28th June, THE very able decision of the U.S. Consul-General, Mr. John Goodnow, in the case of Drew v. Sylvester must be received with general satisfaction. 'The facts are so clearly put, and the rounds for the decision are stated so uucidly and logically that comment on' it is almost superfluous. The defendant, Sylvester, an American, sold to the Chinese authorities at Canton a parcel of rifles and ammunition. Of this parcel 500 rifles and 500,000 cartridges were "rejected" by the authorities, and on Mr. Sylvester representing that he had a purchaser for them in Hongkong, the Hoppo gave him a permit allowing him. to reship them. At the same time Mr. Sylvester brought to Canton a small British steamer, the Pasig, which he got transferred to himself and put under the American flag under the name of the Abbey. Although it was represented that the arms had been sold to a purchaser in Hongkong, Mr, Sylvesterasked the Customs to clear the Abbey with these arms board for Singapore.
This Mr. Drew, Sy the plaintiff, Commissioner of Customs at Canton, declined to do, but the Chinese authorities offered to ship the arms to Hongkong by one of the regular steamers or by a Chinese man-of-war at no expense to Sylvester, an offer which the latter declined. Mr. Drew, acting on instructions from the Viceroy at Canton, then offered to allow the arms to be shipped by the Abbey to Singapore, on Sylvester's giving a bond in the sum of 15,000 Kuping taels that the arms would be sent to Singapore and to no other place, and that Sylvester would produce to the Commissioner of Customs at Canton within six weeks of the date of the bond an official certificate from the U.S. Consul at Singapore that the 500 rifles and 500,000 cartridges had duly, arrived there on the Abbey. Sylvester signed the bond and the Abbey was cleared for Singapore. She never went there, and no certificate has ever been sent back by the U.S. Consul there. " Mr. Etzel, witness for Mr. Sylvester, testifies that he went on the Abbey from Canton directly to Batanzas on the coast of Luzon; and the captain of the Abbey testifies the cargo was landed on the same day of the ship's arrival at Batanzas.' It is a matter of common knowledge (though not brought out in the testimony before me and only added to round out the statement of facts and not as in any way essential to the case) that most of the cargo was delivered to Aguin—aldo's representatives, while the ship and the small remainder of the cargo were seized by the U.S.S. McCulloch." Farther on in his decision Mr. Goodnow supplements this by saying: such permission, "Etzel says that he went on board as a bond fide passenger for Singapore, and was taken to Luzon against his will. He however did not after-wands go to Singapore. 'The captain of the Abbey says that all the Europeans on board knew before the Abbey left Canton that she would go direct to Luzon, and that Mr. Etzel went to instruct the insurgents in the use of the' Maxim guns which were a part of the cargo, and that he did in fact so instruct them." And Mr. Goodnow goes on to say: "The facts of the ship's career after leaving Canton amply justify Mr. Drew's suspicions and his wisdom in taking especial precautions in regard to this shipment, which actually proves to have been conceived as a
ties and a deliberate attempt to deceit against the Chinese Authori-evade the Chinese neutrality regula tions." Sylvester does not deny that he executed the bond, but "denies that it has or ever had any binding effect on him, or that he is or ever was under any' legal obli Such terms were laid down in the instructions given the Commissioner: of Customs by the Viceroy. yy. The Commissioner of Customs in exacting this bond then was acting under, and in conformity to, the instructions of the Viceroy and the agreements and engagements of the Chinese Government. The conditions of the bond have not been fulfilled."
One important point is laid down by this judgment of Mr. Goodnow. Tt. is determined by it, and determined at the instance of the Customs themselves, that it is their duty to revent shipment of arms which may e used against a friendly State; that they are not merely authorised to do this, but that it is their plain duty to do it: and the importance of determining this evidently did not escape Mr. Goodnow when he framed this decision.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.