LAW. 
provinces and countries conquered.by his arms'; he ap¬ 
propriates to hiipfelf the national domains, and all the 
property belonging to the difpaflefled fovereign,-tfnd par¬ 
ticularly all the fort relies,, (hips of war, arms, and imple¬ 
ments of war. The reft oi : the moveable property taken 
from the vanquished is commonly giv.en tip as booty to 
the army, or the corps employed on the expedition: this 
diftribution depends entirelyon the military code of each 
refpechve ftate, and does not belong to the law of nations. 
With reflect to the immoveable property of the enemy’s 
fubjcits, and the moveable property of thofe who have 
not taken up arms in the war, though the conqueror has 
a right, in ftriitnefs, to appropriate the whole of it to 
himfelf, yet, according tb the praftice of modern times, 
it is left to the proprietors, and a contribution is exafted 
in its Head. This contribution once paid, whether in 
money', produce, or fervice, the invaders ought to pay for 
all they afterwards receive from the conquered lubjects, 
except it be for fuch fervices a9 every fovereign has a right 
•to require from his own fubjecls. Extraordinary cales, 
where places are given up to pillage, which is fometimes 
done to punifh thofe who are found in them for not yielding 
in time, or for having ailed contrary to the laws of war ; 
-tand fometimes by way of retaliation; form exceptions in 
the above-mentioned practice. 
In maritime wars, the private property of enemy’s fub- 
ie'ets is never fpared. In order to encourage privateering, 
thofe concerned in it are allowed to hold all the merchant- 
veflels and merchandife they take from the enemy or his 
fubjefts, without any referve whatever with refpeft to the 
redemption of them by the proprietor. 
War fufpends all the laws of property between the bel¬ 
ligerents, but not between them and neutral powers; fo 
•that, although an enemy may feize on the property of an 
enemy, and difpofe of it with all its appurtenances, ft ill 
the right of the original proprietor does not ceafe, as long 
as he has not exprefsly or impliedly renounced it, or as 
long as he lias not given it up as loft. He has, therefore, 
■not only a right to recapture it from the enemy, but alfo 
to claim it from a third poffeffor. This right is alfo ac¬ 
knowledged with refpeft to all territorial conquefts. 
In refpeft of moveable property, it is a generally-re¬ 
ceived rule, that when property lawfully captured has 
been twenty-four hours in the hands of the captors; or, 
if captured at fea, has been conducted into the middle of 
a fleet, or into a free port; the right of the original pro¬ 
prietor ceales, and a third party may lawfully make an 
acquifition of it. In fuch cafes, it is prefumed that the 
original proprietor confiders his property as loft, or has 
given up all intention of recapturing it. 
As to the right of pojlliminium, it is to be obferved, that, 
when a power fucceeds in reconquering a country, or re¬ 
capturing a veflel, itlhould feem, from the rigour of the 
law of nations, that the reconquered territory, or veflel, 
as well as all property, of whatever defeription, found 
therein, ought to return to the original proprietors. This 
principle is ftriclly adhered to, with refpeft to national 
and immoveable property; for, i. The national domains 
return to the fovereign along with the fovereignty; and 
the fovereign ought, of courfe, to re-eftablifli the confti- 
.-tution exifting previous to the conqueft. 2. Such im¬ 
moveable property belonging to the fubjefts as has been 
ierzed on by the enemy, returns by virtue of the right of 
■pojlliminium to the original proprietors; but, as to moveable 
property taken in a land-war, the right of pojlliminium ceafes 
v. hen the booty has been twenty-four hours in the hands of 
the captors; and, on the contrary, the right of pojlliminium 
operates when the booty is retaken in lefs than tvventy- 
fourhours. In maritime war, 1. If the recapture be made 
by veflels of the ftate, the recaptured v.eflels and mer¬ 
chandife return to the original proprietors, after a certain 
proportionate deduction to defray the expences of the re¬ 
capture. 2. If the recapture be made by a privateer, 
neither the veflel nor merchandife returns to the original 
proprietor, except, 1. when the recapture is made within 
twenty-four hours, and even then only upon condition 
that the proprietors give up a third for the expenfes of 
recapturing ; 2. when the capture has been made by pi¬ 
ratesor, 3. when it has been made againft- the laws of 
wars in general, as, for inftance, on a neutral fea. But 
the exceptions do not hold good in the two laft cales, un- 
lefs the recapture is made from the firft captors. 
