First，weagaincalltomindtherelevantpassageinVictoria’sproclamationofneutralityofMay13，1861。Thepassagereads:
　　"VictoriaR。"
　　WhereasweareatpeacewiththeUnitedStates……wedoherebystrictlycharge……allourlovingsubjects……toabstainfromcontravening……ourRoyalProclamation……bybreaking……anyblockadelawfully……established……orbycarryingofficers……dispatches……oranyarticleorarticlesconsideredcontrabandofwar……Allpersonssooffendingwillbeliable……totheseveralpenaltiesandpenalconsequencesbythesaidStatuteorbythelawofnationsinthatbehalfimposed……
　　And……personswhomaymisconductthemselves……willdosoattheirperil……and……will……incurourhighdispleasurebysuchmisconduct。
　　ThisproclamationofQueenVictoria，therefore，inthefirstplacedeclareddispatchestobecontrabandandmaketheshipthatcarriessuchcontrabandliabletothe"penaltiesofthelawofthenations"。Whatarethesepenalties？
　　Wheaton，anAmericanwriteroninternationallawwhoseauthorityisrecognisedonbothsidesoftheAtlanticOceanalike，saysinhisElementsofInternationalLaw，p。565
　　"Thefraudulentcarryingofdispatchesoftheenemywillalsosubjecttheneutralvesselinwhichtheyaretransportedtocaptureandconfiscation。Theconsequencesofsuchaserviceareindefinite，infinitelybeyondtheeffectofanycontrabandthatcanbeconveyed。’Thecarryingoftwoorthreecargoesofmilitarystores，’
　　saysSirW。Scott[thejudge]，’isnecessarilyanassistanceoflimitednature;butinthetransmissionofdispatchesmaybeconveyedtheentireplanofacampaign，thatmaydefeatalltheplansoftheotherbelligerent……
　　Theconfiscationofthenoxiousarticle，whichconstitutesthepenaltyforcontraband……wouldberidiculouswhenappliedtodispatches。Therewouldbenofreightdependentontheirtransportationandthereforethispenaltycouldnot，inthenatureofthings，beapplied。Thevehicle，inwhichtheyarecarried，must，therefore，beconfiscated……"
　　Walker，inhisIntroductiontoAmericanLaw，says:
　　"……neutralsmaynotbeconcernedinbearinghostiledispatches，underthepenaltyofconfiscationofthevehicle，andofthecargoalso。"
　　Kent，whoisaccountedadecisiveauthorityinBritishcourts，statesinhisCommentaries:
　　"If，onsearchofaship，itisfoundthatshecarriesenemydispatches，sheincursthepenaltyofcaptureandofconfiscationbyjudgmentofaprizecourt。"
　　Dr。RobertPhillimore，AdvocateofHerMajestyinHerOfficeofAdmiralty，saysinhislatestworkoninternationallaw，p。370:
　　"OfficialcommunicationsfromanofficialpersononthepublicaffairsofabelligerentGovernmentaresuchdispatchesasimpressanhostilecharacteruponthecarriersofthem。Themischievousconsequencesofsuchaservicecannotbeestimated，andextendfarbeyondtheeffectofanyContrabandthatcanbeconveyed，foritismanifestthatbythecarriageofsuchdispatchesthemostimportantoperationsofaBelligerentmaybeforwardedorobstructed……Thepenaltyisconfiscationoftheshipwhichconveysthedispatchesand……ofthecargo，ifbothbelongtothesamemaster。"
　　Twopointsarethereforeestablished。QueenVictoria’sproclamationofMay13，1861，subjectsEnglishshipsthatcarrydispatchesoftheConfederacytothepenaltiesofinternationallaw。Internationallaw，accordingtoitsEnglishandAmericancommentators，imposesthepenaltyofcaptureandconfiscationonsuchships。
　　Palmerston’sorgansconsequentlyliedonordersfromabove——
