The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1920-12-15
WEDNESDAY. DECEMBER Is, 1920.
The Court Without a Sheriff.

AS the first session of The League
II Nations draws near to its close the
slender hold of the organiza ton upon
world actualities must be apparent 10
avery observer; and this without ref
erence to the observers previous at
titude toward the general theory Of
supergovernment.
How the League is fizzling, how
the iridescent vision is vanishing, ap-
pears in the daily reports from Ge-
neya. The Court without a Sheriff
was yesterdays development in the
fading picture. A world tribunal to
exercise jurisdiction and compel jus
tice in cases between nations, on prin-
ciples of law or equity comparable to
the principles governing decisions be-
tween individual litigants in courts
within a national system Of judiciary
has long been the dream Of many ar
dent minds. 1t is an entirely re-
ton, based on the analogy between
the person in a community Of per-
sons and the State in a common
wealth of States. This analogy ac-
cepted, the international court is the
logical result and product.
The idea works beautifully until
you come to the business of enforce
ment. A court of high jurisdiction
that does not possess the power OF
haling defendants TO its bar or COM
polling obedience to its decisions and
comic opera stage than to the reali-
ries Of life in a turbulent and con-
tentious world. This question Of the
sheriff, the policeman, the agent of
physical power TO represent the au-
thorIty Of the bench and enforce It's
legal findings, has always been the
point at which the most enthusiastic
advocates of an international juris-
prudence have blinked the difficulty
or blurred it with paraphrase.
There would be no difficulty Of
course, if the great and small nations
or the more or less powerful govern
ments which have become members of
the League, were prepaid 70 write off
their own independent sovereignty 20
the extent of Joining in the institu-
ton of an international force, police,
military, naval or what not, bns pow
erful enough TO compel obedience to
the courts decisions and to compel
obedience in any quarter whatever.
The Sheriff OF such a Court would
have TO be q Sheriff big enough and
muscular enough not merely for Jugo-
Siavia or Iithuania but for France
or Britain or Japan or the United
States. The forcible execution of the
Courts processes and orders must eN-
tend 70 the mlghtiest as well as TO
the weakest State subject to its juris-
dfrtion. otherwise it would be hum
bug and n farce.
All easy enough. we say, if there Is
general acceptance and universal sub
mission TO a physical authority, as
we'll as legal authority. superior to
the legal and physical authority Of
any nation on earth. The Sheriff Of
n workable international tribunal,
capable of putting into effect the pro-
visions Of an international code Of
law. is a conceivable institution, it is
true; but he means supergovernment
and nothing short Of supergovern-
ment IN its extreme form.
The alternative, Of course, Is a tribu-
nal without force except such moral
force rs is available to any system
Of arbitration or adjudication volun-
tarily undertaken by the parties to
The dispute. The distinction between
this largely academic system Of judi
cial ascertainment, sterile rs TO re-
suits IL the defeated litigant decides
10 kick. and Is able to kick with sufIi-
cient vlgor, measures the distance be-
tween the ideal court Of international
justice, as previously conceived by
~ the various Leagues TO Enforce Peace
when they really meant business, and
the impotent tribunal established on
g<C-,day by the action Of the nzzling
League Mt Geneva.
The impossible feature Of compul-
sorry jurisdiction was defeated by the
opposition Of the great Allied Powers,
Great Britain, France and Japan.
This was what might have been OK
pected. Rather shamefacedly Mr..
ARTHUR BALFoUE. speaking for Brit
ain, explained that 1t was too soon
for Sheriff, inasmuch as interna-
tIonal law was yet in a fluid state.
But we arc still more grateful to Mr..
Lfor BouRGEors, who contributed TO
the otherwise depressing proceedings