, 1906-02-22

Sitit litaSuie INC oVebiih6y aiihceN
universal demand for an exponent of
international law and an impartial ar
bitter. But later, when the papacy
came TO assert its vice-gerency over the
temporal world, it had, of necessity,
to treat all other temporal rulers as
subordinates, and thereby re-establish-
ed the old Roman idea of ov~erlordship
and made international arbitration
again impossible. The reformation
wrought the climax of those tumultu-
GUS times and arbitration played no
part.
No Rest in Europe.
From the accession of Charles V of
Germany, in 1919, through the reign
of Henry VIII and Mary of England;
Louis XIV of France; Charles XII of
Sweden; Frederick the Great of Prus-
STA, and Catherine IL of Russia, to the
fall of Napoleon in 1915, Europe knew
no rest. Within this period fall the
wars of the inquisition, the vars of the
reformation, the Thirty Years war, the
Seven Years war, and the wars of the
French revolution. 1t vas in fact as
one has well said an "age of perpetual
war" AT its close, Europe lay exhaust
ed. War ceased, not because the
wrongs had been righted but rather be-
cause of inability to carry the contest
further and because of a growing pro
test against such ruthless and suicidal
conflicts.
Among the early attempts in modern
times to settle international difficulties
without war / shall notice only one,
that of England and the Netherlands
in 1854. By virtue of an agreement en-
tered into in that year, the two govern
ments appointed, each, two members
of a commission for the adjustment of
certain difficulties. The commissioners
were given a limited time within which
to examine into and to render a verdict
touching the matters in dispute, failing
in which it was provided that they
should "be shut up in a o separate
and apart from all other persons, with
out fire, candle, meat, drink, or other
support, till they have agreed" 1t was
also provided further that the judg-
ment so rendered should bind and
not only that the commissioners rem
dered a verdict but that its terms were
promptly met.
Arbiters Provided For.
During the past century the settle
ment of International controversies by
arbitral methods became very common
and many treaties were made with pro-
visions that in case of controversy con-
corning either the proper Interpretation
of the treaties themselves or the mat
tiers involved in them such controversy
should be settled by reference to arbi-
ters.
The frequency of such provisions and
the general satisfaction which their OPP
GRAFTON gave, led the interparliment-
airy conference at it's meeting in Brus-
sells in 1895 to adopt a set of resolu-
tons from which l quote as follows:
THE interparliamentary conference,
assembled at Brussels, considering the
of cases of International ar
bitration and the number and extension
of arbitral justice and an international
jurisdiction established on a stable ba-
charge its president to recommend
to the favorable consideration of the
governments of the civilized states the
desirability of constituting a perma-
nent court of international arbitration
to take cognizance of differences which
they shall submit to its decision"
Peace Conference Called.
Whether in response to this G g
ton or not will probably never be
known, but under date of August "a,
1898, the car of Russia issued a cir
cular letter inviting the powers accred.
tied to st. Petersburg to send delegates
to what has since become known as a
conference.
Twenty-six nations accepted the
cars invitation and on May IS, 1899,
n a time of peace, one hundred of the
ablest diplomatists, the duly
accredited delegates of the foremost
of the world, were assembled
1t The Hague. This gathering has
been not inaptly styled 'the first. great
parliament of man" The conference
continued nearly three months. The
'esult vas the Hague peace convention
which provided, among other things,
'or the establishment of a permanent
International court and of an interna.
tional bureau for carrying on the ad.
work of the tribunal.
Article XVIII of the arbitration trea-
ty declares that 'the agreement of ar
implies the obligation to sub
nit in good faith to the decision of the
arbitral tribunal"
Arbitration the Better Way.
In no way does the treaty provide
hat the parties to it must submit all
any of their differences to adjudica-
ion by the arbitral court thus esti.o-
ished, but only this: that they will
maintain a permanent court for the ad-
of any controversies that