The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-03-10
INTERNATIONAL ARBITRATION.

A few days ago resolution was brought
before the state senate of Pennsylvania
asking the senators and representatives of
that state in the national congress to use
their influence for the passage of bill that
would arrange for the settlement of inter
national disputes by albitratian. The reso-
luton was defeated in the Pennsylvania
senate by vote of eighteen to sixteen.
But though this resolution looking to the
establishment of a central board of arbitra-
ton for the settlement of international
difficulties was lost in the senate of the
state named, and though this establish
ment of such apower may, at present, be
regarded as impracticable and visionary,
still forces are in active operation5thrOugh
out the world which will eyentuate in the
creation of just such power. The means
of rapid transit and communication now
uniting the continents, bringing all parts of
the world into almost immediate relation
ship with each other, increasing the bulk
and Importance of their commerce, thus
cementing their interests, improving
their social relationship by making
them better acquainted with each
other, frequent international com
bination for the accomplishment of in
ternational enterprises-the5e are the
forces which will eventually render it
necessary and practical to form a central
Board OF congress, in which all nations
will be represented. for the settlement Of
international disputes by arbitration.
War, in the past, has been the means of
bringing about the settlement of difficulties
between contending nations. By its for
tunes one party or the other has been
forced into position in which it has been
compelled to accept the terms dictated by
the victor; and such has been the injustice
of the conqueror in the flush of his victory,
that his terms have been the utter ruin Of
his vanquished enemy. But as the interests
of nations began to be enlarged and more
closely connected with, and dependent
upon. the welfare and perpetuity of each
these hard terms of the victors in war
which subjugated to their control or ami
hilated the national existence of their less
fortunate adversary, became less and less
frequent, until, in our day, anything of the
kind is rendered Wellnigh impossible;
and it requires no extraordinary
foresight to understand that the
forces we have enumerated, which
tend to consolidate the interests of all
nations, must render the arbitration Of
difficulties by war injurious to all states,
and hence will not be permitted. The
belligerent powers whose wars would inter
rupt and unsettle the commerce of the
world and endanger the peaceful relations,
perhaps, of all nations, must soon be com
PEELED to submit their case to the arbitra
ton of other powers whose peace and
prosperity would be involved in case the
war took place. And the day cannot be far
distant when an international congress of
arbitration will be created for the purpose
of settling all international disputes and
preserving the peace of the world.
1t was the want of extensive social and
commercial relations which first estab-
lished and then perpetuated for so many
centuries the petty, war-like states Of the
middle ages 1t was the want of rapid and
easy means OF inter-communication which
prevented the forming of extensive social
and commercial relationships; and so the
petty states remained independent, making
war upon each other on the slightest
pretext, and sometimes without any
.pretext at all, but prompted to it
by the mere love of adventure,
or by the personal quarrels of powerful
chiefs. But a new era daWned on the
world The power of steam was applied to
navigation, converting the mighty oceans in
to convenient highways between the contin-
ents while all parts Of those continents were
brought into almost immediate association
by the construction of railways and tele-
graph lines. Added to this was the influ-
ence exerted by the press, which made all
the world acquainted; recorded each day
the events which daily happened and spread
them out for all the people to read. Under
these conditions men forgot the mighty dis
tances by which they were separated, and
community of feeling, of sentiment as well
as union of interest was engendered
These forces combined rendered it possible
to unite the once petty states-though pre-
serving control of the things Immediately
concerning their local interests great
confederated empires or republics. And as
those forces which brought about these
glorious results are capable of enlargement
in fact, are yearly being enlarged and
more universally applied-are also capable
of being improved, while new and more
potent forces are being discovered and
made to do service in the same direction