The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-12-07

ed self-sacriice, and have sought to hide from their own minds their shortcom- ings their ignoble motives, by calling them love of peace. The peace of tyran- nous terror, the peace of craven weak ness the peace of injustice, all these should be summed as we shun unright- eous war. The goal to set before us as a nation, the goal which should be set before all mankind, is the attainment of the peace of justice, of the peace which comes when each nation is not merely safe-guarded in it's own rights, but scru- pulousy recognizes and performs it's duty toward others. Generally peace tells for righteousness; but if there Is conflict between the two. then our fealty is due first to the cause of righteousness. UnriRhteous wars are common, and un- righteous peace is rare but both should be summed. The right of freedom and the responsibility for the exercise of that right can not bedivoreed. One of our great poets has well and finely said that freedom is not gift that tarrles long in the hands of towards. Neither does 1t tarry long in the hands of those too slothfu too dishonest, or too unintelli- gent to exercise it. The eternal vigilance which is the price of liberty must be ex- erclsed, sometimes to guard against out 
 often to guard against our own selfish or thoughtless shortcomings.
 If these sef-evident truths are kept before us, and only If they are so kept before us, we shall have a clear idea of what our foreign policy in it's larger as- poets should be. It is our duty to remem- Der that a nation has no more right to do injustice to another nation, strong or weak, than an individual has to do in- justice to another individual; that the same moral law applies in one case as in , the other. But we must also remember that 1t Is as much the duty of the nation to guard It's own rights and it's own in- terests as it is the duty of the individual so to do. Within the nation the individ- ual has now delegated this right to the state that Is, to the representative of all the individuals, and it is a maxim of the law that for every wrong there is rem edy But in international law we have not advanced by any means as far as we have. advanced In municipal law. There is as yet no judicial way of enforc- | ing a right in international law. When one nation wrongs another or wrongs many others, there is no tribunal before which the wrongdoer can be brought. 1 Either it is necessary supineiy to ae- | uuiesce in the wrong, and thus put pre- mium upon brutality and aggression, or else It Is necessary for the aggrieved na- ton vallantly to stand up for its rights : Until some method Is devised by which l there shall be a degree of internationa l control over offending nations, 1t would be wicked thing for the most civilized | powers for those with most sense oi l international obligations and with keen est and most generous appreciation ot the difference between right and wrong to disarm. If the great civilized nations of the present day should completely dis: arm, the result would mean an imme- | diate crudescence of barbarism In ont form or another. Under any circum
 stances a sufficient armament would have to be kept up to serve the pur' poses of international police; and unti { international cohesion and the sense oi international duties and rights are fal more advanced than at present, nation desirous both of securing respect fol itself and of doing good to others mus 1 have force adequate for the work whicf 1t feels Is allotted to 1t as it's part of th' general world duty. Therefore it followi that self-respecting, just, and far-see ing nation should on the one hand en
 deavor by every means to aid in the de | velopment of the various movement
 which tend to provide substitutes fo
 war, which tend to render nations il
 their actions toward one another, an
 indeed toward their own peoples, nor
 responsive to the general sentiment 0
 humane and civilized mankind; and or the other hand that it should keep pre- l pared; while scrupulously avoiding
 wrong doing itself, to repel any wrong
 and in exceptional cases to take actioi
 which in a more advanced stage of in
 ternational relations would come unde
 the head of the exercise of the interna
 tionaI police A great free reople owes i
 to itself and to all mankind not to sinl
 Into helplessness before the powers o | evil.
 ARBITRATION TREATIES.
 VIZ or. ia every way endeavorfnp f.