The Black Hills union and western stock review. [volume] (Rapid City, S.D.) 1904-19??, 1904-02-26
The BEGINNINGS
OF MODERN WARS
Usages Observed by Nations
When They Are Ready
to Begin Shooting.
DON'T STOP TO DECLARE 1T
Ancient Custom Required the Nest
Formal Declaration, but in Modern
Times the Contestants Just
Begin ~Butchering.
.essor Jas. Milford Garner in the

lessor Jas. MILFORD Garner in the
Philadelphia Ledger: In early times
war was usually declared with solemn
formality. Among the ancient Greeks
a herald, whose person was ~inviolable
and sacred, was entrusted with the
duty of laying before the enerTy a for
NAL declaration OF hostile intent.
Among the Romans, who We're even
more punctilious in this respect, a col
lege Of Fetiales performed this solemn
service. Upon the failure of negotia-
tons they crossed the boundary Of the
offending nation and formally demand
ed redress in the name of the Roman
people. If this was not given after
the expiration Of a reasonable period,
war was declared, whereupon the chief
of the Fetiales advanced to the frontier
n hurled q bloody lance into the ter
ritory of the enemy, proclaiming as
he did so the existence of war. Ac-
cOrding to Roman usage no nation was.
regarded as,a public enemy Until war
had been thus declared.
Likewise, during the middle ages the
spirit of chivalry, which condemned
everything that appeared to be under-
handed or treacherous, required the at
lacking nation to give it's enemy formal
warning of it's intention to begin hos
t%lllties. 1t was a part Of the character
of every true knight not to attack his
enemy without due notice, and the
standard of individual honor in this re-
spect applied also to the nation in the
aggregate. AS among the Greeks and
Romans the notice was usually given
by heraldS or other messengers. With
the decay Of chivalry, however, the
practice Of formal declarations fell into
disuse, and since the beginning of the
eighteenth century hardly more than a
! RI yt,r VIC l,y We l~1, ~-~1~ -
larations, although during that period
there have been some sixty or more
armed conflicts of sufficient importance
to be described In the books as wars.
How the United States Acted.
OF the half dozen conflicts of note
to which the United States has been a
party only two were preceded by a for
NAL declaration, and in neither of
these was the enemy given formal no
tice beforehand of the intention Of the
government to begin hostilities.
The modern practice of beginning
hostilities without formal declarations
does not indicate a growing consensus
In avo of the right of the attacking
nation to take the enemy
for that would be regarded as perfidy,
and hence inconsistent with the laws
Of Civilized warfare; but it's adoption
Is the result of changed conditions.
which makes formal notice no longer
necessary Or even Of special advantage
to the nation attacked. Nations now
maintain diplomatic, representatives at
each others capitals. These are able,
thanks to modern e of
cation, to keep their governments in
formed of all military preparations and
OF the probabilities Of war, Moreover,
war seldom occurs except as the Gull
mination Of a long series of negotia-
tons, concerning the progress of which
each government Is kept daily in
formed, and if the negotiations fail, a
formal withdrawal Of ambassadors iol.
lows, and finally the military and naval
forces of the aggrieved state are put in
readiness for action.
AS these steps are a matter of COM
mon knowledge, the offending nation
should be forewarned and prepared for
attack. If taken by surprise, it is the
result of its w negligence.
Belligerents Give Notice.
In entering upon hostilities, however,
each belligerent gives formal notice to
its own subjects, and also to neutrals.
IN order that they may understand
their new duties and obligations Gre
ated by the state of war, and be pre-
pared to govern themselves according
ly; otherwise a great wrong may be
done them. 1t is customary, therefore,
for each helligerent, upon the outbreak
VI lostiIllleS, " issue a proclamation
or manifesto, reciting the causes of the
war and the purpose or motives for
which it is undertaken, and settling a
date, after which the. hostilities will be
considered as legally existing. If no
formal proclamation or declaration is
made, the legal effects of the war be-
sin from the first act Of hostility, and
n OF the most important of these eff
fects is to place the subjects of both
belligerents In a state Of nonintercouyse
with each other and to make each the
legal enemy of the other.
In the United States and Great Brit
ain 1T is usual to issue proclamations
OF neutrality, when neutral policy is
decided upon. In the former the proc
lamation is issued by the president.
with no more, formality than in the
case of other proclamations, and it is
published through the press. In Great
Britain 1t is much more formal, and is
publicly read from the steps Of the
Royal Exchange by the sergeant-at-
London, who recites the terms of the
foreign enlistment act, and admonishes
all persons who are entitled to British
protection to observe and respect the
neutrality regulations Of the realm.
Although the practive of initiating
hostilities by a formal declaration has
fallen somewhat into disuse, 1t is
worthy of note hat the half dozen
most notable European wars of the
nineteenth century, If we except the
Na%poleonic struggles, were preceded by
formal declarations. These We're the
Crimean war declared by Great Brit
ain n France against Russia in 1854,
the war Of Austria against Italy in 1866,
hat Of France against Prussia in 1870,
that of Servia against Turkey in 1876,
and that Of Russia against Turkey in
1877.
The Conflict With France.
OF the armed International conflicts
to which the United States has been a
party the first was the so-called war of
1898 with France. There was no dec
laration Of any kind except a resolution
of congress which declared France to
be a public enemy of the United States.
The president was authorized to issue
letters Of marque and reprisal, the ex-
listing treaties with France were de-
clared a~brogated,sa department of the
navy was created and the venerable
Washington was called out from his re-
tirement to serve as commander Of the
new army with the rank OF. lieutenant
general. So much Of the little squad
ron as was ready for service was sent
to the West Indies, and on February
81, 1893, n OF the. number, the Corr
%steliation, commanded by Captain
Truxton. after chasing for three hou5s
the French frigate L'Insurgente, en-