　　andwewerenaiveenoughtobelievetheirlie——inaffirmingthatthecaptainoftheSanJacintohadneglectedtoseekfordispatchesontheTrentandthereforehadofcoursefoundnone;andthattheTrenthadconsequentlybecomeshotproofthroughthisoversight。
　　TheAmericanjournalsofNovember17to20，whichcouldnotyethavebeenawareoftheEnglishlie，unanimouslystate，onthecontrary，thatthedispatcheshadbeenseizedandwerealreadyinprintforsubmissiontoCongressinWashington。Thischangesthewholestateofaffairs。
　　Becauseofthesedispatches，theSanJacintohadtherighttotaketheTrentintowandeveryAmericanprizecourthadthedutytoconfiscateherandhercargo。WiththeTrent，herpassengersalsonaturallycamewithinthepaleofAmericanjurisdiction。
　　Messrs。Mason，SlidellandCo。，assoonastheTrenthadtouchedatMonroe，cameunderAmericanjurisdictionasrebels。If，therefore，insteadoftowingtheTrentherselftoanAmericanport，thecaptainoftheSanJacintocontentedhimselfwithseizingthedispatchesandtheirbearers，heinnowayworsenedthepositionofMason，SlidellandCo。，whilst，ontheotherhand，hiserrorinprocedurebenefitedtheTrent，hercargoandherpassengers。AnditwouldbeindeedunprecedentedifBritainwishedtodeclarewarontheUnitedStatesbecauseCaptainWilkescommittedanerrorinprocedureharmfultotheUnitedStates，butprofitabletoBritain。
　　ThequestionwhetherMason，SlidellandCo。，werethemselvescontraband，wasonlyraisedandcouldonlyberaisedbecausethePalmerstonjournalshadbroadcasttheliethatCaptainWilkeshadneithersearchedfordispatches，norseizeddispatches。ForinthiscaseMason，SlidellandCo。infactconstitutedthesoleobjectsontheshipTrentthatcouldpossiblyfallunderthecategoryofcontraband。Letus，however，disregardthisaspectforthemoment。QueenVictoria’sproclamationdesignates"officers"ofabelligerentpartyascontraband。Are"officers"merelymilitaryofficers？WereMason，SlidellandCo。"officers"oftheConfederacy？"Officers，"saysSamuelJohnsoninhisdictionaryoftheEnglishlanguage，are"menemployedbythepublic"，thatis，inGerman:ÖffentlicheBeamte。Walkergivesthesamedefinition。
　　（Seehisdictionary，1861edition。）
　　AccordingtotheusageoftheEnglishlanguage，therefore，Mason，SlidellandCo。，theseemissaries，idest，officialsoftheConfederacy，comeunderthecategoryof"officers"，whomtheroyalproclamationdeclarestobecontraband。ThecaptainoftheTrentknewtheminthiscapacityandthereforerenderedhimself，hisshipandhispassengersconfiscable。
　　If，accordingtoPhillimoreandallotherauthorities，ashipbecomesconfiscableasthecarrierofanenemydispatchbecauseitviolatesneutrality，inastillhigherdegreeisthistrueofthepersonwhocarriesthedispatches。AccordingtoWheaton，evenanenemyambassador，solongasheisintransitu，maybeintercepted。Ingeneral，however，thebasisofallinternationallawisthatanymemberofthebelligerentpartymayberegardedandtreatedas"belligerent"bytheopposingparty。
　　"Solongasaman，"saysVattel，"continuestobeacitizenofhisowncountry，heisenemyofallthosewithwhomhisnationisatwar。"
　　Onesees，therefore，thatthelawofficersoftheEnglishCrownreducedthepointofcontentiontoamereerrorinprocedure，notanerrorinre，butanerrorinforma，because，actually，nomaterialviolationoflawistohand。ThePalmerstonorganschatteraboutthemateriallegalquestionagainbecauseamereerrorinprocedure，intheinterestoftheTrentatthat，givesnoplausiblepretextforahaughty—tonedultimatum。
