Evening star., 1936-02-02
BRYAN PACT WITH ITALY
MAY FOIL EMBARGO PLAN
Such Proposals as Oil Shipment Ban
Held Stymied by Treaty That Calls
for Arbitration.

the United States was party to one
of Mr.. Bryan's treaties. signed with
Great Britain on September Is, 1914,
and proclaimed two months later. re-
quiring, upon the failure to obtain
settlement Of an outstanding dispute
by direct negotiation, its submission
to a commission of inquiry for in
vestigation and report.
Therefore, he maintained, the United
States, by the terms of the treaty,
could not resort to any act Of force,
much less war. to compel Great
Britain to recognize the neutral rights
of the United States until the COM
mission had made its report. Since
the treaty allowed a year for the
Commission of Inquiry to make its
investigation and formulate its re-
port, that was the last heard of the
Presidents request as to what means
should be taken to compel Great
Britain to comply with its duties
toward neutrals, for within year
the very subject of the controversy
might have become purely academic.
NO treaty WIN OCTHdhy.
AS a matter of fact, within year
and a half the ruthless submarine
campaign of Germany caused SIM
liar controversy between the United
States and Germany. At that time
there was no Bryan treaty for the ad-
vancement of peace between the
United States and Germany, and SO
it happened that on April 2, 1917,
President Wilson, in an address before
a Joint session of the two houses OF
Congress, recommended declaration
of war against Germany, and the
Congress formally declared the exist
ence of state of war on April s.
Happily, the United States now has
conciliation treaty with Germany.
signed May S. 1928. and proclaimed
February 25, 1929. which is modelled
on the Bryan treaties, so that the sit
uation of 1917 is not apt to be re-
peated. But suppose no such treaty
1915 and in moment Of irritation
some act of force should have been
committed against Great Britain in
retaliation for her interference with
the neutral rights of the United
States, it would have been possible. as
indeed it seemed probable to those
ignorant of the Bryan treaty, that
the very great moral and physical
power of the United States would have
been aligned against the allied powers
and virtually on the side of Germany
And what different picture the
world would now present!
The above instance was recounted
by Dr. Scott to the members of the
American Society of International
Law, of which he is president, at their
annual meeting in Washington in 1929
and was repeated, at the instance of
the present writer, to the same group
in April, 1885. 1t is a story which
bears constant repetition because its
significance is incalculable. 1t is no
wonder, then. that DR.. Scott says of
Mr.. Bryan that he. of all the peace
makers, is the one who has contributed
most to the peaceful settlement of in
ternational disputes by holding the
hands of war. by staying the sword
until such time as nations can resort
to the forum of reason in which there
is neither great nor small, powerful
nor weak, but nations composed of
human beings who merit better fate
than that of food for powder and
shell to satisfy the ambitions of the
worldly great"
But what has all this to do with
Italy? Among the first of the Bryan
treaties for the advancement of peace
was one witt. Italy, signed at Wash
ingtop May S, 1914, and proclaimed
March "a. 1915. Under this treaty
(article u the two nations engage
to submit for investigation and re-
port to commission to be constituted
as described below "all differences of
whatever nature they may be which
may occur between them which cannot
be composed by diplomatic methods
or are not submitted to a tribunal
of arbitration" Moreover, they bind
themselves not to declare war nor to
open hostilities during the examina-
tion of the commission and before the
commission has presented its report"
Under a supplemental treaty, signed
at Washington, September %, 1881,
the members of this commission of five
are appointed in the following manner.
One member is appointed from each
country by the government of that
country, and the remaining three
members, who shall not be nationals
OF or domiciled in either country, are
designated by the two governments in
common agreement. The members
serve indefinitely, but the appointment
of any member may be revoked at any
time when no case is pending before
the commission. Requirements are
made in the same manner as original
appointments.
Under the provision of these treaties,
the commission was set up with Mr..
Henry P. Fletcher, former Under
secretary of State of the United States.
and Prof. Vittorio Scialoja, Senator of
che Kingdom of Italy, as the national
members, and DR.. Jose Pedro Varela,
professor of private international law
of Uruguay M. Paul van Iseghem,
honorary president of the court of
'assation of Belgium, and Mr.. Helge
Alaestad of Norway, president of the
Anglo German mixed arbitration tri-
ounal, as joint commissioners. At the
present time there are two vacancies
IN the commission, due to the death
If Prof. Scialoja on November 10,
1893, and the resignation of Mr..
Fletcher on September 10, 1885.
One Party Can Appeal.
In case the two countries shall |
have failed to adjust a dispute by
diplomatic methods or by means of
q tribunal of arbitration, it shall at |
once be referred, either by common
agreement or by one or the other |
party, to the International Commits
sion for investigation and report" |
(article 81. It will be seen that all |
that Is necessary for the commission |
to take jurisdiction of q dispute is
that one of the parties shall make
claim that the activities of the other
! onoincf fpf