Papers Relating to the Treaty of Washington

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated.1872 Excerpt: ... what was a captured merchantman to the eye of everybody else should be regarded by the government as a legitimate ship of war of a recognized belligerent. He also relied on the extract from the work of Wheatou, having reference to a very different state of things. This was on the 7th August, 1803. The governor sent these papers in the regular channel to the authorities at home, and in due course of time they found their way to Earl liiissell. He appears to have been so little satisfied with the singular result that had been reached at Cape Town as to desire a reconsideration of the question by the law-officers of the Crown. This was dated on the 30th September. The consequence was an opinion, not delivered until nineteen days idterward and bearing marks of careful consideration, signed by all three of the legal officers, the purport of which was a disavowal of the fiction of law based upon a misconception of the doctrine of Wheaton; and a distinct expression of a proposition so important in connection with all the events submitted to our consideration that 1 deem it necessary to quote the very language: We think it right to observe that the third reason alleged by the colonial attorneygeneral for his opinion assumes (though the fact had not been made the subject of aiiy inquiry) that no means existed fur determining whether tho ship had or had not been judicially condemned in a court competent of jurisdiction; and the proposition that, admit ting her to have been captured by a ship of war of the Confederate States, she was entitled to refer Her Majesty's government, in case of dispute, to the court of her States in order to satisfy it as to her real character, appears to us to be at variance with Her Majesty's undoubted right to determine, within her own...