Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1941-01-29

. formal covenant to renounce war
as an instrument Of national policy
and in future to agree that the So
luton Of all disputes or conflicts be-
tween them Of whatever nature or
whatever origin should never be
sought except by pacific means.
That treaty was ratified by a vote
in the Senate Of the United States
of IS to l, including in the majority
a number of the present members Of
this committee. In 1884 the Inter-
national Law Association, which I
believe to be the Oldest association
OF international lawyers in the
world, met at Budapest, Hungary,
for the purpose OF giving their inter-
probation as to the meaning of this
treaty In case a situation arose SIM
liar to that with which we are faced
today. The membership of this as
ISOLATION, as this committee doubt
less knows, contains many of the
most eminent international lawyers
of the world. including members
from each Of the axis powers. They
passed the following resolutions:
Whereas the pact (the pact of
Paris is multilateral law-making
treaty whereby each of the high
contracting parties makes binding
agreements with each other and all
OF the other high contracting parties,
and
Whereas by their participation
IN the pact SO states have abolished
the conception Of war as a legitimate
means OF exercising pressure on an
other state in the pursuit of national
policy and have also renounced any
recourse to armed force for the solu-
ton OF international disputes or
conflicts:
l. A signatory state cannot. BY
denunciation or mont observance OF
the pact, release itself from its
obligations hereunder.
4. In the event of violation of
the pact by resort to armed force
or war by one sisnatory state against
another, the other states may, with
out thereby committing a breach of
the pact or of any rule Of interna-
tional law, do all or any of the
following things:
"a Refuse to admit the exercise
by the state violating the pact of
bellieerent rights, such as visit and
search. blockade etc.
tb) Decline to observe towards the
state violating the pact the duties
prescribed by international law.
apart from the pact, for a neutral
in relation to a belligerent;
tc) Supply the state attacked with
financial or material assistance, in
cluoing munitions of war,
i'd Assist with armed forces the
state attacked - ="
Germany is a sisnatory of the
pact. Italy is a signatory of the
pact. Japan is signatory of the
pact. And so are their victims
China. Ethiopia. Austria. Czecho-
slovakia. Poland. Norway, Denmark.
Holland. Belgium. Albania and
Greece.
Dictatorial Power Denied.
This bill. it is said, confers ex-
traordlnary powers upon the Presi-
dent Of the United States In some
respects it does. But will any re-
sponsible person deny that the Ma
ton is confronted by an emergency
Of extraordinary proportions calling
for extraordinary powers?
My whole political philosophy op-
poses the grant Of dictatorial powers
by the Congress to the executive as
well as any abdication Of the liber.
ties insured us by the Bill OF Rights.
But by dictatorial powers I have
always had in mind powers which
belong to the Congress and which
by their nature the Congress could
and should itself directly exercise.
: The extraordinary emergency
which aggressor nations have Gre
ated for this country must be met,
if 1t is to be met at all, from day
to day and with the f1exibility and
effectiveness which ample authority
exercisable from day to day alone
can afford. The Congress can give
the necessary power to deal with
our extraordinary situation. But
obviously it cannot itself deal with
that situation.
Expressing the clear national will,
the Congress BY appropriate le7is-
lation can recognize, as it has al.
ready done. that it regards Britaln's
successful resistance to world domi-
nation as an effort in our own ma
ttonal defense. The Congress can