11. When captures are made on the sea, the title, by modern law, does not fully vest in the captor at the moment, but needs to pass under the revision of a competent court. The captured vessel may be ransomed on the sea, unless municipal law forbids, and the ransom is of the nature of a safe-con duct. If a vessel is recaptured, or rescued from other perils, a compensation is due to the rescuer, which is called salvage ; which see.
In modern international law, questions of neutrality play a great part. A neutral ie one, strictly, Who affords assistance to neither ,arty; for assistance afforded to both alike, in almost every case, would benefit one party and be of little use to the other. The neutral territory, on land and sea, must be untouched by the war ; and for all violations of this rule the neutral can take or demand satisfaction.
The principal liabilities of neutral trade are the following:— In regard to the nationality of goods and vessels, the rule, on the whale; has been that enemy's goods were exposed to capture on any vessel, and neutral's saf, on any, and that the neutral vessel was not guilty for having enemy's goods on board. Owing to the declaration of the Peace of Paris in 1856, the humane rule that free ships make free goods will no doubt become universal.
Certain °articles of especial use in war arc called oontraband, and are liable to oapture. But the list has been stretched by bellige cents, especially by England, so as to include naval stores and provisions; and then, to cure the hardship of the rule, another—the rule of pre-emption—has been introduced.
The true doctrine with regard to contraband seems to be that nothing can be so called unless nations have agreed so to consider it; or, in other words, that articles cannot become occasionally contraband owing to the con venience of a belligerent. See CONTRABAND.
An attempt of a neutral ship to enter a blockaded place is a gross violation of neu trality; and, as in cases of contraband trade the goods, so here the guilty vessel is confis cated. But blockade must exist in fact, and not alone upon paper, must be made known to neutrals, and, if discontinued, must be resumed with a new notification. See }hock. ADE.
To carry out the rights of war, the right of search is indispensable ; and such search ought to be submitted to without resistance. Search is exclusively a war right, excepting that ves sels in peace can be arrested near the coast on suspicion of violating revenue laws, and anywhere on suspicion of piracy. The slave trade not being piracy by the law of nations, vessels of other nations cannot be searched on suspicion of being engaged in thi' traffic. And here comes in the question which has agitated the two leading commercial states of Christendom :—How shall it be known that a vessel is of a nationality which renders search unlawful ? The English claim, and justly, that they have a right to ascertain this simple fact by detention and examine. tion; the United States contend that if in so doing mistakes arc committed, compensation is due, and to this England has agreed.