamations that is applied to statutes, that is, that they had a valid existence on the day of their date, and to permit no inquiry upon the subject. Conceding publication to be necessary, the. officer upon whom rests the duty of making it should be conclusively presumed to have promptly and properly discharged that duty. • If the proclamation here involved were a resolution or an act of Congress no such question could arise. That "a proclamation," . . . " if denied, is'io be tried by the record thereof.," and that in such 'case the proper plea is nul tiel record, seems to be conclusive upon the subject.
It would be unfit and unsafe to allow the commencement of the effect whenever the question, arises, whether at a near or a distant time, to depend upon the uncertainty of parol proof, or upon anything extrinsic to the instrument itself, as found in the archives of the nation.
Judgment reversed, and the ease'remanded with directions to enter a judgment
In eavor oe the appellant.
Cowel's Law Dictionary.
2 Jacobs's Law Dictionary.
7 Comyns's Digest, 31.
Keyley v. Manning, Cro. Car. 180; Howard v. Slater, 2 Rolls, 172.
1 Blackstone's Commentaries, 70.
Broke'S Abridgment, fol. 160, 17 Viner, 199.
Chitty on Prerogatives, 106.
8 and 9 Victoria, chap. 113.
1 Gallison, 64.
12 Stat. at Large, 257.
Ib. 268.
Ib. 633.
Ib. 735.
Matthews v. Zane, 7 Wheaton, 211.
20 Vermont, 653; see also Howe's Case, 21 Id. 619; The Ann, 1 Gallison, 62; Arnold v. The United States, 9 Cranch, 104; 1 Kent, 457.