ort of his army and toward defraying all the
charges of the war. Thus he obtains a part of what is due to him, and
the enemy's subjects, by consenting to pay the sum demanded, have their
property secured from pillage and the country is preserved.

These principles, it is believed, are uncontroverted by any civilized
nation in modern times. The public law of nations, by which they are
recognized, has been held by our highest judicial tribunal as a code
which is applicable to our "situation" in a state of war and binding on
the United States, while in admiralty and maritime cases it is often the
governing rule. It is in a just war that a nation has the "right to make
the enemy's country contribute to the support of his army." Not doubting
that our late war with Mexico was just on the part of the United States,
I did not hesitate when charged by the Constitution with its prosecution
to exercise a power common to all other nations, and Congress was duly
informed of the mode and extent to which that power had been and would
be exercised at the commencement of their first session thereafter.

Upon the declaration of war against Mexico by Congress the United States
were entitled to all the rights which any other nation at war would have
possessed. These rights could only be demanded and enforced by the
President, whose duty it was, as "Commander in Chief of the Army and
Navy of the United States," to execute the law of Congress which
declared the war. In the act declaring war Congress provided for raising
men and money to enable the President "to prosecute it to a speedy and
successful termination." Congress prescribed no mode of conducting it,
but left the President to prosecute it according to the laws of nations
as his guide. Indeed, it would have been impracticable for Congress to
have provided for all the details of a campaign.

The mode of levying contributions must necessarily be left to the
discretion of the conqueror, subject to be exercised, however, in
conformity with the laws of nations. It may be exercised by requiring
a given sum or a given amount of provisions to be furnished by the
authorities of a captured city or province; it may be exercised by
imposing an internal tax or a tax on the enemy's commerce, whereby he
may be deprived of his revenues, and these may be appropriated to the
use of the conqueror. The latter mode was adopted by the collection of
duties in the ports of Mexico in our military oc