But--and now I refer to the note to this section, which says--"ignorance of the law of foreign countries is, with the exception noticed in the text, ignorance of fact which persons are not held to know." The author cites the following authorities: Story's Equity Jurisprudence, sections 110, 23; American Jurisprudence, sections 146 and 347; to which I would add 8 Barbour's Supreme Court Reports, 838 and 839, and the case of Rex _versus_ Lynn, 2d Term Report, 233. Now, I contend that, as this law under which the indictment is drawn is a law creating municipal piracy, so it is a law foreign to these foreigners; that, therefore, as to them, it is a matter of fact, and, according to the criminal theory, _ignorantia facti excusat_, these foreigners cannot be found guilty under this law. Municipal piracy, to carry out the doctrine of this theory, is not _malum in se_; for, as I said before, international law does not acknowledge it as such, but is opposed to it as to foreigners; and if I understand well the decision of the Supreme Court, it is even acknowledged, in the case of the United States _versus_ Palmer, 3d Wheaton, 610, that the Congress of the United States cannot make that piracy which is not piracy by the law of nations, in order to give jurisdiction to its Courts over such offences. Besides, this knowledge of facts enters a good deal into the theory of intent. So much has been said about the piratical intent, that I can pass this by in silence. But, with reference to the theory that foreigners are to be taken as ignorant of facts, I will give an illustration that was suggested to me this morning by an incident which occurred on my way to the Court. A little boy in the street handed to me a card of advertisement which had all the appearance of a bank note. Now, I remembered at the moment that about three years ago the Legislature of South Carolina passed a law making the issuing and publication of such advertisements--such business cards--an offence, punishable, if I am not mistaken, both by fine and imprisonment. Now suppose that the great American showman at the corner of Ann and Broadway should carry his "What is it" or Hippopotamus down to Charleston, and issue such an advertisement, and he should be brought before the Court of South Carolina; would it not be unjust, as the offence is not _malum in se_, to find him guilty? Certainly it would be; and, according to the same theory, I cannot imagine, by any possible process of reasoning, that these prisoners should be deemed guilty under an indictment, when the law was entirely foreign to them. They may justly say, as they might have known, and did perhaps know, that our country, too, holds to this simple doctrine: "Let us have fair play." So when certain provinces rose up in revolt against the parent or original Government, to conquer, as it were, their independence, this country maintained a state of neutrality, and granted to both parties belligerent rights.