Evening star., 1914-11-22
In the opening session of the annual
public meeting Of the Ave academies
that compose the
Discussion by the lnsti itu.s o,or o.
French Institute. as at Paris. the
president said:

members tho address OF NJ LOUIS neH-
ault, the eminent jurisconsult member
Of the Academy of Moral and Political
Sciences, speaking in the name OF the
entire institute on the subject of War
and the Law of Nations in the Twen-
tieth Century" was pre-eminent.
NJ. Renault disclaimed any doctrinal
study or criticism OF the belligerents
Of one side or the other: he would SIM
ply submit facts OF a judicial nature
War is a collection of acts of vio-
lence. by means of which each bel.
ligerent endeavors to Impose nus VIII
upon the other. Material force is not
Moral and Intellectual energy. the spirit
OF devotion of the on-combatants en-
tered also into the account: under di-
verse forms the entire nation partici.
pated in the struggle and influenced
the result.
Common law rules in war were
formed little by little. 1t was a collec-
tion Of usages in war tacitly accepted
on the one side or the other, constttut-
ing thus for belligerents certain rights
and obligations which governments ap-
propriated and incorporated in their
military regulations.
4:
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In 1853 the government at Washing
ton published instructions for the
Armies Of the United
American States in the Field" These
o regulations were hastily
Viuefs' compiled. but they served
great purpose by showing the possi-
btltty of subjecting the conduct of
armies to precise rules. NJ. Renault
justly remarked that these instructions
emanated from one government only
and therefore applied to only its
own army and could be modified by
the government that issued them;
the disregard Of the prescriptions by
those to whom they were addressed
involved the responsibility only OF the
authors Of the infractions toward their
chiefs and in the last analysis toward
the American government 1t did not
create any international obligation on
the part Of the other belligerent.
During more than forty years the ef-
forts of government, aided by public
opinion. by the action of 3urtsconsults
and savant societies have tended to the
esta blishment OF precise rules of a
conventional character for the conduct
of belligerents. NJ. Renault has drawn
up tho stages of the progress of the
question.
The first manifestation was the cele-
brated Geneva convention OF August
L,
the field Of battle. Instigated by
great popular interest. 1t was taken up
hastily and was defective In many
ways. Signed first by small numo =
successfully accepted by nearly all the
nations Of the world. and notwith-
standing its numerous infractions. due
sometimes to ignorance. 1t rendered
very great service. The convention OF
August 20. 1854. was replaced by the
convention of July l, 1906, also signed
at Geneva following a conference of
more than thirty nations represented
by diplomats. doctors, military men.
jurisconsults-that is to say, by men
Of necessary competence to pass upon
the complex questions to be solved.
Then came the declaration signed at
Petrograd December IL. 1868, which
had a limited object, but which is in
formulated in the preamble. thus:
considering that the progress of civ
ilization should have for effect to at
tenuate as much as
Declaration possible the horrors
., of war; that the only
VI 1etfosfau. legitimate object that
nations should propose to follow dur
ing war should have for object to
weaken the military forces of the
enemy; to that end it is necessary to
put out of action the greatest number
of men possible; that this object would
be exceeded by the use of arms which
might aggravate uselessly the suffer-
ing of men placed out of action. or
which might render their death in
evitable; that the use of such arms
would be contrary to the laws of
humanity; consequently the employ
ment of explosible projectiles less than
400 grams is prohibited"
The foregoing declaration was ac-
cepted by a great number of nations,
which thus assumed obligations the
one to the other. 1t is curious to re-
mark that that declaration which con-
tanned important decisions was not
passed in a meeting of turisconsults or
philosophers. but in a meeting COM
posed exclusively of military men.
Russia took the initiative of reform
of maritime laws of war in the cele-
brated declaration of armed neutral
ity Of $780," the work of Catherine the
Great. Russia subsequently resumed
this initiative Of 1880.
In the commencement of the war
against Turkey in 1877 Russia declared
certain prescriptions of a preceding
convention. although these prescrip-
tions were not obligatory, but simply
a project concerning laws and usages
of war. Many Of these prescriptions
were adopted voluntarily and inscribed
in the military regulations of a GER
tain number of nations.
The first peace conference adopted
most of the rules prepared by the con-
ference at Brussels in 1894. After
twenty-five years ideas had ripened
and certain oppositions were lessened.
This success, 1t was recognized, was
due in a great measure to the efforts
of NJ. Martens.
Twenty-six states were represented at
The Hague in June, 1899. A commits
sion was charged with the preparation
Of regulation on the laws and usages
of war on land in following the project
OF Brussels in 1874" as the basis of
The agreement was con-
cluded after serious deliberation. in
which general officers of England.
France, Russia and Germany took
part. The agreement was concluded by
a convention to which was added a
The high contracting pow
ers will give to their armed forces on
land Instructions which will conform
THE NEW CURF