by John Marshall

“ In the harbour of Callao, the shipping were crowded into a corner, encircled by gun-boats, close under the fort, and with a strong boom drawn round them. The custom-house was empty, and the door locked; no bales of goods rose in pyramids on the quays; no loaded mules covered the road from Callao to Lima; nor during the whole ascent was an individual to be seen, except, perhaps, a solitary courier galloping towards the fortress. In Lima itself the difference was as striking: jealousy and distrust of one another, and still more of strangers, tilled every breast ”

“ The night drawing on, the wind increasing, with frequent showers of rain, and the forecastle being every instant expected to give way, when we must have all perished together, afforded a spectacle truly deplorable, the bare recollection of which even now makes me shudder. The piercing cries of the people this dismal night, whenever a sea came over them, which happened every two minutes, were pitiful in the extreme the water running down all over the body kept us continually wet: the remaining strength of every one was exerted for his individual safety. ”

“ A jurist could not say, that a practice thus supported was illegal, and that those engaged in it might be punished, either personally, or by deprivation of property.
In this commerce, thus sanctioned by universal assent, every nation had an equal right to engage. How is this right to be lost? Each may renounce it for its own people; but can this renunciation affect others?
No principle of general law is more universally acknowledged, than the perfect equality of nations. Russia and Geneva have equal rights. It results from this equality, that no one can rightfully impose a rule on another. ”

“ Let us suppose one of the most glaring violations of the constitution; a bill of attainder of ex post facto law, for example, passed by a State; and that the State judiciary proceeds to conviction of the party prosecuted. Let us suppose, that this Court, claiming an appellate jurisdiction, forbids the execution of the party; but the State Court orders its judgment to be executed, and it is executed, by putting to death the prisoner. His life cannot be recalled: that is beyond the reach of human power; can you prosecute the judges or the officer for murder? ”

“ A convention could have been assembled by the discontented State, and the required improvements could have been made by itself. The unwieldy and cumbrous machinery of procuring a recommendation from two-thirds of Congress and the assent of three-fourths of their sister States could never have occurred to any human being as a mode of doing that which might be effected by the State itself. Had the framers of these amendments intended them to be limitations on the powers of the State governments, they would have imitated the framers of the original Constitution, and have expressed that intention. ”

“ Whilst the Ajax was propelling the cutter in the above alarming manner, the flames reached the shank-painter and stopper of her remaining bower anchor, and it fell from her bows, nearly effecting the destruction of the boat at its first dash in the water: the cable caught her outer gunwale, over which it ran, apparently a complete sheet of fire: orders, or exertion and presence of mind, were now out of the question: death to all appeared inevitable ; the only alternative left was to be burnt or drowned, for every one was too much exhausted to swim: the scene was altogether indescribable. ”

“ It is for the consideration of the government not of its Courts. The degree and the kind of retaliation depend entirely on considerations foreign to this tribunal. It may be the policy of the nation to avenge its wrongs in a manner having no affinity to the injury sustained, or it may be its policy to recede from its full rights and not to avenge them at all. It is not for its Courts to interfere with the proceedings of the nation and to thwart its views. It is not for us to depart from the beaten track prescribed for us, and to tread the devious and intricate path of politics. ”

“ Every exertion was instantly made to get her off, but to no purpose. The weather rather clearing, we soon perceived the danger of our situation. It was truly terrible, and scarcely left us the most distant prospect of life. Our brave and worthy captain, however, with the most undaunted fortitude I ever beheld, still continued to animate the crew to hope and further perseverance. This he did with as much collectedness and self-command as if conducting the ordinary duty of the ship; never in my life did I witness such utter disregard to death and danger. ”

“ Not a boat in sight, every minute expecting to be hailed by the fort, and not a soul amongst us that could speak a word of French, almost perished and starved from the fatigue and sufferings of the night, the few provisions we had being totally destroyed by the salt water. Seeing no alternative, but the pain and mortification of delivering myself and boat’s crew prisoners of war, I came at length to that resolution, ordered all the small arms to be thrown overboard, cut the grapnel-rope, and ran into Brest harbour. ”

“ A more rapid moral transition from pleasure to pain, from happiness to misery, cannot be imagined. Instead of my day-dreams of victory, of glory, and promotion, Verdun, or Valenciennes, with its dungeon, and a lengthened imprisonment, appeared in withering and close perspective. Between me and my brig, whose flag I saw gallantly waving over the waters of the Elbe, at the distance of 2000 yards, was interposed, for aught that I knew, an entire French corps d’armée. ”

