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} * * ** . fr. ' . ? ? ? /? * V ? BY THOMAtfWv LORUAIW t '/Vrm? *f SHteHptf*n.~Tttr*0 Ik>Utrt per aflAmn, pay. i nble in *<1 vance....No piper to boaiwontinu^but?t ' fyeopliooof th? Editor;until aNafrrc.u-ipcH Repaid, .fihtrllfmtntt not CfcWOdlnfC fourteen Jinea, inaerted ? mftnt time for ?eyenty-flve c?nU, indfcrty cent* for . <^h?ub*<*iucntituertkm. I*ittrp to tho Editor mu?t HejtMtp*id*6r ttypostagc will MCMM tothewjriter. nfwwi .11 in aa?na?a? ' LAW CA8BS: '? ' n ' - , MOM TIIRVIMHUATOM OtTT *UUTT*. . The following being considered as an impor tant casp, ami the opinion of his Honor Judge Nott, ptculinrlv luminous, so much of the brief an relates to the points decided, end the Judge's opinion, aro published at tho request of mauy gentleman of tho bar. THE STATE irtJidmcnt for coining atvl p*?. JOSEPH . i. ,ht? eottntctfcilcoin. ;,vaafcdb|Whjh?s Honor Judge Bay. Vertret*-JM wit; ofiwMln^-tho dollar, know ing it to be counterfeit.'' The counsel for the prisoner took exception to the jurisdiction of the court to try any offence Against tho coin, the jurisdiction thereof being exclusively confined to the courts of the United States. Ilis Honor Judgo Urimko presided on the first day, in the absenco of Judgo Bay, and dccided, that the offence of coining was clearly confined to the jurisdiction of the United States court, and wished to hear further argument as to the /wisn'/i#. But as Ilia Honor Judgo Bay resumed his seat the following day, tho wholo argument was fgain urged, and tho exceptions overruled on both points. The cause went to thejury. By tho act of tho legislature of this state, the possession of coining instruments is felony, and their introduction to prove "gttoo nimo," the dollar was passed was objected to by the counsel for the prisoner, as they should have been laid in tho indictment. This was overru led. A motion was made for a new trial on this ground,should the court overrule the motion in arrest of judgment, which was made on the fol lowing crount|? 1st. Because, since the adoption of the consti tution of the United States, the Jurisdiction over offences against the coin is exclusively confined to tho courts of the United States. The indivi dual states can have no current coin except in their capacity as constituent parts of the United States, and an indictment stating the ofTence a gainst tho coin to be against" the peace and dig nity of tho state of South-Carolina*' is bad, be cause tt\e same is also an offence against the U nitcd 8tates, and thesame act cannot be an of fence against two dttHket *6t*rrt**4<e?. fid. Beeaobo, the power of coining, ami regu lating the value of coin being exclusively vested in the United States, all acts, such as coining or passing counterfeit coin, are offences against the power which is entrusted with the preservation of the purity of the coin, and solely cognizable in the courts of that power. Other jpoints were taken, but tho above are substantially the ground of appeal, upon which Judge Nott has dccided. 1.8. Gkimkk and B. H. Hunt for the appel lant.?Tho Attorney-General for the State. JUDGE NOTT'8 OPINION. , All (he grounda taken in arrest of Judgment) may be reduced into two: lit* "Whether under that ?ection of the con* stitution of the "United State*, which gives to congress the power, " to coin money, to regu late the value thereof, and of foreign coin, and to provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securities and current coin of the United States," is also given the power to provide for the punishment of passing any of the curreut coin thereof, knowing it to be counterfeit ? 2d. If it is, whether the states, by delegating such power to congress, have constructively partoa with-.the power which they before had o ver the subject, and vested it exclusively in the general government ? Uefore I proceed to a particular examination of these questions, 1 would premise that the IJ? nitcd States must i>c held to possess all the attri butes of sovereignly, in the most ample degree, over all the matters expressly delegated to them by tho constitution, ns well as over all such ax are ncccsaary to carW those, ho delegated, into effect; and among those, the power to carry their own laws into operation, by providing pro per punishmentA for the violation of them, is one. That cannot be considered a sovereign indepen dent state, which depends on another to carry Its laws into execution. A want of this power wss the great objection to the old confederation, and to remedy the evil was a great object 0f the new one, ami it would Ihj very bailly effected, by merely granting such nower to tne general government and leaving tho individual states the power to arrest it by interposing their own laws, lite constitution, in my opinion, admits of no SUch construction. The judicial power of the United Htatcsis not only constructively, but ex pressly made commensurate with the legislative. It is mado to extend to nil cases arising under the laws of tho United States. The words are, 44 the judicial power (of the United States) shall tended to all cases in law and equity arising under this constitution, the lairs of the United States and treaties made, or whiqh shall be made under their authority ."