"I have talked with Sir George Lee who has examined the books of the court of admiralty and he informs me that they hold the property not changed, so as to bar the owner in favor of a vendee or recaptor till there had been a sentence of condemnation, and that in the reign of Charles II, Sir Richard Floyd gave a solemn judgment upon the property and decided restitution of a ship retaken by a privateer after she had been fourteen weeks in the enemies possession because she had not been condemned."[5] And again "That no property vest in any goods taken at sea or on land by a ship or her crew, till a sentence of condemnation as good and lawful prize."[6] These cases referred to vessels owned by subjects rather than allies as they occurred before the law granting especial restitution to citizens had been passed but they serve to make it clear that English law regards the title of the enemy captor complete and the title of the original owner destroyed after legal condemnation in the enemy prize court and not before. Vessels originally belonging to allies after such condemnation will be considered good prize and the ally has no claim. There is no question of salvage, instead the captor receives his share of prize money. Recaptures before the enemy title is complete revert to the ally on payment of salvage but if instances can be given of British property retaken by them and condemned as prize, the court of admiralty will determine the case according to their own rule.[7] Thus the recaptor may receive no reward at all, may be entitled to salvage or may be entitled to prize money. The first case occurs when a neutral vessel is recaptured from a recognized belligerent. The second occurs when the recapture is made from a pirate, when the original owner is a British subject, or when the original owner is an ally and the vessel has not been condemned by the enemy's prize court. The third case occurs when the vessel originally belonged to an ally but has been legally condemned by the enemy prize court and in any case of an ally's vessel where that country refuses to return British vessels. To be entitled to salvage the recaptor must make an actual military recapture. Constructive recaptures such as occupation of a vessel abandoned by the enemy do not entitle to military salvage.[8] As already stated where salvage is allowed it consists of one-eighth of the value of the vessel and cargo recaptured or in cases of exceptional difficulty one-fourth to be governed by the discretion of the court.[9] Salvage is apportioned among the officers and crew in the same manner as prize money. _NOTES._ Chapter V, Part 4. [1] The War Onsken, 2 C. Rob. 299, quoted in Atherley-Jones, op. cit. p. 601. [2] 27 and 28 Vict., c 25, s 40, L'Actif, Edw. Adm. Rep. 184, quoted in Atherley-Jones, op. cit. p. 608. [3] The Ceylon, 1 Dod. Adm. Rep. 105, quoted in Atherley-Jones, op. cit. p. 607.