New-York tribune., 1906-08-21
THE DRAGO DOCTRINE.

Not often has there been in the international
affairs of the American republics a more inter-
esting a more dramatic or a more prOpitiOus
coincidence than that of Friday last at Rio
JaneirO and BuenOs Ayres. The full committee
of the Pan-American Congress at the Brazilian
capital unanimously agreed upon a resolution
providing for the submission of the DragO Doc
trine to the next conference at The Hague by
the various American states, with request for
its consideration and for action upon IT, At the
same time. in the Argentine capital, eX-Secretary
Drago. the author of that doctrine. and Secre-
tary Root met publicly exchanged views. and
disclosed the gratifying fact that upon the Ques-
tion of that doctrine and upon matters in gen
eral pertaining to the relations of AnglO-SaXOn
America with Latin America they were in COM
pete accord.
1t had been said that SeflOr DragO declined to
go as a delegate to the Pan-American Congress
because of some notion that Mr.. Root or the
United States government was antagOniStic to
the DragO Doctrine. If such was the case it is
evident that the distinguished Argentine states
man labOred under Il regrettable misapprehen-
sion. of which he has doubtless been en-
tirey dsabused. AS matter of fact, it was one
of the greatest men of his day in the United
States Alexander Hamilton. who first suggested
that doctrine other statesmen of this country,
official and unofficial. have from time to time
repeated it, not infrequently as a rule of govern
mental action. so that. as Mr.. Root said in his
response to Senior DragO's generous toast, the
United States has acted in accordance with
that doctrine, in spirit and in letter. and will
doubtless always continue so to do. 1t is q
cardinal principle of American policy, and i'll
support of il Senior DragO could have wished and
could have had no more sympathetic and efficient
advocate than the American Secretary of State
The only difference of opinion, if. indeed, any
existed, was on the method of procedure in work
ing for the universal adoption of the doctrine
1t was said though we have always been in
clined to doubt its truth, that Argentine and
other South American statesmen were reSOutey
in favor of adopting the doctrine outright at
the Pan-Amercan Congress as international
law" and then presenting it at The Hague as an
accomplished fact, which Europe would be asked
to accept at the mandate of America. We can
scarcely believe. however. that such Il course
was really contemplated by serious statesmen
For it must be obvious to all that while such
action might have made the doctrine binding
upon the American states as treaty among
them, it could not have made il international
law in any universal sense, and could not have
made it in the least morally binding upon
Europe, or legally binding except in so far as
American states were prepared to maintain and
| impose II by force. On the other hand such
cavalier conduct by the American states would
almost certainly have provoked resentment and
antagOnism, perhaps on the part of some powers
| which in more cOnciliatOry circumstances would
| gladly give the doctrine their support Far
wiser. we must conclude. is the procedure which
was favored by Secretary Root from the begin
ming, and which has now been unanimously
agreed upon-namely. for the American states
| formally to approve the doctrine. and then. in
! divdualy and collectively, to propose it to the
conference at The Hague. American states
would not and should not submit to having doc
| trines anI laws dictated to them by Europe, and
neither will they assume to dictate doctrines and
laws to Europe. The powers of five continents
are now equal members of the great family of
nations, and such they will insist on being re-
gGrded and must regard each other and the posi-
tiOn OF the American states in the next worlds
conference at The Hague will not be weakened,
but rather, strengthened, and the adoption Of
the measures which they desire will be facli-
tated by their recognition of that reasonable and
essential principle in their own Pan American
Congress