?orf. !idf see. 2, Con. U. H. This is a cslte " arising under a law of the United States," for by the act of congress, it is made highly nenal to counterfeit the current coin of the United States, or to pass it, knowing it to be counterfeit* Unless therefore, that act of congress is unconstitutional, this is ono of the cases expressly ami exclusively delegated to the courts of the United States. For, iftheir power extends to 41 all" the cases of this description, there can be none to which it does not extend. It is no an*rerto*ay, It it I caw aW'arisin* lawsof the UnitcdStates. which Wiall be made in pursuahce thereof. shall be thd supreme law of the land, and the judges In every state shall be bound thereby, any thing In the constitution or law* of any state to the bontrary notwith standing*'?art. 6. Any act of a state, therefore* repugnant to a constitutional act of congrese, im mediately become* a dead letter, litis con struction may also be Inferred, from the nature of the other cases enumerated in the same secti on of the constitution, M all cases affecting am bassadors, other public ministers and cousuls, and all cases of admiralty and maritime juris diction"?art. d, tec. 2. I believe it is not pretended that the jurisdiction of state courts ex tends to cases of this description | yet, the same construction which wouhl extend it to u cases s rising under a law of tho United States," woulc embrace those also. This construction is further strengthened by a $ew of the class of cases which immedfatelr follows in tho same secti on of tho constitution, " to controversies be tween two or more states, between citizens of different states," &c. In these cases and thoso connected with them, the word, " nil" is drop ped, thereby leaving the state courts iurisdicti on concuH^t^witn-the coiirts of tnfr United States. If then, this is one of the cases over which tho general government has exclusive ju risdiction, tho state law becomes inoperative; for a state csnnot {rive to itself jurisdiction by legislating on a subject exclusively belonging to the United States. This brings me. to the in quiry, whether the act ofcongre&s providing for tho punishment of passing counterfeit money, knowing It to be counterfeit, is constitutional, tho consideration of which will t>e involved in question first above made in arrest of judgment. That congress have power to coin money, to I regulate the value thereof and of foreign coin, and to provide for the punishment of counter feiting, it iii admitted. It is also admitted they I have the power to make all the laws which shall be necessary to carry Into execution the forego ing powers?art. 1, te&iB. Is It necessary then to enable congress to cany into effect the power to coin money, to regulate tbe value thereof, and to provide for the punishment of counterfeiting I it, that they should have power to 'muish fori passing it. Itnowlng it to be counterfeit ? If U is, then the power is expressly delegated sto them, or (to out toe question in another form) it it necessary to protect tho current coin of the United States, by imposing penalties on those who shall pass it, knowing it to be counterfeit ?| If it )*, then to afford it that protection is one. of the powers expressly delegated to the general government. Indeed, to use the words of an eminent commentator, (Federalist, v. t. 229) on the constitutition, " had that instrument bceQ| silent on this head, there cau be no doubt thati all tho particular powers, required as means of executing the general powers, would have re sulted to the general government by unavoida ble implication. No maxim is more clearly es tablished in law or reason, than that whonever the end is required, the means are authorized \ whenever a general power to do a thing is given. I every necessary power to do it is included)" I and that such protection is necessary to the cur rent coin of the United 8tatcs, no further proof can be required than that congress, and all the I states in tlie union, (as long as they had power over the subjects) have furnished It* To have given to congress the power to punish the coun