　　Meanwhile，importantvoiceshavebeenraisedinthissensefromdiametricallyoppositesides:ontheoneside，Messrs。BrightandCobden;
　　ontheother，DavidUrquhart。Thesemenareenemiesongroundsofprincipleandpersonally:thefirsttwo，peaceablecosmopolitans;thethird，the"lastoftheEnglishmen";theformeralwaysreadytosacrificeallinternationallawtointernationaltrade;theotherhesitatingnotamoment:"FiatJustitia，pereatmundus"，andby"justice"heunderstands"English"justice。ThevoicesofBrightandCobdenareimportant，becausetheyrepresentapowerfulsectionofmiddle—classinterestsandarerepresentedintheministrybyGladstone，MilnerGibsonandalso，moreorless，bySirCornewallLewis。ThevoiceofUrquhartisimportantbecauseinternationallawishislife—studyandeveryonerecogniseshimasanincorruptibleinterpreterofthisinternationallaw。
　　TheusualnewspapersourceswillcommunicateBright’sspeechinsupportoftheUnitedStatesandCobden’sletter，whichisconceivedinthesamesense。ThereforeIwillnotdwellonthem。
　　Urquhart’sorgan，TheFreePress，statesinitslatestissue，publishedonDecember4:
　　"’WemustbombardNewYork！’SuchwerethefranticsoundswhichmettheearsofeveryonewhotraversedthestreetsofLondonontheeveningofthisdayweek，onthearrivaloftheintelligenceofatriflingwarlikeincident。TheactwasonewhichEnglandhascommittedasamatterofcourse[ineverywar]——namelytheseizureonboardofaneutralofthepersonsandpropertyofherenemies。"
　　TheFreePressfurtherarguesthat，in1856attheCongressofParis，Palmerston，withoutanyauthorityfromtheCrownorParliamentsacrificedEnglishmaritimelawintheinterestofRussia，andthensays:
　　"Inordertojustifythissacrifice，Palmerston’sorgansstatedatthattimethatifwemaintainedtherightofsearch，weshouldassuredlybeinvolvedinawarwiththeUnitedStatesontheoccasionofthefirstwarinEurope。AndnowhecallsonusthroughthesameorgansofpublicopiniontobombardNewYorkbecausetheUnitedStatesactonthoselawswhicharetheirsnolessthanourown。"
　　Withregardtotheutterancesofthe"organsofpublicopinion"，TheFreePressremarks:
　　"ThebrayofBaronMunchausen’sthawingposthornwasnothingtotheclangouroftheBritishpressonthecaptureofMessrs。MasonandSlidell。"
　　Thenhumorously，itplacessidebyside，in"strophe"and"antistrophe"，thecontradictionsbywhichtheEnglishpressseekstoconvicttheUnitedStatesofa"breachoflaw"。
　　LessonsoftheAmericanWarFrederickEngelsLessonsoftheAmericanWarWhen，afewweeksback，wedrewattentiontotheprocessofweedingwhichhadbecomenecessaryintheAmericanvolunteerarmy，wewerefarfromexhaustingthevaluablelessonsthiswariscontinuallygivingtothevolunteersonthissideoftheAtlantic。Wethereforebegleaveagaintoreverttothesubject。
　　ThekindofwarfarewhichisnowcarriedoninAmericaisreallywithoutprecedent。FromtheMissouritoChesapeakeBay，amillionofmen，nearlyequallydividedintotwohostilecamps，havenowbeenfacingeachotherforsomesixmonthswithoutcomingtoasinglegeneralaction。InMissouri，thetwoarmiesadvance，retire，givebattle，advance，andretireagaininturns，withoutanyvisibleresult;evennow，aftersevenmonthsofmarchingandcounter—marching，whichmusthavelaidthecountrywastetoaconsiderabledegree，thingsappearasfarfromanydecisionasever。InKentucky，afteralengthenedperiodofapparentneutrality，butrealpreparation，asimilarstateofthingsappearstobeimpending;inWesternVirginia，constantminoractionsoccurwithoutanyapparentresult;andonthePotomac，wherethegreatestmassesonbothsidesareconcentrated，almostwithinsightofeachother，neitherpartycarestoattack，provingthat，asmattersstand，evenavictorywouldbeofnouseatall。Andunlesscircumstancesforeigntothisstateofthingscauseagreatchange，thisbarrensystemofwarfaremaybecontinuedformonthstocome。
