Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-03-05
ISbIIhAIION AND FEACEs
Meeting Of the Society for the Proven.
ton of War and the Arguments.

-
The annual meeting of the Christian arbitra-
ton and peace society at the Church of the
| Covenant last night drew together q large num-
Der Of people, including many high in official
| life Several diplomats from foreign countries
! made their appearance during the evening,
and number of army and naval officers sat
through the exercises and listened to the argu-
ments, which had for their end the idea that all
military power was an unnecessary presence
Secretary Windomwss among the audience. The
| meeting was opened by the singing of the
hymn:
Let Creation bid her groans and travail cease,
Let the glorious proclamation hope restore and faith
Christ is coming,
Come. thou blessed Prince Of Peace.S
Rev. DIR. Hamln then offered prayer and an
other hymn was sung, after which he welcomed
the society to the church in an appropriate
address. He referred to one of Charles Sum-
ner 8 last speeches, which Was for the disarma-
ment of the nation, using the argument that
nations had no more right to maintain standing
armies than persons had to carry weapons.
Montesque has said that the foe of liberty and
the only foe to fear is the armament Of q coun-
try. American citizens, said DR.. Hamlin, may
rejoice that this country has done much to-
ward the establishment of the custom Of set
thing questions OF difference by the arts of
peace rather than the arts Of war, and the time
will come when the time-hOnored customs Of
war will be more honored in the breach than
in the observance. He then introduced Mr.
Justice Harlan az
THE CHAIRMAN OF THE EVENING.
The justice, in assuming his place on the plat
form, said that he had agreed to come to the
meeting as soon as he had learned the objects
OF the society, the very name OF which should
commend 1t to all people. He quoted the
authority OF somebody else for the statement
that during the period of ninety years from
1870 to 1850 the wars in Europe and America
destroyed nearly five million human beings,
this estimate being probably under the truth
rather than above it. There was Il vast re-
sponsblllty upon those who could have pre-
vented that useless loss of life and did not do
1t. The society, he said. seeks to create sem
timent among the peoples of the earth that will
1t has become fight between right
and truth on the one side and force
and falsehood on the other Gen. Grant
had said that arbitration between nations
may not satisfy either side, but it satisfies the
conscience OF mankind and comes nearer
and nearer all the time to the best
means of settling disputes. man named
jeremiah Wilson once said that he
would as soon think of joining society for the
prevention OF thunder and lightning one
for the establishment Of peace and the aboli-
ton of war. Had he lived to this day he
would have been surprised to see the extent to
which this has been achieved The Justice
read a note from Vice President Morton regret
ting that his trip from the city would prevent
his attendance upon the meeting and he then
announced that Rev. Dr. Douglass of st. Johns
church would not be able to speak, as had been
announced, on account of a peremptory engage
ment in his parish. He introduced Rev. DIR.
Boardman, the president of the society, who
delivered the address of the evening.
THE CLAIMS FOR PEACE.
He began by saying that there are two theo-
ries as to the construction of society, one
which is called the atomic theory" in which
it is argued that men are independent atoms.
without any organic union, extreme indiyid-
uais, demagogues, anarchists, haters of man
kind. The other theory is the molecular
theory" which conceives humanity to be one
huge person, each man a component, CO.
operative factor, thus forming a universal
membership. Each nation OF the earth is as a
single little person, with an idiOsyncrasy Pc
cullar to the individual, just each man has
his hobby. Thus there is the Chinese conserv-
atisfn, the Greek estheticism, the Roman juris-
prudence, the French 'savoir faire," the Ger
man speculation, the English indomitableness,
the Scotch shrewdness, the Irish impetuosity
and the American versatility. Yet with all
these differences each nation and race is but a
component In colossal body. War is but the
elimination OF serious schism in the social
body and is possible simply because of the very
mechanical view that man is apt to take Of the
social structure. With such a conception of
the world IN mind he adopts the merely me-
chanical remedy for his evils.
AN ADVANCING CIVILIZATION.
War has had its divine object, but what may
have been relatively right in the past may now
be quite as relatively wrong in the future this
being essentially an advancing civilization
The doctrine OF Moses, said the speaker, was an
eye for an eye and tooth for tooth and a
blow for a blow, while the teaching of Jesus
was: If your enemy hunger, feed him; if he
thirst, give him drink" ''And, he said Jesus
seems to be gaining on Moses" War is sui
cidal as well as murderous it Is stupidity, while
peace Is real sagac1ty; 1t is case of the right
foot kicking the left. The time has come when
nations should commit themselves to the policy
OF disarmament. As far back 1888 one Ben
jamln Bush recommended the establishment of
peace department to be coordinate and CO.
existent with the War and Navy departments
or our government. II there is nation on the
face of the earth that can afford to disarm and
stand alone as the champion of peace it is
America. In the period between 1776 and 1889
there have been two hundred successful in
stances of the settlement of questions between
this country and foreign powers by means of
arbitration. War never produces, but ALWAYS
consumes. The duke Of Wellington after the
battle of Waterloo wrote: Nothing but battle
lost can be half SO bad as battle WON'T The
signs OF the times are favorable and everything
points to the coming of the time when men
shall not quarrel with arms.
WESTERN NADvUaNUN