“ A gleam of devout joy lighted up the countenance of Nelson; and as the crew repeated their cheers, and marked the progress of his victory, his satisfaction visibly encreased. “Will no one,” exclaimed he, “bring Hardy to me? He must be killed; I am certain he is dead.” His wishes were at length gratified; Captain Hardy soon afterwards descended to the cockpit, and anxiously strove to conceal the feelings with which he had been struggling. “How does the day go with us, Hardy?” ”

“ What is the law of nations? Not a rule adopted by one nation only, but the law of nature, of reason, and of justice, applied to the intercourse of nations, and admitted by all such as are civilized. What is there in the code of any other nation to support this rule? It is to be found only in the maritime code of Great Britain; which is not more binding upon us than that of any other maritime power. It can have no force with us, but in cases where the rule of reciprocity or of retaliation will justify its use. ”

“ The sailors, delighting in such work, ran down the hill with the tackle-falls, as the guns flew up with almost incredible velocity, notwithstanding the depth of the mud, the incessant rain, and the steep acclivity of a newly cut road.
“There is something indescribably animating to the mind of British seamen, whenever they are ordered to land with a great gun. The novelty of getting on shore, and the hopes of coming into action, give a degree of buoyancy to their spirits, which carries them to the highest pitch of enthusiasm. ”

“ Growing faint through loss of blood, he was now compelled to retire; but when assistance was offered to conduct him below, he nobly refused it,– “I will not have a single man leave his quarters on my account! my legs still remain to bear me down into the cockpit.” In this wounded and shattered state he cast a languid yet affectionate look towards his brave crew – “Persevere, my brave lads, in your duty! continue the action with spirit, for the honor of our King and Country; and remember my last words – The colours of the Brunswick shall never be struck!” ”

“ There is no service more arduous and unprofitable than that of convoying merchantmen. Most of those placed under Captain Butterfield’s care were heavy sailers, deeply laden, weakly manned, badly found, and sometimes leaky; demanding the greatest skill, perseverance, and patience, to keep them together. Privateers were continually on the watch, waiting only for a gale of wind, or a fog, to separate the unskilful from the rest; yet, with all these difficulties to contend with, Captain Butterfield had the good fortune never to lose a single vessel confided to his charge. ”

“ The constitutional prohibition on the States to lay a duty on imports, a prohibition which a vast majority of them must feel an interest in preserving, may certainly come in conflict with their acknowledged power to tax persons and property within their territory. The power, and the restriction on it, though quite distinguishable when they do not approach each other, may yet, like the intervening colours between white and black, approach so nearly as to perplex the understanding, as colours perplex the vision in marking the distinction between them. ”

“ It is most true that this Court will not take jurisdiction if it should not: but it is equally true, that it must take jurisdiction if it should. The judiciary cannot, as the legislature may, avoid a measure because it approaches the confines of the constitution. We cannot pass it by because it is doubtful. With whatever doubts, with whatever difficulties, a case may be attended, we must decide it, if it be brought before us. We have no more right to decline the exercise of jurisdiction which is given, than to usurp that which is not given. ”

“ In all our endeavours to prevent this city from falling into the iron grasp of the most despotic tyranny that ever disgraced mankind, we have been animated by the example of firmness, constancy, and devotion to the great and glorious cause in which we are mutually engaged, so eminently shewn by the brave people of Cadiz during such a length of time, under circumstances the most distressing and irritating, and to that of the Royal Spanish Marine, with whom we have ever had a pride in co-operating. ”

“ In an open sea, in broad day-light, and in fine weather, nothing can be more delightful than sailing along on such a voyage as ours to visit strange countries. But when the scene is changed to a dark stormy night, in narrow rocky passages, with rapid tides sweeping through them, the blessing of such charts as those of Captain Ross, and such directions as those of Horsburgh, is felt in a manner that the ‘gentlemen of England, who live at home at ease,’ can form but a faint conception of. ”

