Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1915-07-16
OF What Effect Would BE Information
nj Law Without Power to Enforce IT..

swer is obvious, the subject is just now
absorbing and topical enough to just
ify some elaboration in the answer.
What has been called international
Law until quite recently consisted of
certain necessary (and salutary) us
ages dating from the infancy of inter
communication and growing out of
the constantly recurring necessities
of Interchange, travel and the own
ership of property.
This last was probably tie first
fright" ever established, and it grew
up as the owners strength grew, and
affords Il plausible if inchoate answer
to the question which heads this art
icle!
Probably the first water right ever
acquired by man was TO the middle of
the stream which bounded his holding
and this implied the right to cross
over on peaceful errand.
Then when the tribes grew into ma
tions and the smaller seas divided
them came the Three Mile limit of ter
ritorial possession and the right to
cross over on Il peaceful crrand, now,
unhappily disputed for the first time
in history, and at this moment being
threshed out between the United
States and Germany, and may (later
on) be decided by force, which is the
last resort of nations.
International Law consists of "cus-
toms" having the sanction of immemo-
rial usage and treaties" which up to
few years ago constituted the only
written or recorded section of the law
of nations, and are held in universal
esteem as constituting the only pro-
lection of weaker peoples against ag-
gressions by the stronger. (See story
OF Naboth's vineyard, somewhere in
the Bible, To be read in connection
with Irwin Cobb's history of the inva-
sion of Belgium. for sale mt all drug
Stores)
Twenty-Five or thirty years ago,
however, the more advanced among
the nations, forcsecing the necessity
for codified system of rules f. .hS
regulation of international exchange
and Interchange, began propaganda
for Worlds Congress and later IN
all the nations that could leave home
met over at The Hague, and adopted
series of rules, regulations and by
laws which looked all right when read
out in meeting.
These were variously and spasmo-
ideally signed by certain of the dele
gates, and "held under consideration"
by others. Some like ours) wanted
an expression by the home Congress.
or parliament like the British. or the
San-lledriam by the gentleman from
Jerusalem while the Imperial Gov
ernment of Germany held that mo
thing was binding unless signed by
all the nations of the earth" (includ-
ing the republic of San Marina.) A
later meeting at the Hague added
more rules, regulations and bylaws.
which looked well (when properly en-
grossed) and sounded well when they
were read out in meeting by an in
ternational elocutionist and a few more
signatures were obtained tour country
for instance, for one of the delepates
held power of attorney which au-
thorized him to sign "anything"D and
That meeting adjourned-some going
east, some going west, and some flvin'
over the cuckoo's nest. And thus ended
the second Hague Conference. Many
OF the delegates (most of whom seem
to have been appointed for life) had
acquired strong distaste for the
Dutch bar-tenders and their wooden
shoes, and insisted on meeting in n
bigger town, and rashiy agreed on the
ioggiest town in the circuit-London
from this ill-starred meeting pro-
ceeded another string of rules. repula-
tons and bylaws, which looked well
when engrossed, but didn't sound well
when read by the new clerk 1.-THE old
one had been killed fighting for peace
IN Egypt, and the new one spoke Eng
ilsh with strong Scandinavian ac-
cent. The Conference and its result is
known as the declaration of London.
ana relates almost entirely to the doc
Urine OF contraband-conditio CON
traband, mixed contraband. absolute
contraband and unmixed contraband
When they had gotten several thous-
ana items under each heading. the
member from San Domingo. who had
Just escaped from revolution. and
was negotiating for Delhi muskets
and smokeless powder for his down
doctrine of contraband be strick-
whole doctrine of conraband be stricl-
en- from the books ,andthe motion car
ried IN a concord of ayes in seventeen
diferent languages. Wouldn't you sup
pose that the matter of conraband wa
settled! But it wasn't. When signing
time came around the English mem.
per SAID he would have to submit it IN
Parliament, and Mr.. Hohenzollern
speaking for Germany, remarked that
TO be binding it must be signed bv ali
the powers, and some of them HAD
gone home without signing up. and
there you are. What was called CON.
traband at the first Hague conference
is sui contraband, the only difference
beng in wheat and cotton, which were
made contraband by that same mem.
per from Potdam who appropriate
both products for the use of the ARM
cotton for nose pugs and wheat fo,
belly timber and hence his tears.