138 



MERCANTILE LAW 



MERCHANT 



more noteworthy are L'Apotrtui iTKi-rnlf. (1819), 



1Mb), Elitti e L'liiii'/i" ( 1821 ), //.. 



'i (lS2t$l. / liriijtniti '( IH30), II Iliuiiiini-iilo 



llM.'i. and /.a I..'../. U*42). From 1827 to 



|s:l| he was in S|Miin ; in IS.T1 he wius ap|.inted 



musical director in the cathedral at Novara, and 



in I-UO c.f the conservatory of music tit Naples. 



He died in that city, 17th Decumlier 1870 blind 



ince iv.i 



Mercantile Law. the branch of municipal law 

 which is similar, and in many respect- identical, 

 in nil the trailing countries of the world. An 

 understanding was earliest established in the 

 department of maritime law, the history of which 

 l>"^ins with such codes as the Cunnulato del .'/"/, 

 published at Barcelona in 14!I4. ii.nd includes such a 

 series of regulations as the English Merchant Ship 

 ping Acts (1854 to 18881, which consolidate and 

 amend the law as to seamen and their contracts 

 with employers, desertion, provisions, unseaworthy 

 ships, pilotage, signals, deck cargoes, the load-line, 

 lift* saving apparatus, \-e. Mercantile and mari- 

 time law is dealt with in this work under a large 

 number of heads, as 



Apnn-ntiw- Dbt. Master and Servant. 



Bankruptcy. Employer*' Liability. Partnership. 



1)111. Insurance. I'liins..!!. 



Company. International Law. Weighta and Meaaurea. 



Mercantile System, that system in political 

 economy which regards it as a government's chief 

 end to secure a favourable balance of trade to get 

 the country to ini|Nrt as little as possible of the 

 produce of other countries, and export as much as 

 possible of its own. so that more money is received 

 than is paid away. The polic\ of the Emperor 

 Charles V. was regulated bv this aim, as was that of 

 Henry VIM. anil ljueen Elizabeth : and the Xavi- 

 gation Laws 1 i|.v.) of Cromwell founded the English 

 empire of the seas. Colbert (q.v. ) was regarded as 

 the most systematic mercantilist. Among English 

 exponents of the sxsiein were Sir .losiah Child ami 

 Sir William Temple. See BALANCE OK TRADE, 

 I'ouric vi. ECONOMY. 



Mereator (the Latinised form of Kltr.MKR), a 

 Flemish mathematician and geographer of German 

 extraction, 1512-92. See MAP. 



Mercedes, in Argentina, ( 1 ) a city 61 miles by 

 rail W. of Buenos Ayres, with a free library and 

 hospital, so.i]i t'.ictoiie- am! steam mills, ami 8000 

 inhabitants (many Iii-hi; and (2) a town 55 miles 

 by tail ESI', of San Luis city, with 6000 inhabit- 

 ants. (3 i .Mercedes i- al-o the name of the capital 

 (4000) of Soriano province, in I'luguay. 



Mercenaries, or STIPKNIIIAUIKS, men who re- 



d pay f>ir their services as soldiers, especially 

 a* distinguished from the feudal and general levies 

 owing military service to the crown. Such men 

 were often foreigners, ami the name has come to 

 mean only foreign auxiliaries. Hiied professional 

 soldier, appear very early in the history of military 

 organisation (see Al(MV). Foreign ' mercenaries 

 ai>|n>ar in the armies of Alexander the <!reat ami 

 the Unman-. They were common in all armies, 

 but generally engaged for a single campaign only. 

 In England, Haiold had a body of Danes in his 

 army when he defeated the Norwegian king 

 th" Aamirl*. a body originally established by 

 Cannt*. William III. bail for mime time a liodv 

 of I hitch troo|n in his pay after he became king iif 

 England ; and throughout the IHth century Hessian 

 and Hanoverian regiments were constantly in the 

 pay of the British gnn-rniiient for tem|Mirary pnr- 

 pom. HeMians fought for great Britain in the first 

 American war; and the Landgrave of Hesse, who 

 wild hi troop at so much ahead, received upwards 

 of half a million for soldiers lost in that campaign. 



