WRIGHT— POWER TO MEET RESPONSIBILITIES. 269 



Secretary Bayard, after noting that national law did not punish 

 "treason and sedition against foreign sovereigns," said:" 



" I may add, however, that if any persons in the State of Pennsylvania 

 take measures to perpetrate a crime in a foreign land, such an attempt, 

 coupled with preparations to effectuate it, though not cognizable in the federal 

 courts, is cognizable in the courts of the state of Pennsylvania." 



Other powers of enforcement, still exclusively in state hands, no- 

 tably that of protecting resident aliens, will l)e considered later. ^^ 



111. Enforcement under the National Constitution. 



The National Constitution confers certain independent powers 

 upon the executive and judicial branches for the enforcement of 

 international law and treaties, but these powers are insufficient. 

 The Constitution has, however, given Congress authority to provide 

 adequate means of enforcement, especially in the power " to define 

 and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high seas and 

 offenses against the law of nations " and in the power " to make all 

 laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execu- 

 tion the foregoing powers and all other powers vested by the Con- 

 stitution in the Government of the United States or in any depart- 

 ment or officer thereof," thus including the treaty power. ^- 



A. Enforcement by Legislative Action. 



112. Congressional Resolutions before the Constitution. 



Even before the adoption of the Constitution Congress realized 



the necessity for legislation to prevent violations of international 



law. It resolved on May 22, 1779, that the United States would 



cause the " law of nations to be most strictly observed," and on 



November 23, 1781, recommended that state legislatures provide for 



the punishment of offenses relating to violation of safe conducts, 



breaches of neutrality, assaults upon public ministers, infractions 



of treaties, and " the preceding being only those offenses against the 



law of nations which are most obvious, and public faith and safety 



requiring that punishment should be coextensive with all crimes, 



10 Moore, Digest, 2 : 432. 



^^ Supra, sec. 120. 



1- U. S. Constitution, art. i, sec. 8, cl. 10, 18. 



