CO129-534-9 Law of Piracy- case of Rex v. Chung Tam Kwong 1-4-1931 - 20-4-1932 — Page 76

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In the case named the court considered whther

Congress had sufficiently discharged its duty to

define the particular crime. The judges differed

on this point; and it would appear that that act was

allowed to expire and in place of it, during the following year, (to quote Kent) "it was again declared, and essentially to the same effect, that if any

person upon the high seas or in any open roadstead

or bay or river where the sea ebbs and flows commits

the crime of robbery in and upon any vessel or the

lading thereof or the crew he shall be adjudged a

pirate". Congress here clearly laid it down that

a piracy and a robbery were equivalent teras. The

last statute to which I shall refer, and which I

also mentioned in court during the argument, is

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1 Vict., c.88 "An Act to amend certain Acts relating

to the crime of Piracy". Section 2 of this act

provides that "whosoever with intent to commit or

at the time of or immediately before or immediately

after committing the crime of piracy in respect of

any ship or vessel shall assault with intent to

murder any person xxx**xxxxxxkt being on board of or

belonging to such ship or vessel or shall stab, cut

or wound any such person or unlawfully do any act by which the life of such person may be endangered,

shall be guilty of felony and being convicted thereof

shall suffer death as a felon." The language of this legislation evidently contemplates that violence on

a ship may occur where there is an intent to commi t

the crime of piracy either immediately before or

immediately after such crime. Violence it self does