John Marshall

“ We think, that the Legislature has inflicted forfeiture for the failure to make out, subscribe, and deliver a manifest, on those vessels only which are directed to perform those acts; that is, only on vessels of the burthen of forty tons or more.
The question, then, recurs, is the omission, to charge that the brig Mary Ann was a vessel of the burthen of forty tons or more, fatal to this libel?
It is, in general, true, that it is sufficient for a libel to charge the offence in the very words which direct the forfeiture; but this proposition is not, we think, universally true. ”

“ Whether a libel, charging, generally, that manifests have not been made out and delivered, as required by the act of Congress, would be considered as sufficiently disproved by producing a manifest, not strictly conformable to law, is a question which belongs certainly to the merits of the cause, and which would deserve consideration on the inquiry, how far the defectiveness of the manifest was put in issue by such a libel. ”

“ It is probable that the District Attorney might be uncertain whether the brig sailed from the port of Perth Amboy or of New-York; but this circumstance ought to produce no difficulty, since the offence might have been laid singly in each port, and charged expressly, in separate counts. ”