Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1907-04-24
AMBASSADOR
BRYCE SPEAKS
ASKS FOR LARGER FIELD FOR
ARBITRATION.
TELLS HOW WAR BEGINS
Declares That It Is Bad Business
Can Think of But One Struggle in
Sixty Years That Was Necessary
Holds Newspapers Largely ne-
sponsibIe.

New York, April lS.-Betore tie
national peace congress yesterday
Ambassador James Bryce delivered an
address in which he declared that
war is not only irrational, immoral,
unphilosophical and unchristian, but
lis also Improbable. Besides being
bad III other ways, it is also bad bus
mess. If there was time to go
through the history of the last two
centuries. it would be easy to show
that whatever may be said for war
in the abstract, nearly every war
within that period has done far mere
harm than good
Looking back for the last sixty
years." said DIi. Bryce, Il can think
Of only one war that could be called
necessary, that is to say, in all the
other cases either the object was not
worth fighting for or the desired re-
Isult might have been better oil L4ined
without lighting. But what We have
nov in this congress got to do, is to
lconsider how we tan best work for
preventing wars in the future the
difficulty about such a meeting as this
lis that we are already agreed anI
convinced. l can imagine cynicai
critic saying to US: Gentlemen, you
lare ali, as the French say, preaching
10 the converted What you have got
10 do is to preach to the unco?ycrted
who are not here, to convince those
whom the scripture calls the people
that Iehgiht in war. You are SO
this cynic would say, like an assem-
bly, of sheep, sheep with hreproaeh-
lably white feeces. passing resolutions
which entreat the wolves to leave off
biting To answer this cynical crit
&c, to see what we can really do to ad
vance the object we have at heart,
let us ask ourselves how it is that
wars begin. We have all seen the
phenomena Some difference arises
between two nations. Each nation
has what it thinks a good canse but
leach nation thinks only of its own
case and takes little trouble to I'M
iderstand the case on the other side"
lie told how the newspapers take
up the cause of war and emnitter the
hearts % the people, how angry
words are passed back and forth and
everything is set down in malice until
finally the blood is at the fighting
food I'VE all know said Mr.
Bryce that the newspapers fan the
flame and spread it, But what is
their motive? They want to please
the public. They believe the pubic
likes to have it's passions aroused.
The press is what the people make it.
Every nation has just suca newspa-
pers as it deserves. The blame aft
er all rests nth the people them
selves 80 lose their heads un Ter ex-
element. They can resist every
thing except temptation.
Now, gentlemen. We have got to
done to make nation realize in
times of excitement the truths which
it had realized when it was in it's
sober senses before the fighting fever
had got into the brain. There seems
to be only three things that can be
lbOliC " plCNCAl tic vi
these fever fits One is to reduce
that pride which every state feels I'll
having enormous military and naval
fofces-a pride which necessarily
draws with it the temptation to use
the ornaments which it has taxed IT.
self so heavily to n aintain.''
The speaker suggested and urged
that practical steps be taken to make
general arbitration treaties and to en-
large their scope by including as
many causes of international differ
ence as can possibly be referred 10
arbitration or where the matter is
not strictly a legal one, can be made
the subject of mediation and concili-
Iation. The great advantage of such
treaties is that they interpose delays
and allow the better sense of each
nation to subdue its passions. Even
Iif the matter in dispute is not one
which court Of arbitration can ulti-
mately settle, the resort TO arbitration
gives the voice of reason time to be
heard and brings the opinion of the
whole world to bear upon the two
parties at variance Nations are
naturally Jealous of their own honor,
but when they find the opinion OF
the world does not think that con
cession prejudices their honor, they
may be more willing to make the
concession. The creation of such
general treaties and of a permanent
tribunal to entertain and decide the
cases that are brought before it would
be one of the greatest services that
la peace conference could render.