This, then, disposes of our first question. Let us proceed now to consider the second.
War is a terrible evil under any circumstances.
There are certain means which may not and shall not be used even if they should serve to bring a war to a speedy termination. There is something worse even than war, namely, the degrading of humanity to the brutal level of using abhorrent means to stop a war. In former times poison was sometimes administered or assassination was employed as a means of cutting off the life of the commander of the enemy's army, especially when his ability was the chief obstacle to success. Poisoning and assassination are prohibited in modern warfare. By the sacrifice of a few lives tens of thousands of lives might have been saved and incalculable suffering prevented.