　　Howarewetoaccountforthis？
　　TheAmericanshave，oneitherside，almostnothingbutvolunteers。ThelittlenucleusoftheformerUnitedStates’regulararmyhaseitherdissolved，oritistooweaktoleaventheenormousmassofrawrecruitswhichhaveaccumulatedattheseatofwar。Toshapeallthesemenintosoldiers，therearenotevendrill—sergeantsenough。Teaching，consequently，mustgoonveryslow，andthereisreallynotellinghowlongitmaytakeuntilthefinematerialofmencollectedonbothshoresofthePotomacwillbefittobemovedaboutinlargemasses，andtogiveoracceptbattlewithitscombinedforces。
　　Butevenifthemencouldbetaughttheirdrillinsomereasonabletime，therearenotenoughofficerstoleadthem。Nottospeakofthecompanyofficers——whonecessarilycannotbetakenfromamongcivilians——therearenotenoughofficerstomakecommandersofbattalionsevenifeverylieutenantandensignoftheregularswereappointedtosuchapost。A
　　considerablenumberofciviliancolonelsarethereforeunavoidable;andnobodywhoknowsourownvolunteerswillthinkeitherMcClellanorBeauregardovertimidiftheydeclineenteringuponaggressiveactionorcomplicatedstrategicalmanoeuvreswithciviliancolonelsofsixmonths’standingtoexecutetheirorders。
　　Wewillsuppose，however，thatthisdifficultywas，uponthewhole，overcome;thattheciviliancolonels，withtheiruniforms，hadalsoacquiredtheknowledge，experience，andtactrequiredintheperformanceoftheirduties——atleast，asfarastheinfantryisconcerned。Buthowwillitbeforthecavalry？Totrainaregimentofcavalry，requiresmoretime，andmoreexperienceinthetrainingofficers，thantogetaregimentofinfantryintoshape。Supposethemenjointheircorps，allofthem，withasufficientknowledgeofhorsemanship——thatistosay，theycanstickontheirhorses，havecommandoverthem，andknowhowtogroomandfeedthem——thiswillscarcelyshortenthetimerequiredfortraining。Militaryriding，thatcontroloveryourhorsebywhichyoumakehimgothroughallthemovementsnecessaryincavalryevolutions，isaverydifferentthingfromtheridingcommonlypractisedbycivilians。Napoleon’scavalry，whichSirWilliamNapier（HistoryofthePeninsularWar）consideredalmostbetterthantheEnglishcavalryofthetime，notoriouslyconsistedoftheveryworstridersthatevergracedasaddle;andmanyofourbestcross—countryridersfound，onenteringmountedvolunteercorps，thattheyhadadealtolearnyet。Weneednotbeastonished，then，tofindthattheAmericansareverydeficientincavalry，andthatwhatlittletheyhaveconsistsofakindofCossacksorIndianirregulars（rangers），unfitforachargeinabody。
　　Forartillery，theymustbeworseoffstill;andequallysoforengineers。
　　Boththesearehighlyscientificarms，andrequirealongandcarefultraininginbothofficersandnon—commissionedofficers，andcertainlymoretraininginthementoo，thaninfantrydoes。Artillery，moreover，isamorecomplicatedarmthanevencavalry;yourequireguns，horsesbrokeninforthiskindofdriving，andtwoclassesoftrainedmen——gunnersanddrivers;yourequire，besides，numerousammunition—waggons，andlargelaboratoriesfortheammunition，forges，workshops，&c。;thewholeprovidedwithcomplicatedmachinery。TheFederalsarestatedtohave，altogether，600gunsinthefield;buthowthesemaybeserved，wecaneasilyimagine，knowingthatitisutterlyimpossibletoturnout100complete，well—appointed，andwell—servedbatteriesoutofnothinginsixmonths。
