Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-06-26

At last, after years CONSIDERATION,
the multilateral treaty which, II con-
sunnmated, will prohibit war as q ma
tional policy among the great powers.
and eventually among all nations. has
been submitted by our Department OF
State to IA leading governments, and
the United States has given assurance
of Its own readiness to sign the
compact.
There has been no step In world
diplomacy in the last century that VIII
compare with the vital. revolutionary
Importance Of this proposed treaty. and
the nations have already slgnineo a
willingness to sign 1.-THE reservations
are not serious-so that It's success
seems certain. Leaders IN our Senate
give assurance Of its ratification there.
Not even the League Of Nations ap-
pears to have constituted such raolcaI
change. in the matter of war. for the
League did not hope to end wars. ana
certainly has never succeeded in doing
so. There have been more than so
major wars upon earth since the
League of Nations was organized. All
that the League has promised has been
that 1t would do what it could to avoid
wars, and would combine against the
war-aggressor, II any nation persisted,
even to the extent OF joining all us
members in war against 1t. SO II dla
not promise to outlaw war. but ooiigateo
its member nations to go 70 war. under
certain contingencies. -
The kellogg treaty Will ooligate an
signers not to so to war, except IN sell :,
defense when attacked; it outlaws all
war as a national policy, just as dueling
Is outIawed in personal conduct. with
out Officiating any man to weaken SELL
defense when necessary for safety or
the protection Of persons dependent.
While the multilateral treaty appears
to be so novel and so bold in states
mansiip, 1t is not without ancient
precedent nor warning as TO its I'M
portance.
historic evidence, recently brought TO
light. shows that 1000 years BIC. the
nations uf Western Asia negotiated IN
ternational, and probably multilateral.
treaties, and submitted their differences
to arbitration. But Greece. the great
union of many nations, reaching out
from Asia across the Grecian peninsula
to Italy. Spain and France, failed TO
develop a system of international agree
ments among her varied nationanties'
and in 900 BIC. she began to feel the
disease of national balances of power
which weakened her against not only
outside enemies. but even against her
own Sparta and Macedonia. until all
Greece was completely dominated by
Philip and Alexander-and eventually
by Rome.
Then Rome conquered the world, but
failed To conquer Self-Seeking tyrants
by building up = science or tnterna-
tional government. She chose the
course of empire and tyranny over her
victims of war. There was peace, for
time. but the peace OF suolecuon,
until In the fourth century AID. her
CONQUERED nations tended to drop out of
her domination. and, about 1000 years
after anarchy had taken possession or
Greece, anarchy again held power over
the Roman Empire.
Then came the Dark Ages OF Europe.
the medieval state systems, from SSS
to 1853 AID. during which civtlisa-
ton made no Roadway over petty
tyrants and the anarchy of individual
"knightly" dueling. called war.
Throughout the feudal ages, nothing
was so glorious as fighting, and never
was the idea abandoned that some
great conqueror would dominate all the
world. This was strengthened by the
Church of Rome. with her aim, not NJ
but coSmopolitaniSm, She
was supported by various would-oe
world powers, until came the Renais-
Sance, In the middle of the fifteenth
century. and out of the anarchy and
hloodshed of feudaliSm and the night
mare of world conquering rose the ideal
of separate nations. each with It's own
and state rights,
These individual states had been
built up IN power dating from the
struggle i'm the thirteenth century be-
tween the Holy Roman Empire of Fred
erick III and the Pope, each party APP
pealing for support 10 the lesser kings
and III turn granting more independence
TO those little kingdoms.
Again came the world-conQuerGS
Napoleon and his failure. and flnally
Wilhelm III and his failure, while the
several nations continued To suffer the
penalties Of non-organixation for niu-