“ The difference between requiring a continent, with an immense population, to submit to be taxed by a government having no common interest with it, separated from it by a vast ocean, restrained by no principle of apportionment, and associated with it by no common feelings; and permitting the representatives of the American people, under the restrictions of our constitution, to tax a part of the society, which is either in a state of infancy advancing to manhood, looking forward to complete equality so soon as that state of manhood shall be attained, as is the case with the territories ”

“ I was walking with him on the poop, when he said, ‘I’ll now amuse the fleet with a signal;’ and he asked me, ‘If I did not think there was one yet wanting?’ I answered, That I thought the whole of the fleet seemed very clearly to understand what they were about, and to vie with each other who should first get nearest to the Victory, or Royal Sovereign. These words were scarcely uttered, when his last well-known signal was made, England expects every man will do his duty. The shout with which it was received throughout the fleet, was truly sublime. Now, said Lord Nelson, I can do no more. ”

“ From my cradle, my only ambition has been to live and die in the service of my sovereign with an untainted reputation: the best efforts of my head and heart have been exerted to attain that end. Governor Bligh has been pleased to attack my character with charges of a nature, which, if established to the extent of his unfavorable constructions, blasts my best hopes, and obscures every prospect in life. ”

“ Sir, I have great satisfaction in the highly flattering communication you have made to me of the sentiments of yourself and of your brave companions who so nobly and successfully carried the supposed impregnable fortress of Banda Neira, the colours of which, and 2 guns taken under your auspices, by a handful of men composed of seamen and marines, and the intrepid officers and soldiers of the Madras European regiment, confer on me an honor and happiness far beyond my deserts, but most gratefully and thankfully received, as coming from a body of men so highly and particularly distinguished. ”

“ There is a principle of reciprocity known to Courts administering inter-national law; but I trust it is a reciprocity of benevolence, and that the angry passions which produce revenge and retaliation will never exert their influence on the administration of justice. Dismal would be the state of the world, and melancholy the office of a judge, if all the evils which the perfidy and injustice of power inflict on individual man, were to be reflected from the tribunals which profess peace and good will to all mankind. ”

“ As Captain of the Danaé, you will not admit that the Flore struck her colours in the late action, nor did I call on you to do so. No, Sir, I call on Mons. Peridier, the commander of that ship, as a man of honor, to declare whether she struck her colours or not; and if M. Peridier was so severely wounded as not to have charge of the ship at that time, I look to his next in command for an answer to my letter of the 15th; but I again assert, and ever shall maintain, that, by the laws of war, his frigate belongs to my Sovereign, and his sword to me; the world will judge between us. ”

“ Every one is praying for your continuance with us. We humbly beg to say that we will fight and spell the last drop of our blood under your command, more willingly than any other Ship’s Company up here will do, and only wish we had the oppertunity of convincing you by the capture of any two Frinch Frigates that we might be lucky enough to fall in with, and in as short time and as much to your satisfaction, as any other frigate posably could do – for in fighting under your command we fight under a Captain to whom we owe Eternal gratitude, and to whom we have the strongest attachment. ”

“ To construe the power to regulate the forms of process and modes of proceeding, into a power in the Courts to make execution laws, would be to suppose Congress intended to violate the constitution, by delegating their legislative power to the judiciary. The laws of the States on the subject of executions are various and contradictory. Did Congress mean to give to this Court the power to make a uniform execution law throughout the Union, or to adopt the common law of England, and thus to repeal the statutes of all the States regulating what shall, and what shall not, be subject to execution? ”

“ But, should no appeal be made to force, the States can put an end to the government by refusing to act. They have only not to elect Senators, and it expires without a struggle.
It is very true that, whenever hostility to the existing system shall become universal, it will be also irresistible. The people made the constitution, and the people can unmake it. It is the creature of their will, and lives only by their will. But this supreme and irresistible power to make or to unmake, resides only in the whole body of the people ”

“ Hewson and myself used to walk out to on adjacent height, to contemplate the ocean, and to Bee our frigate, that lay violently tossed and agitated on that boisterous clement. Not another British vessel was to be seen; and the idea of this single ship blockading, as the inhabitants termed it, so superior a force, increased our admiration. It was highly flattering to us to feel at that moment, that we belonged to so superior a country, and to that service which ruled so triumphantly, feared and admired by the whole world. ”

