Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-03-09
AUTHORITIES ARE AGREED
Balch and Vattel Say Territory Is
Still "All-Men's Land"
ANTARCTIC MAY BE VALUABLE
Mineral Deposits There, Whereas in
North Nothing More Than
Barren Waste Exists.

Though the Norwegian flag is flying at
the south pole. it is not certain, under
international law, that Norway owns the
territory under that flag or surround
ing 1t at the upside-down end of the
globe, which her son, Capt. Amundsen,
was the first to survey and claim. Under
present unsettled conditions in that far
off frozen region of the earth the newly
discovered territory may, under the law
of nations. still be considered no-man's
land, or, more accurately. alI-men's land,
free alike for occupancy by all nations.
The question of the ownership of the
land at the pole and the precise proper
tons of it that might be considered as
belonging to Norway was suggested by
the fact that ever since Capt Cook 8
British expedition Of 1913 explorers of
various nations have planted the flags of
their countries at points more or less ap-
preaching the pole or surrounding it,
The Wilkes expedition, in 1889. for ex-
ample, discovered and claimed for the
United States the land since known as
Wilkes Land: Borchgrevink in 1899 made
an English expedition, as far south as IS
degrees 20 minutes; in 1904 Capt. Scott
planted the British flag in latitude 81 de-
gress IL minutes south; and In 1909 Lieut..
Shackleton extended the British explora-
ton to within 10 miles of the pole. What,
under International law, is the precise
radius Of territory to be taken in for the
various countries from the point where
their flags were placed, and does the fur
Their penetration by any subsequent ex-
plorer annihilate the claim of any who
went before him?
Prof. Moore Non-Committal.
The question was put to Prof. John
Bassett Moore, professor of international
law at Columbia University, New York,
yesterday afternoon. The professor was
unwilling at first to speculate to any ex-
tent on a question of a claim which was
so unlikely to come up as that of owner
ship of territory at the pole.
at is doubtful whether that particular
slice of land will ever be OF use to any
body, but the ice trust he said. with a
smile, land / feel pretty certain the
question you have asked me will never
be brought up to the joint commission
| on arbitration for settlement. The task
! of effective occupancy of the territory
| might prove even more difficult than its
discovery"
F, Prof. Moore, however referred the re-
! porter to an article dealing with the very
question of ownership in International
! law of arctic and antarctic lands, writ
| ten by Thomas Willing Balch. in the
American Journal of International Law
70 1910. Ownership of the arctic terri
| tories, this writer held. could scarcely
be established, since that region, though
| not open sea (the seas are free by COM
mon procurement of all nations) and
| though affording place for the setting
| up of huts and human habitation. is
composed of ice that floats slowly round
from the Behring strait toward the
Atlantic ocean. making it precarious to
establish any title to settlements SO shift
/ ing to and fro. In the antarctic. however,
the law writer held, conditions are diff
| ferent, the south polar region consist
ing of land the continental proportions of
which were first made known to the
world by the discoveries OF Commodore
Charles Wilkes Of the American navy and