Safeguards are fometimes granted by the commander-in-' 
chief, for the purpofe of protefting, from the ravages of 
the invader’s troops, certain villages, eftates, or other de¬ 
tached pofleflions, as villas, farmland the like, belonging 
to the fubjeits of the enemy or of neutral powers. Thele 
fafeguards are granted at the requeft of the proprietors ; 
conlequently, they ought to be provifioned and paid by 
them; and, in cafe of a counter-invafion, by which the 
firft invaders are driven from the country, the inviolabi¬ 
lity of the fafeguards ought ever to be refpefted by the 
victor; who ought befides to fend them in fafety to the 
commander wdio has condelcended to grant them. 
Sometimes the invader grants letters of protection, or 
other tokens, certifying that fuch or fuch places are un¬ 
der his fafeguard. 
In battles , the laws of war ought to be adhered to with 
the utmoft llrictnefs, as well with regard to the arms made 
ufe of, as to the treatment of the vanquilhed. 
The conqueror, or he who remains matter of the field 
of battle, ought to take care of the wounded, and bury 
the dead ; and it is againft every principle of the laws of 
war, to refufe or negledt to do either. But, as it is fome- 
times'a queflion, who is mailer of the field; in fuch a 
cafe, a truce is generally agreed on for fome days, during 
which both tides bring in their own wounded, and bury 
their own dead. 
The taking of a fortrefs, or fortified town, is effefted by 
furprije, by a blockade , or by a fiege: in the two laft cafes 
the place either furrenders by capitulation, or is taken by 
aflault, after being fummoned in vain ; and, according to 
laws of war, this tummons ought to precede the aflault; 
and, indeed, it is repeated feveral times, before the aflault 
is determined on. All the means necefihry to the reduc¬ 
tion of a fortrefs are juftified by the laws of war; confe* 
quently there are cafes, which may authorife the demoli¬ 
tion or burning of the fuburbs ; but, except in cafes of ne- 
ceflity, it is now admitted that the befiegers ought to di¬ 
rect their artillery againft the fortifications only, and not 
intentionally againft the public edifices. There are fome 
cafes however which will juftify the belieger in threaten¬ 
ing to burn the public edifices; for inftance, to deter the 
belieged from making fignals from the.towers or iteeples, 
by the tolling of bells or the like. 
If a fortrefs or fortified town furrenders by capitulation ; 
on that capitulation depends the ltate of the garrifon, 
arms, and warlike ftores, and of the inhabitants and their 
property. The terms of a capitulation depend entirely 
upon circumftances; but, if the place, after being duly 
fummoned, refufes to furrender, and is taken by aflault, 
thofe found in it are obliged to fubmit to the diferetion 
of the vidtor : all the garrifon Can expeft is, to have 
their lives fpared, if they immediately lay down their 
arms. In this cafe it is not lawful to take the life of the 
governor nor of the garrifon ; and no menaces of this fort 
ought to be ufed in the fummons ; for their lives can only 
be juttifiably taken, when the defence has been conducted 
againft the rules of war. And it is cuftomary for the 
victor on fuch occafions to forbid pillage. 
Conventions are often entered into between belligerent 
powers, either at the beginning or in the courfe of the war, 
for general purpoles. By tliefe general conventions they 
may engage not to make ufe of particular arms, or certain 
means of injuring each other; or fettle the conditions and 
manner to be oblerved in the exchange or redemption of 
prifoners of war; or make arrangements relative to pafl- 
p'orts, fafe-condufts, flags of truce, contributions, and 
the like. The courfe of a war, of any extent, mull ever 
furnilh ogonfions for tittering into particular conventions. 
Suck 
