The Law Magazine and Law Review (Volume 17); Or, Quarterly Journal of Jurisprudence (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: Art. IV.? THE FOREIGN ENLISTMENT ACT, 59 Geo. III., Cap. 69. " The Alexandra Case" (Attorney-General v. Sillim and others), and " The Pampero Case." " Alexandra Case," after having dragged its slow length along for a year, has now terminated in a premature and most unsatisfactory manner. Unsatisfactory, not in consequence of the ultimate result in point of fact, namely, that the ship has been released; but in consequence of there having been no result in point of law arrived at on a subject of so much moment, notwithstanding the great expenditure of time and money of which it has been the cause. The whole civilized world has for a year past been looking forward to the result of this case, as settling what the law of this country is with respect to the rights of British subjects to build ships in Great Britain or her colonies, for a belligerent or belligerents, with whom we are at peace. We say " the law of this country," because there is no doubt whatever that, according to international law, there is no prohibition whatever against such a trade, whether the ship be armed or not; and the whole question turned on the construction of our own municipal law, developed, or rather we may say obscured by the statute of 59 Geo. III. chapter 69, commonly called " The Foreign Enlistment Act." The question mainly turned on the 7 th section, " And be it further enacted, that if any person within any part of the United Kingdom, or in any part of His Majesty's dominions beyond the seas, shall without the leave and license of his Majesty for that purpose, first had and obtained, equip, furnish, Jit out, or arm, or attempt to equip, furnish, fit out, or arm, or procure to be equipped, furnished, fitted out, or armed, or shall knowingly aid, assist, or be concerned in the equipping, furnis...