“ When this respect and confidence had once become fully established, every thing went on so smoothly under his vigilant auspices, that it was those only who chanced to be placed near the scene, who could perceive the extent, or appreciate the importance, of the public good which he was silently dispensing – as in a well-steered ship, a stranger is unconscious how much he owes to the operation of the helm, or how much merit belongs to the hand which, unseen, guides the motions of the whole. ”

“ As the wind was against us, we had to make a tack towards the harbour’s mouth, where we were met by the whole eight sail of the line, gaily dressed out in long swallow-tailed streamers, and led by their gallant commodore, who carried a flag twice as large as any of the rest. At sunset it fell calm, and the tide having turned, we all anchored together, no one of the junks being above a cable’s length, or two hundred yards from the brig. As soon as the sails were furled, the commodore manned his barge, and came himself to pay the Lyra a visit. ”

“ Hence, it may be seen, that the mere possession of an African, claiming him as a slave, by a Spanish ship, on the coast of Africa, would no more prove the African a slave, than the possession of a Spaniard, by an African ship on the coast of Spain, would prove the Spaniard a slave. The actual possessor must, therefore, show some other right than mere possession. The Spaniard alleges, that it has been the practice of the civilized and christian nations of Europe, to make slaves of the Africans for three centuries; and hence, that, by the law of nations, he has a right to make slaves of them. ”

“ There is not to be found in the maritime code of any nation, or in any commentary thereon, the least glimmering of authority that distinguishes, in cases of resistance, the fate of the cargo, from that of the ship. If such a distinction could have been sustained, it is almost incredible that not a single ray of light should have beamed upon it during the long lapse of ages, in which maritime warfare has engaged the world. ”

“ That the United States form, for many, and for most important purposes, a single nation, has not yet been denied. In war, we are one people. In making peace, we are one people. In all commercial regulations, we are one and the same people. In many other respects, the American people are one; and the government which is alone capable of controlling and managing their interests in all these respects, is the government of the Union. It is their government, and in that character they have no other. ”

“ It is true there had been wars of a revolutionary character, in the interior of Peru; but their desolating effect had not till now reached the capital, the inhabitants of which went on in their usual style of splendid luxury, in thoughtless ease and security, till the enemy came and knocked at the ‘silver gates of the city of the kings,’ as Lima was proudly called in the days of her magnificence. San Martin’s expedition took the Limenians quite by surprise; for they had always held Chili in contempt, as a mere appendage to Peru, from which no attack could be apprehended. ”

“ Thus, a law establishing federal Courts in a particular State, is a law of the United States; for though its immediate operation is upon one State, yet it is in execution of a power co-extensive with the United States; but if a law, though passed by Congress, be passed in execution of a municipal power, as a law to pave the streets of Washington, then it cannot, in any propriety of language, be called a law of the United States. It is an axiom in politics, that legislative power has no operation, beyond the territorial limits under its authority. ”

“ But it is on such occasions that the distinction between one officer and another comes into play: that the man who dreads and shuns responsibility, or whose shoulders are not broad enough to bear it when it happens to fall on them, is crushed beneath the weight; while the professional genius of another will sport with the difficulty, and, like Nelson, turn what to ordinary eyes seems irreparable disorder into the means of enhancing his country’s honor. ”

“ The suability of the States might have been dispensed with, and the constitution still be safe. But the judicial control of the Union over State encroachments and usurpations, was indispensable to the sovereignty of the constitution-to its integrity-to its very existence. Take it away, and the Union becomes again a loose and feeble confederacy-a government of false and foolish confidence-a delusion and a mockery! Why is it in cases, in which individuals are parties in a State Court, that the judgment may be revised in this Court? ”

“ The Court will maintain the powers of Congress as granted by the people, and for the purposes for which they were granted by the people; and will, if possible, to preserve harmony, prevent the clashing of federal and State powers. Let each operate within their respective spheres; and let each be confined to their assigned limits. We are all bound to support the constitution. How will that be best effected? Not by claiming and exercising unacknowledged power. The strength thus obtained will prove pernicious. The confidence of the people constitutes the real strength of this government. ”

“ America has chosen to be, in many respects, and to many purposes, a nation; and for all these purposes, her government is complete; to all these objects, it is competent. The people have declared, that in the exercise of all powers given for these objects, it is supreme. It can, then, in effecting these objects, legitimately control all individuals or governments within the American territory. The constitution and laws of a State, so far as they are repugnant to the constitution and laws of the United States, are absolutely void. ”