Evening star., 1940-05-14

to the American Society of Inter
national Ldw at its 3lth annual
meeting:
Fellow-members and guests Of
Che American Society of Inter-
national Law:
I am deeply appreciative of the
privilege of serving as president
Of this society and of opening its
34th annual meeting.
All Of us who, as students or
practitioners, are interested in
this particular branch of juris-
prudence, are profoundly con-
scious of the fact that today the
subject of international law has
an extraordinary significance. It
Is no exaggeration to say that
never before, in the entire history
Of the human race, has the
problem Of the preservation and
development of order under law
presented itself with such urgent
acuteness. Never before has it
been so fraught with import for
the future of mankind.
Grew Out of Protest
OF international Anarchy.
The concept and the structure
OF a law of nations rose and
evolved out of a spirit of protest
against the ravages of interna-
tional anarchy. In the ancient
world and during the dark ages
OF the modern world, there widely
prevailed q concept that each
nation was a law unto itself, the
sole arbiter Of its international
conduct, fully entitled-if it pos
sessed sufficient strength-to en-
gage In aggression and aggran-
dizement, to destroy by armed
force the independence of other
nations and to subjugate other
peoples. Force reigned supreme.
Human liberty, national inde-
pendence, confidence In safety
and security on the part Of ma.
tions and individuals were in
constant jeopardy.
Over long centuries, voices
raised In protest against the
nightmare of International law
lessness grew in strength and in
fluence, and ideas of how to
achieve a law-governed world
emerged more and more. Three
hundred years ago, the genius
Of Hugo Grotius gathered these
scattered voices and ideas into
. sharp focus and gave a pow
erful impetus to a new spirit, to
q more and more insistent de-
mand that relations among ma
tions be based upon acceptance
and applications of well-defined
rules Of international conduct
upon a body of international law.
Unbridled License of
Nations Checked.
Since then, enormous advances
have been made in the charac-
ter Of relations among nations.
There has been an ever-deepen-
ing and ever more widespread
recognition of the inescapable
fact that an attitude of unbridled
license on the part of nations
in the same way that such an
attitude on the part of individ-
uals or groups within nations
is bound, sooner or later, to
impair their own well-being and,
In the end, lead them to destruc-
ton. There has been a wider
and wider acceptance and appli-
cation of the all-important fact
that true social progress is pos
sible only when nations in their
relations with each other, as well
as individuals and groups within
nations, are willing to practice
self-restraint and to cooperate
for the greater good of all. Only
thus can orderly processes exist
and provide that social stability,
security, and confidence, without
which individual liberty and a
free play of creative forces must
necessarily be precarious, and
the onward march of man must
be halting If not altogether I'M
possible.
Institutions have been built up
to give effect and reality to or
der under law within and among
nations. They have been largely
responsible for the Towering of
our modern civilization in the
spheres Of political security, social
justice, scientific progress and
economic betterment.
This progress has not been
achieved without stupendous ef-
fort. There have been interrupt
tions and setbacks. Frequently,
forces have arisen which have
challenged the very concept of
order under law, especially in the
sphere of international relations,
and have plunged nations into
war, the greatest of all deterrents
to human progress.
Determination to Rise
Offsets Challenges.
That these challenges and the
conditions of International law
lessness which they created have
not been permanent setbacks is
proof of the inherent vitality and
virility of the great principles
underlying the whole concept of
world order under international
law. These facts attest the in
domitable strength of the spirit
which has been the great driving
force behind the determination
Of the human race to rise from
the darkness of lawlessness to the
light of law.
Today mankind is the unhappy
victim of another challenge of
this sort-a powerful challenge
which threatens to wipe out the
achievements of centuries in the
development Of international law
and to destroy the very founda-
tions Of orderly international re-
lationships. In the face Of this
challenge, 1t is Of the utmost I'M
m ~ -