as treason, but these offenses are now regarded as homicide.

By the ancient common law it was left very much to discretion to determine what was treason, and the judges, holding office at the pleasure of the crown, raised many offenses to treason which could be deemed such only by arbitrary construction, such as killing the king's father or brother, or even his messenger, and other acts tending to diminish the royal dignity of the crown. The grievance of these constructive treasons led in the reign of Edward III to the enactment of a statute declaring and defining the different branches of treason. This statute is the basis of the law of The early statute, although it makes numerous acts treason which are not such in this country, contains words which are reproduced in the provision of the Constitution of the United States, and declares it high treason "if a man do levy war against our lord the king in his realm, or be adherent to the king's enemies in his realm, giving to them aid and comfort in the realm or elsewhere."

treason in England.

With us there can be no treason against the United States, except as the Constitution provides. To constitute. treason by levying war, there must be war against the United States; and, to constitute war, there must be an overt act of war. Conspiracy to levy war against the govern

7

4 Ante, p. 41.

5 25 Edw. III, St. 5, c. 2.

1 Hawk. P. C. (Curw. Ed.) p. 7, § 1; Story, Const. § 1799. See Steph. Dig. Cr. Law, arts. 51-59, and Append. note 5.

7 See Ex parte Bollman, 4 Cranch, 75, 126, 2 L. Ed. 554; U. S. v. Burr, 4 Cranch, 469, 2 L. Ed. 684, Fed. Cas. No. 14,692a; U. S. v. Hoxie, 1 Paine, 265, Fed. Cas. No. 15,407; U. S. v. Hanway, 2 Wall., Jr. 139, Fed. Cas. No. 15,299; U. S. v. Insurgents, 2 Dall. 335, Fed. Cas. No. 15,442; U. S. v. Mitchell, 2 Dall. 348, Fed. Cas. No. 15,788; Fries' Case, Whart. St. Tr. 610, 634, Fed. Cas. No. 5,127; U. S. v. Pryor, 3 Wash. C. C. 234, Fed. Cas. No. 16,096.

8

ment, without any overt act of war, would not amount to treason. The war must be directed against the government. War to effect private ends is not treason. Merely forcibly to resist the law, and fire at government troops endeavoring to enforce it, is not treason, where the resistance is purely for a private purpose. As said by Mr. Wharton, "the offense must be a levying war with the intent to overthrow the government as such, not merely to resist a particular statute or to repel a particular officer." To constitute treason by adhering to the enemies of the United States, the enemy must be a hostile foreign power, and not merely citizens of the United States engaged in a rebellion or insurrection against them, for they are still citizens, and not enemies, within the meaning of the Constitution. 10 Any voluntary assistance given to a foreign power engaged in war with the United States is treason.11 One who joins the enemies of his government from fear of immediate death or grievous bodily harm threatened in case of his refusal to yield is regarded as acting under compulsion, and is not guilty of treason; but a less danger, or danger to property only, will not excuse him. An alien owes a local allegiance to the sovereign in whose country he is temporarily sojourning, and may be guilty of treason against him, even by aiding his own sovereign.12 The punishment for treason is death, or imprisonment and fine, at the discretion of the

8 U. S. v. Hoxie, 1 Paine, 265, Fed. Cas. No. 15,407. 2 Whart. Cr. Law, § 1797.

10 3 Whart. Cr. Law (11th Ed.) § 2147.

11 "If war be actually levied-that is, if a body of men be actually assembled for the purpose of effecting by force a treasonable purpose all those who perform any part, however minute, or however remote from the scene of action, and who are actually leagued in the general conspiracy, are to be considered traitors." Marshall, C. J., in Ex parte Bollman, 4 Cranch, 75, 2 L. Ed. 554.

12 Where one was indicted for treason in adhering to the king's

court. For misprision of treason, the punishment is fine and imprisonment. It is expressly provided by the federal Constitution that "no person shall be convicted of treason unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open court." 13

There may also be treason against a state, a crime which is not necessarily also treason against the United States. Treason may be committed against a state by armed opposition to its laws, or by forcibly attempting to overthrow or usurp the government. Conversely, treason against the United States, unless expressly so declared, is not an offense against the laws of a particular state. It is a crime which is directed against the national government, and exclusively cognizable in its courts.14

Other Similar Crimes

Among the other crimes against the United States government in the nature of, but not amounting to, treason, is seditious conspiracy; that is, a conspiracy between persons in any state or territory to overthrow, put down, or destroy by force the government of the United States, or to levy war against them, or to oppose by force the authority thereof, or by force to prevent, hinder, or delay the execution of any law of the United States, etc. It is also a crime for any person to recruit soldiers or sailors within the United States to engage in armed hostility against the same, or to open a recruiting station within the United States for such purpose; for any person to enlist or engage within the United

enemies, it was held that naturalization by the enemy in time of war was no defense. King v. Lynch, 19 T. L. R. 163.

13 Const. U. S. art. 3, § 3, cl. 1.

14 People v. Lynch, 11 Johns. (N. Y.) 549; Respublica v. Carlisle, 1 Dall. (Pa.) 35, 1 L. Ed. 26. See Black, Const. Law, 518, 519; 2 Whart. Cr. Law, §§ 1812-1818.

States with intent to serve in armed hostility against the same; to incite or aid in a rebellion; and for a citizen of the United States to correspond with foreign governments with intent to influence their controversies with the United States, or to defeat the measures of the United States government.15

OFFENSES AGAINST THE POST OFFICE

By acts of Congress, it is a crime to intentionally or negligently obstruct the transmission or delivery of the mail; to detain letters; to destroy letters; to post obscene books; to counterfeit stamps; to commit larceny, robbery, or to embezzle from the mail; or to receive an article stolen from the mail.10

ABUSE OF ELECTIVE FRANCHISE

Illegal voting is a crime at common law, and is also regulated by acts of Congress and by the statutes of the different states. It is also a crime at common law for a person to usurp an office to which he has no claim, or to offer violence to voters. By statutes, betting at elections is made a crime.17

FORESTALLING, REGRATING, AND ENGROSSING

These were old common-law crimes consisting substantially in buying up and hoarding provisions and other products for the purpose of obtaining a monopoly, and selling them at an enhanced price. They have been abolished in

15 2 Whart. Cr. Law, §§ 1785-1789. 16 2 Whart. Cr. Law, §§ 1822-1831. 172 Whart. Cr. Law, §§ 1832-1848.

England, and have not been recognized as common-law crimes with us; but Mr. Wharton states that to obtain a monopoly of a necessary commodity for the purpose of selling for grossly extortionate prices would still be indictable at common law. Such questions generally arise in prosecutions for conspiracies, as it is in this way that monopolies are usually obtained.18 The matter is very generally regulated by statutes.19

18 Ante, p. 163.

19 2 Whart. Cr. Law, §§ 1849-1851.