by John Marshall

“ It is said that the party, in order to acquire the hostile character as to the produce of his estate, must incorporate himself with the interests of the enemy while the soil is in possession of the enemy. But the rule is not so. There is no difference whether he acquire the estate before or after it come into the possession of the enemy; if he continues to hold the estate, he becomes immediately incorporated with the nation jure belli.
But it is asked, is Great Britain to legislate for other nations? We say no. ”

“ The identification of the national character of the owner with that of the soil, in the particular transaction, is not placed on the dispositions with which he acquires the soil, or on his general character. The acquisition of land in Santa Cruz binds him, so far as respects that land, to the fate of Santa Cruz, whatever its destiny may be. While that island belonged to Denmark, the produce of the soil, while unsold, was, according to this rule, Danish property, whatever might be the general character of the particular proprietor. ”

“ It will not be advanced, in consequence of this former relation between the two countries, that any obvious misconstruction of public law made by the British Courts, will be considered as forming a rule for the American Courts, or that any recent rule of the British Courts is entitled to more respect than the recent rules of other countries. But a case professing to be decided on ancient principles will not be entirely disregarded, unless it be very unreasonable, or be founded on a construction rejected by other nations. ”

“ But if this Court should adopt the rule, we trust it will be with the strictest limitation.
PINKNEY, contra.
By the capture of Santa Cruz by the British, it immediately became the colony of an enemy. It is not necessary that the occupation should be perpetual; for the time it was indefinite, and during the occupation it was as much the colony of an enemy as any of his other possessions.
If, then, Santa Cruz was an enemy's colony, its produce, while it remained the property of the owner of the soil, was the property of an enemy. Sir W. Scott, in the case of the Phoenix, 5 Rob. 21, (Eng. Ed.) ”

“ Peace having immediately taken place, removed the cause of complain . And as to the late war with France, no case of the kind appears to have arisen. The edicts of France, &c. had a different bearing. ”