　　Butsuppose，again，thatallthesedifficultieshadbeenovercome，andthatthefightingportionofthetwohostilesectionsofAmericanswasinfairconditionfortheirwork，couldtheymoveeventhen？Certainlynot。Anarmymustbefed;andalargearmyinacomparativelythinly—populatedcountrysuchasVirginia，Kentucky，andMissouri，mustbechieflyfedfrommagazines。Itssupplyofammunitionhastobereplenished;itmustbefollowedbygunsmiths，saddlers，joiners，andotherartisans，tokeepitsfightingtackleingoodorder。AlltheserequisitesshonebytheirabsenceinAmerica;
　　theyhadtobeorganisedoutofalmostnothing;andwehavenoevidencewhatevertoshowthatevennowthecommissariatandtransportofeitherarmyhasemergedfrombabyhood。
　　America，bothNorthandSouth，FederalandConfederate，hadnomilitaryorganisation，sotospeak。Thearmyofthelinewastotallyinadequate，byitsnumbers，forserviceagainstanyrespectableenemy;themilitiawasalmostnon—existent。TheformerwarsoftheUnionneverputthemilitarystrengthofthecountryonitsmettle;England，between1812and1814，hadnotmanymentospare，andMexicodefendedherselfchieflybythemerestrabble。Thefactis，fromhergeographicalposition，Americahadnoenemieswhocouldanywhereattackherwithmorethan30，000or40，000regularsattheveryworst;andtosuchnumberstheimmenseextentofthecountrywouldsoonproveamoreformidableobstaclethananytroopsAmericacouldbringagainstthem;whileherarmywassufficienttoformanucleusforsome100，000volunteers，andtotraintheminreasonabletime。Butwhenacivilwarcalledforthmorethanamillionoffightingmen，thewholesystembrokedown，andeverythinghadtobebegunatthebeginning。Theresultsarebeforeus。Twoimmense，unwieldybodiesofmen，eachafraidoftheother，andalmostasafraidofvictoryasofdefeat，arefacingeachother，trying，atanimmensecost，tosettledownintosomethinglikearegularorganisation。Thewasteofmoney，frightfulasitis，isquiteunavoidable，fromthetotalabsenceofthatorganisedgroundworkuponwhichthestructurecouldhavebeenbuilt。Withignoranceandinexperiencerulingsupremeineverydepartment，howcoulditbeotherwise？Ontheotherhand，thereturnfortheoutlay，inefficiencyandorganisation，isextremelypoor;andcouldthatbeotherwise？
　　TheBritishvolunteersmaythanktheirstarsthattheyfound，onstarting，anumerous，well—disciplined，andexperiencedarmytotakethemunderitswings。Allowingfortheprejudicesinherenttoalltrades，thatarmyhasreceivedandtreatedthemwell。Itistobehopedthatneitherthevolunteersnorthepublicwilleverthinkthatthenewservicecaneversupersede，inanydegree，theoldone。Ifthereareanysuch，aglanceatthestateofthetwoAmericanvolunteerarmiesoughttoprovetothemtheirownignoranceandfolly。Noarmynewlyformedoutofcivilianscaneversubsistinanefficientstateunlessitistrainedandsupportedbytheimmenseintellectualandmaterialresourceswhicharedepositedatthehandsofaproportionatelystrongregulararmy，andprincipallybythatorganisationwhichformsthechiefstrengthoftheregulars。SupposeaninvasiontothreatenEngland，andcomparewhatwouldbethendonewithwhatisunavoidablydoneinAmerica。