The Watchful

by Samuel Freeman Miller

United States Supreme Court

73 U.S. 91

The Watchful

APPEAL from the District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

In that court the schooner Watchful and cargo had been libelled as prize of war, and a decree rendered dismissing the libel, and restoring the property to the claimant.

The claimant, one Wallis, to whom the property plainly belonged, was a citizen of Pennsylvania, residing at Philadelphia, and the evidence showed no reason to doubt his loyalty to the Federal government during the recent war. Nor was there any proof of intention to break the blockade or to trade with the enemy. It appeared only that the claimant had sold, in the late civil war in Mexico, to that party which was led by President Juarez, two hundred and fifty-two cases of firearms, which he had agreed to deliver on the Mexican coast, near Matamoras, and when his vessel arrived near that place, it was found that the French army occupied the post, and no delivery could be made to the Juarez party. Under these circumstances, the officer in command started for New Orleans, not then blockaded, but in possession of the Union forces. On the way to that port his vessel was captured and sent in as prize.

The record did, however, seem to disclose some facts, in other respects, of a sinister character. It seemed to show that the vessel had cleared for Hamburg, when her real destination was Matamoras; that after she was out at sea, her clearance had been altered by erasing the word 'Hamburg' and substituting in its place the word 'Matamoras;' that a false manifest had been used, and that the fact of the main cargo of two hundred and fifty-two cases of arms being on board, had been purposely concealed from the custom-house officers at New York, whence the vessel sailed.

Upon these latter facts, the Attorney-General now insisted that even admitting that there might be no sufficient proof of intent to break the blockade or to trade with the enemy, and so that the case was not one of prize, yet that the record before the court disclosed such a gross violation of our navigation laws, and possibly of our revenue and neutrality laws, that the case should be remanded to the District Court, with leave to file a new libel, or for such other proceedings as the government may deem advisable in the matter.

The claimant was not represented in this court by counsel.

Mr. Justice MILLER delivered the opinion of the court.

Notes