Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1911-11-02

lish that right to be a gentleman, he
had 10 say TO his insulter. L will NEE,
you tomorrow morning at daybreah
on the field of honor, and because you
have insulted me | will give YOU Q
chance to make a target of me with
your bullet OF course, that is moi
all the arrangement, He had tc
make a target for me, and if | hit hin
that v~indicated my honor in a most
satisfactory way; but if he was the
better marksman and hit me, and
took a bullet home in my body and
lay for two or three months in a hos
pital, it would take a great deal longer
time than the time for convalescine
to enable me to figure out any system
of logic by which that was a satisfac
tory way of wiping out the insult tc
my honor.
Two hundred years ago in an Eng
lish court of Justice if a man sued
YOU on a promissory note, and the de,
PENDANT came in and was a little lack.
ing in his evidence, he said, 4 demand
that this issue as TO whether | signed
that note, or if I signed it, whether
paid il, shall be settled by wager OF
battle The judge then drew out
from behind the bench two long
swords, they organized a t~wenty-four
foot ring and the plaintiff and defend.
ont wont OF nanh rthnr Te th, 40
PENDANT cut off the arm or in some
way knocked out the plaintiff. that
proved according to English law that
the defendant had never made the
note. or If he had, that he had paid it.
That was a very satisfactory way OF
deciding a question of law and JUS
tice, was it not? 1t is ridiculous; it
is amusing, and it ought to awaken
the contempt that it does for this
name Of settling a question. When
YOU think over our present method Of
setting international controversies by
war, it is not to be justified any more
than was the wager of battle at COM
mon law.
Time Reduces Passion
What are these treaties by which
We hope to bring about an abolition Of
war? We agree, first, to submit all
questions of a j~usticeable character,
that is, of a character that can be de-
cided by applying the rules of law and
equity, to a board of arbitration. We
q OTsnp SnpnnH thai Va will omaha u
joint high commission, and all Ques-
tons arising, or which are likely to
lead TO a quarrel, will be first submit,
ted to them, and that commission will
advise the two parties what curse to
take. The commission will consist,
in the English treaty, of three Eng.
hshmen and three Americans. They
are to wait a year before that decision
is made, If either party demands it.
The senate committee on foreign af-
fairs says that this has been submit
ted TO the senate and that it is await
ing a decision of the senate. The
treaties have been published for the
purpose of having them discussed.
A majority of the senate committee
on foreign affairs says that that Sec
ond clause is Objectionable because it
would be a breeder of war, rather
than one to end war. | differ COM
petely with the majority of the COM
mittee. Time is what reduces pas
sion and hot temper. Have you ever
gone home in a state of anger at
something and not been able to re-
strain yourself to your family, and
hearing your wife advise the children
that Papa is not feeling very Well
and that they had better keep away
from him, and she tip-toes around and
gives you an opportunity to think
over your utterly indefensible attitude
toward people who haven't hurt you at
all and finally after an hour or two, and
after you have looked into the glass,
you realize what an inevitable ass you
are; if you have, you will understand
what ! mean when / say that time
with an individual enables him to get
over momentary passion, and to see
what a foolish exhibition he has made
OF himself. What is true of an indi.
vidual is true Of a nation, and if you
give a nation a year to think it over,
if you give a nation a year to consider
how many lives they are going to
lose, how much cruelty the war is
likely to bring about, the amount Of
corruption and Generalization that
are likely to follow in a war, that ma
ton will hesitate a long time and will
be glad to make some ~peaceable so.
luton other than by the arbitrament
Of war. Therefore, ! say that that
second clause, which was proposed
to me by MI. William Jennings Bryan,
is a good method Of accomplishing
this. When you think that over you
will agree that it is one of the most
effective means of avoiding war and
continuing peace.
Section Three
"The third section is the one upon
which the senate committee of for
eign affairs-the majority and the
minority-differ most. The third Sec
ton provides that il the two parties
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