Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1909-05-06
Competitlxe Armino.

Hague Movement
Competitive Arrins.
In discussing this question, Mr..
Mead said:
Let us consider simply Great Brit.
ain. Germany and the United States.
IL Is unnecessary to go further. be-
cause these three nations control the
situation. and they are the chief sin
ners. II these three nations began to-
day to act, with reference to arma-
ments, in accordance with the spirit
and purpose of The Hague convention.
the peace and order of the world
would be assured tomorrow.
In 1898 Great Britain spent on her
navy $l2i,00O.000: Germany spent
$2s.0O0. 900; and the United States
spent $50.OOO.000. Last year Great
Britain spent $40. 200. 900; Germany.
$50 1000 600; and the United States,
sl04 900, 900. The increase in precise
ly ten years when there should have
been decrease was enormous Our
own army expenses last year were as
great as our navy expenses. Our navy
expenses this year will be $4,000, 900
greater than last year We are to-
day paying for expenses of past wars
and preparations for possible wars s5
per cent, practically two-thirds, OF
our total national revenue, leaving
barely one-third available for all con-
structive purposes. What would Wash
ington and Jefferson and Franklin say
to this? We know what they did say
about things OF this sort They would
say to-day that the republic was stand
ing on its head.
Hope for the Future.
This Is what has come about in
ten years in these three nations be-
cause The Hague conference in 1899
did nothing about the reduction or ar
rest OF ornaments. As we now look
back, we see that II could not do much
directly at that time. The war sys-
TEN of nations could be supplanted
only by the gradual development of a
system of international law and JUS
tice to take its place. When the first
Hague conference created the inter-
national tribunal. il did indirectly the
most probably which IL could do in be-
half of the reduction of ornaments,
because it took long step in furnish
ing the nations with such legal ma
chinery for the settlement of their diff
ferences as makes recourse to war
machinery more and more unneces-
sary and inexcusable. IL has been in
the line of this thought that the in
ternational lawyers have had their
hopeful assurance. Develop the legal
machinery. they said. and the arma-
ments will perforce crumble of their
own dead weight
The continued and rapid develop
rent during the decade OF provision
for the peaceful settlement of interna-
tional disputes has been something un-
paralleled in history. The leaders OF
! the movement for international justice
are sometimes reproached with being
dreamers. The only trouble with them
| in the past ten years has been that, so
far as the development Of the instru-
ments of International justice are con-
cerned. they have not been able to
dream daringiy enough or fast enough
to keep up with the facts"
Among the diplomats who came to
Chicago to attend the Peace congress
were: Ambassador Count Johann
Heinrich won Bernstorn of Germany;
Herman de Lagercrantz. envoy from
| Sweden; WI Ting Fang. envoy from
China: Alfred Mitchell fnnes. coun-
selor OF the British embassy. and DIR.
Halvdan Kont OF the University Of
Norway. The Japanese. Turkish and
French embassies also were repre-
' sented