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14 If privateers were abolished, substitutes for privateering would immediately take its place. During the last war, Prussia was engaged in chartering large merchant steamers, arming them, and putting them under the command of naval officers, with a view of sending them out to prey on French commerce. The overwhelming superiority which she soon managed to establish over her enemy on land rendered any mode of naval warfare superfluous, and put an end to the device.

Prussia fought the battle of her cruisers on land, for she imposed a contribution of 1,000,000 francs per occupied department, overtly as compensation for the mischief inflicted on her commerce by French cruisers. England could very easily charter any number of merchant steamers, convert them into cruisers, put them under the command of naval officers, and so find an effective substitute for privateers.

The question of privateers is therefore quite