New-York tribune., 1912-04-14


Mention was made of the proposed treaties betwee,
France Great Britain, and the United States @Do
YOU expect that similar treaties between the United
States and other countries IN addition to Great Britain
and France, will be made''
This same agreement had also been submitted to the
foreign office Of France and in it the outline of the
plan for making all disputes between nations capable Of
adjustment without resort to arms France came in
as the second power ready TO follow the lead Of the
United States.
"Yes he said quickly, as if voicng policy on which
he had decided. "When this goes through, proposals
of like nature will be made to other great Powers
60 far the President had expressed his confidence Of
~ the final outcome his conviction that progress
toward world peace must be careful and painstaing
and his determination to have this country figure as
Power holding out the olive branch to all the rest of
the world After that, he explained the method by
which the goal could be reached
"At present it seems to me, the best method is the
establishment of international court and the de.
velopment of code of international equity that nations
will recognize as afording better method Of settling
international controversies than war
hat is the great task confronting him, the leader
and all the other workers for peaceto elaborate and
construct aultlesSy code OF international law that
will appeal to the nations capable Of settling all
questions whether the controversies affect property or
whether they touch that vague, uraSensitive quality
called national honor But the President believes
that matters of national honor can be disposed Of
well as property issues. he thing is done in national
courts and since the ideal is to have for the nations
merely a splendid elaboration Of national courts, it
should be done in the arena of international discussion
and arbitration.
Before saw the President, of his closest friends
aYou will find that the President is not scckng
transtory and ephemeral result from this mDyement
So far as getting any credit for 1t is concerned, he
doesn't care rap In fact, he believes that if the
movement which has gained its momentum recently is
to produce lasting good it must be conduced saney
and strongly with eye for lasting results and not for
passing popular acclaim 1t is thing that may well
be disastroisy retarded by haste and overnhusaSm'
Mr. Taft's discussion of the subject, his desire 10 have
the public in every country study the proposition and
his appreciation of the difficulties to be overcome bore
out the prediction.
His eagerness for the education of the world popu.
lation in regard to the proposal easily explained by
what he said in speech before the American Society Of
international Law last spring He explained then that
the cause of universal peace must be forwardei by the
conscience of countries.
"Internationa law has sanction except IN The
science of nations he pointed out; "and nation have
not anywhere the conscience that ndivd have.
You take mob and consider the spirit that governs
it as distinguished from that which governs the III
divduas making the mob and you find that that Illus
trates the difference between the conscience Of the in.
divdua and the conscience of a nation. And yet the
utilitaran spirit, perhaps the real conscenc IN all
nations has ultimately brought about sanction for
what we call international law, without any power to
enforce it, but simply from the general public opinion
Of all the peoples Of the world.
Begun by individuals reasoning from their own con-
sciences and from their sense Of justice without
any power to enforce their opinions and finally but
reluctantly adopted by nations by common consent, the
history of the growth Of international law may well
command our admiration, wonder, and our hope
for growth in the scope and sanction Of such law in the
future that should make us all optmists.'
XXTHIE to the President there has fallen the disnc
Y" ton of being the first great Power ruler to offer to
the world sane and apparently method Of ultimately
abolshng warfare he is not alone in his appreciation Of
the difficulties of the task Andrew Carnegie in Landing
over his ten million dollars for the promotion OF the same
object did it in language that expressed his knowledge
that the end could be attained only after years %! CAM
paignng and endeavor. The principal use that will be
made Of the annual income Of five hundred thousand
dollars from his gift will be to disseminate literature
calculated to educate the people of every country to