terfeiters of the coin, while those who circula ted it were to go unpunished, would have fur nished it but little security?and to have left this important power to the courtesy of the slate,] would have been sliding back into the same si tuation which wo were in under the old confe* deration, and defeating the principal one fori which the new one formed. Being of opinion,therefore, that congress have not only the power of punishing for counterfeit ing the coin of the United 8tatcs, but also for passing it, knowing it to be counterfeit, it only remain* to examine the seoond section, to wit? whether the states, by delegating such power to congress, have parted with all |>ower over tho | subject themselves. It it( n matter of no small difficulty, to make out* with exact precision, the linn of jurisdicti on between the United Htntru mid the individu al states, and perhaps we shall not meet with a more correct view of the subject tlinn is taken by the same eminent writer before quoted, lie reduce* the exclusive delegation of jiower to the United State*, or the alienation of Mate sove reignty to three caaen t 1st, where the constitu tion in express terms, gi ants exclusive jurisdic tion to the union) 2d, where it grants in one inatanco an authority to the union, and in ano ther prohibits the sta'tes from exercising a tike authority, and .1d, where it grants an authority to the union, to which a similar authority in the atate would absolutely and totally contradic tory and repugnant. I'rider this last case he infttances that clause which declares that emi gres* shall have power " to establish an uniform state of naturalr/-ation throughout tho United States," 'llils, Observes the writer, must pcres* snrily be exclusive, because if each state had a right to prescribe a distinct rule, then there coirtd ho no' uniformity. Now if the United States had the nower to regulato tho value of money and of foreign coin, and to nroyido for the punishment of counterfeiting the current coin of tho Unitod States^ they must have exclu sive jurisdiction, otherwiso two governments e qUally sovereign and independent, would have jurisdiction over the name subject, and the va< lueof the coin, ami the punishment for counter feiting, will be different in every state. The exercise of such authority by tho states, would bo absolutely anil totally contradictory and repugnant to the exercise of It by tho U. S. ndeed, concurrent jurisdiction, in criminal n| between independent government*, in in ipatible with sovereignty. And the United '" and the individual states, are aa indppen ?a each other in all cases ofa criminal na within their respective jurisdictions, as the statea themselves are* We need only look to tho consequences of a contrary doctrine to be tanyincM of this truth. The United States e , - _ |?HU>I MIV ????!? WUHliCO with death. Ifa roan put on Ms trial for auch an; offence, should plead in bar a conviction or acquittal in a court of the United 8tates, would autn a plea be sustained by our courta ? Or let th4 punishments be reversed, and would such a phk be sustained in the courts of the United States ? It la impossible not to see that it would act and ought not. Neither the courts of tlte U-, ntyed States, nor of tlte individual states, will btrfd an acquittal or conviction by one, a bar to trial b/ the other. Each must, and will insist ori'tlie risht of enforcing its own penal laws, and ita jurisdiction cannot Do usurped by the other. The right to punish, says an eminent writer (Vattell,) arises from M the right of self defence.*1 A state can only punish offences against its own laws, ami an offcnce against tlte laws of tho U nitcd States, is no offence against tlte laws or a gainst>( tlio peace and dignity" of the state of South-Carolina. One, therefore, must havo the wholo jurisdiction, or a person may be twice punished for the samcr a<jt?first, fined and im prisoned by the courts of tho United States, and then hanged by the state, which is not only contrary to the express letter of the constitution, but contrary to the eternal and unerring princi ples of justice, 'lite case put of concurrout ju risdiction of courts in the same state, is not a*, nalagous. There, tho olTence is against the same laws, and against tho samo sovereignty? the crime and punishment is the same, and the law is satisfied with a trial in either tribunal having jurisdiction. Tito rule then must be a correct one, that where any power is delegated to the United States, and the exercise of suoh power bv an individual stato is incompatable with auch delegation, it must exclusively belong to the general government. The advocates for a concurrent jurisdiction, derive no support from the amendment of tho constitution which has been relied. It does not iajr that tho powers not" expressly" delegated, fee* shall be reserved, but that the powers nut delegated j and whether expressly or by ncces _T._Tr,-r.