During the Iii-h reln-llion, again, in 1708, many 

 Hessian troops were employed. 



Un the outbreak of the continental war in 1793 

 it was determined to increase the Uritish army by 

 the addition of a large Innly of foreigners ; and 

 accordingly in 17U4 an act u:.s passed for the em- 

 budiment of the 'Kings (leinian Legion,' eoiisi-t- 

 ing of 15,000 men. These triMips, w h were in- 

 ei eased ill the eoiti-se of the \\ai to nearly double 

 that numlier, distinguished themselves in \arioiis 

 engagements, ami formed some of the most reliable 

 regiments. It was common during tin' Peninsular 

 war to enlist deserters and prisoners of war into 

 the lirilish army, but such recruits were not reli- 

 able when opposed to their fellow countrymen. 

 Corps of French tmigrts, as the Chasseurs Hiitan- 

 niques, which served through the 1'eninsular ar 

 and in America, the York Chasseurs, in which 

 some Turks were enrolled when at Malta, mid 

 others, were also org-iniscd. The whole of the 

 foreign legions were dislmndeil in 1815, the officers 

 lieing placed on half-pay. 



liming the linssian war in 18,">4 the Hiitish 

 government again had recourse to the enlistment 

 of foreigners. Tin? numU-is authorised were 

 10,000 Hermans, 5000 Swiss, and 5000 Italians, 

 with the same pay as British troops. Al.ont half 

 were enrolled, and had liecome \ ery ellicient. when 

 liostilitirs eeased, and they were disbanded at a 

 great cost for gratuities, \c. Foreigners may 

 enlist into the British army, hut the Army Act of 

 1881 provides that the proportion of aliens in any 

 eoips at one time shall not exceed one to eveiy 

 lifty British subjects, except in the case of negroes 

 and pel-sons of colour, and that no alien shall In; 

 eligible U> hold a commission as an oflicer. British- 

 born soldiers have often sei \ ed abroad. There was 

 a famous Scots (inards (<|.v.i in France front tin 

 days of Charles VI. down to 17 ">'.(; many Scotsmen 

 fought for Cnst.'ivus Adolphus ; and Kngli>litm-n 

 Scotsmen, and Irishmen, singly and in hcxlies, havt' 

 served during troublous times in most Europeai. 

 countries ; see ColMKiN I I'.MiarK i. KKITII, HollAKl 

 1'ASIIA. A British legion VMS raised in lH:i b\ 

 Sir lie Lacy Kvans to support the queen of Spain 

 against the Carlists (see EVAN-O. 



The Swios auxiliaries iiKed to form a regular con- 

 tingent in many of the armies of Europe, esperially 

 of France and Italy. < Her 1, 000,000 served in Fiance 

 from the time of Louis XI. to that of Louis XIV. 

 ( UfkVITlfi). The Swiss usually served only on 

 condition of living commanded by their own otln 

 and occasionally these ollicers obtained distinction 

 ami fame. But the privates returned home poor 

 and often demoralised ; ami the cantons which 

 supplied most mercenaries snllered severely by 

 their absence. After the' French liexolutioli the 

 cantons ceased publicly to hire out their subjects : 

 ami after ls:to most of the cantons forbade 



enlistment. In 1H.V.1 the Confederacy passed a 

 se\ ere law against lecinitment for sen ice abroad. 

 There is still, however, a large contingent of Swi>s 

 mercenaries in the Dutch East Indian Colonies. 

 The I'anal Swiss troops have shrunk to a liody- 

 guard of about 100 men. See CU.NDOTTIERI, FKKK- 

 i \NCES. 



Mercliandise Marks. See TRADE MARKS. 



Merchant Taylors' School. This great 

 London day-school, with . r .(K) boys in 1890, was 

 founded, and is still governed, solely by the master, 

 wardens, and company of Merchant Taylors. The 

 first school house was built in 1531 in Suffolk Lane. 

 This building was destroyed in the great lire of 

 1666, but it was in 1(!7I 74 rebuilt on the same 

 site. When the Charterhouse School was removed 

 into the country, the Merchant Taylors Imught 

 land from the governors of the Charterhouse for 



