also its formulation of the law of maritime contracts, have been borrowed almost literally and passed into law by the Ordonnance de la Marine of 1681. The principles of maritime contracts as laid down in the Guidon form the bases of the present commercial code of France. * IX. The Ordonnance de la Marine of 1681, is the French Code of Maritime Law, promulgated by order of Louis XIV. This code embodies not only all the maritime laws and regulations of France, enacted since the reign of Charles VI. in 1400, but also the maritime customs contained in the Consolato del Mare and Guidon de la Mer, forming thus a systematic compilation of principles and rules relative to maritime prizes and other matters regarding the right of neutrals at sea. With regard to neutral navigation, however, the Ordonnance did not follow the liberal principles of the Consolato del Mare. On this head the Ordonnance enacted the following rule, in Art. 7. "Tous navires qui se trouveront chargés d'effets appartenont a nos ennemis, et les merchandises de nos sujets ou allies qui se trouveront dans un navire ennemi, seront pareillement de bonne prise.” This rule revived the ancient principle of the Ordinances of François I. of the year 1533 and 1543 and of Henry III. of 1584, contained in the formula "enemy's ship, enemy's goods" and in the rule of Roman Law, "la robe d'ennemi confisque celle d'ami." By this rule, which makes not only neutral goods carried in enemy's ship liable to confiscation, but also neutral vessels when laden with enemy's goods, the commerce of neutrals is limited to the carrying of their own goods by their own vessels. * WHEATON. Histoire du Droit des Gens etc. Edit. 1853. Vol. I page 83. This rule was, however, not applied to the vessels or goods of any Nation excepting those with which France had no treaty on this subject. The treaties concluded between France and other Nations generally adopted the two rules "free ship, free goods" and "enemy's ship confiscable goods," which rules were, after the peace of Utrecht (1713), generally accepted by nearly all of the Maritime Powers. This Code, which was afterwards supplemented by the Ordinance of 21st of October 1744, with regard to a distinction to be made, in neutral trade, between trade carried on with an enemy's port and the trade between neutral ports, obtained great respect as an authority for prize-courts and it was generally viewed as authoritative in the tribunals of most maritime States of Europe and especially in England. * The foregoing codes, compilations and ordinances on matters of Maritime Law form the basis of most of the commercial codes and navigation acts of the present century in Europe and America. † * WHEATON. Histoire du Droit des Gens etc. Edit. 1853. Vol. I. pp. 149-153. CALVO. Le Droit International. Edit 1870. Vol. I. p. 32. † A complete treatise of the old Maritime Laws is to be found in the work of J. A. Engelbrecht, under the title, Corpus Juris Nautici, oder Sammlung aller Seerechte der bekanntesten handelnden Nationen alter und neuer Zeiten, nebst den Assecuranz, Havarey, und anderen zu den Seerechten gehörenden Ordnungen. Zusammengetragen und zum Theil ins Deutsche übersetzt. Lübeck, 1790. The table of contents is as follows: I. Rhodian Maritime Law. II. Collection of Maritime Rules of the Roman Law. VI. Maritime Law of Wisby. V. Maritime Law of the German Free Towns (Deutsche Freie VI. The Hanseatic Maritime Law, VII. The Navigation Laws of King Peter of Arragon, Regulations of Barcelona and Florence. VIII. The old Maritime Law of Riga, VOL. I. PREFATORY NOTE. Part I. GENERAL PRINCIPLES. CHAPTER I. ORIGIN OF LAW. §1. The Universal Law of Nature. The Spirit of Creation or Universal Cause. Hypotheses in general. The forces of Nature. Hypothetical Demonstration of the Universal Law of Nature in its course of Evolution. Stages of Creation. The Physico-mental Organism and the Moral-mental Organism of Man. Matter. Struggle between the Moral and the Material Elements. Martyrdom. Materialism. Origin of Species. The Links of Evolution. Impossibility of Demonstrating the Primary Motor of Evolution. Intellect. Hypothesis regarding Intuition. Feeling. Feeling versus Imagination. The Soul. The Moral Law of Nature is the Origin of Law (Jus, Droit, Recht). CHAPTER II. DEVELOPMENT OF THE MORAL LAW AND CIVILIZATION. §2. Primary Truths. The Good. The Moral Senses, viz.: Conscience and Sympathy. Righteousness. The Standard of the Good. §3. Origin of Evil and its control. Religion. Moral Doubt. Manifestation of the Soul. Christianity. The Creator. The "Occasions of Stumbling." § 4. Influence of the Moral Law of Nature on the general welfare and the material development of Society. §5. Moral and Physical Truths. The "Law of the Conditioned." §6. Conscience. §7. The Law of Conscience. §8. Craving after Rules for International Conduct. §9. Cause of that Craving. Grotius. §10. The Popular Conscience. § 11. The National Spirit of Law. 12. Common Sense. §13. The Empirical School. § 14. The International Spirit of Law. § 15. The Philosophy of Law and the Historical School. Pages. 3-18 19-53 |