-?y w. ucuia, IIJ im plies a power in them to make them so. In an awer to which, after what ha* already been said, 1 will only observe I am not disposed to admit that inference. But admit it to bo correct, it pnly proves that a state may make certain fo reign coins, current within their respective ju risdictions, which are not made so by congress. Hut that Introduces no conflict of jurisdiction. For the power of congress to punish, extends only to the current com of the United States.? Until therefore, congrCaa have made a foreign coin current with the United States, they can not punish for counterfeiting it* But that was not thegrouud on which tbia case was decided in the court below, neither has it been made a ground of argument he result is not contended on the partoT the state, that the money pawed by the prisoner was not the currrcnt coin of the U. 8. 1 cannot feel tho force of tho distinction taken between the coin ntado in the U. S. and foreign coin made current here, lite words of the constitution are, " current coin," which I understand to mean as well foreign coin msde current by act of congress, as coin made at the mint of the Uniteu States. The conclusion therefore, that I have come to, is, that the pow er of punishing tho counterfeiting of foreign coin made current In the United States by act of con gress, or passing the same, knowing it to be counterfeit, belongs exclusively to tho general government, and the trial of persons for those offences, belongs exclusively to the courts of the United States, and the administration of criminal justice, is not a privilege which we ought to lie unxious to retain, though a painful duty which we arc sometimes bound to perform. 1 am of opinion that tho judgment ought to be reversed for want of jurisdictiftn. Hut as a ma jority of the court differ from me on this point, it becomes necessary to givo an opinion ajso on the ground for a new trial. Tito first ground is, that our act makes it a distinct capital crime to keep implements for counterfeiting money in one's possession. Such evidence ought not to have been admitted in the court belew, on an indictment for mere passing counterfeit money. Having given an opinion on this point in another case? I do not feel under any necessity to go fully into the reasons for the opinion I now give. 1 take the rule of law to be, that one distinct offence shall not he given in nvidonce to convict a person of another, antes* tho proof of one goes directly to provo the other. 1st. Kast. C. L. 121, 123. Thus, for instance, proof that tho defen dant made the identical dollar in uuestion, might have been pro|?er, because it would have proved unequivocally that he knew it to be counterfeit. Hut proving that he had implements for coin ing in his possession, did not prove that ho knew this dollar to be counterfeit, any more than pro ving that a man stole a horse for which he was not indicted, would be proof that he stole ano ther for which he was indicted ) unless indeed there were some proof by comparison or other wise, that these were the moulds In which the dollar, (Hex. v. Hall, Campbell, 024,) by the defendant was cast. I am In favor of tho moti on in arrest of judgment, as well as for ajtow trial. (Signed) AllllAM NOTT. GEOGRAPHY. A 1>KMJRIPTH>N OP MINORCA *$Kd Port Mafttn, th* ptvmti midttvmu if (ft* U. 8 S'/Uatlrtn in the MnLterranean. ? Minorca, anciently called ifltuUi Minor, with reference to its neighbour Majorca, tho largest of tho JBalearic islet, is situated in tb? Mediterranean sea, in latitude SO d. 59 m.' north, and longitude 30 d. 40 m. cast, and about fifty miles east of the river Ebro, in Hpain. It forms .part of a circle from south-cast to north west, and is about thirteeen leagues in length, and nearly thirty-eight leagues iu circumference. . The inhabitants were anciently celebrated a* jd slingers, whence this group of islands acquired "3 the name of Balcarcs. Minorca wa? successive ly possessed by the Carthageniani, the Romans, the Vandals, the Moors, the Arragonese and Castilians, the English, the French, and tho Spaniards. It is surrounded by a number of small rocks and islets, and the whole of the south aide, with very little exception,' is level. The air is moist, but the soil is naturally dry. Tho island is divided into districts called termino9, the chief towns of which are, Ciudsdella ; Ma hon, Alayor, Ferarias, and Mercadal. Its prin cipal ports are, Mahon on the cast} Fomella oil the north ; and Ciudadclla on tho west. Tho latter, which is also known by the name of 8am na, is the capital, and is a small distance inland, about ten or eleven leagues from Mahon. When the island was successively possessed by the Carthagenians and Romans, it was a place ot* considerable magnificence, but it has greatly de clined since, and is now a place of little conse quence, its port being greatly inferior to that of Mahon. It is merely a canal, bounded by rocks. The entrance is difficult, and is defended by two large cannon. The city is surrounded part ly by an old wall of Moorisn origin, and partly by one of modern construction, formed of basti ons, with curtains of hewn stone. Tho streets, like thoBo of most old cities, are narrow, jrnd pa ved with unhewn stone. The most remarkable building is a cathedra), flanked with a fine tow er, said to be built in the third century. Thu total population of the terqiina of which Ciuda della is the capital, probably docs not amount to eight hundred. rori Mahon, whero tho American squadron has its depot, in tho capital of the termino of the same name. It is the most considerable of the island, containing about sixty thousand acres, and is situated on the south-east extremity of Minorca. Nearly one half the inhabitants of the island reside in this termino. The town of Ma* lion derives its name from Mago, the Carthage nian general, who is universally acknowledged to have been its founder. It stands on a pretty steep eminence, nt the west side of the harbor, and is a tolerably largo town, with narrow, ill paved, and crooked streets, The fort of St. Phi lip is near the entrance of harbour, which it en tirely commands, being very extensive, of great strength, with subterraneous works bomb proof, I large magazines, numerous and well appointed guns, and every thing else necessary to a com plete fortification. Port Mahon to the finest har bor in tho Mediterranean, about ninety fathoms wide at its entrance, but widening into a capa cious bay within, and extending nearly * league, inta the island. Beneath the totfftjfeiMto is a fine quay, one tide of which is impropriated to Iships of war, and lUrnMuMl with every conveni ence for repiriring or Mpjig't tho other to mer chantmen* The eastflflffSt. Philip was esteem l^ltfpfcgnable, before the English took it Bythem it was greatly improved and strength ened j but whatever may be the opinion of it<* present possessors, experience has pretty well demonstrated, that no place can be considered impregnable that is not defended by a brave and | vigilant garrison. Besides the ports of Cludadella and Mahon, I the most remarkable arc, Fornelta and Adaya. Tho former is about six miles from mount Toro, the highest land on tho island* it of a circular form, with a narrow entrance towards the south, and is capable of containing the largest fleet. It is defended by a small square fort, with bastions and fosses, capable of containing about three hundred men. 'the entrance to the port of A dava, is hid by high lands, and is only used by fishermen. Monte Toro, is within a short dis tance of Mercadal, and commands tho wholo is land. Its form is that of the frustrum of a cone. Mount 8t. Agatha is situated N. \V. of Merca dal, and is next in altitude to Monte Toro. On I the summit is a chapel dedicated to the saint, and held in great veneration by the people of tho island, who are exceedingly superstitious. The whole of this region is inhabited by shepherds, who feed their flocks principally oh these moun tains. Minorca is exposed to the north winds, which are unfavorable to vegetation, but notwithstand ing this, snow is seldom or ever seen thero in | winter, and the air of spring is delightfully se rene and temperate. '1 he summer is hot and dry, and in tho autumn there fall* a great deal of rain. The island is in many parts fertile in vegetation. Its product* are wheat, barley, and mar/.c?it produces red and white wines for ex portation-?plenty of olivo trees are every where [seen, and oranges, pomegranates, figs,lemons, water-melons, flee, together with garden vegcta bles, are in grefct plenty. By late Accounts, the horses, mules, and asses, wore, estimated at 2000?the horned cattle at TOK^?sheep. goat*, and smaller animals, at 43,000?and hogs at 10,(MM). Little nonltry is raised, but the flsU all around the island aro excellent, and In great abundance. It* natural curiosities are* a grott<? called f?a Cava Povtdla. near Ciudadallftt and a subterranean Uke j and Its antiquities are Pho: ? nician, Macedonian, Carthagenlan. Grecian, Ho man, aim Spanish medals, Tn gold, silver, an?l [bronze, that are sometimes dug up. Thero ar.? likewise a number of repnUhrc*, vn?*!?. fami?s