The Auckland Star: WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News and The Echo. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 1924. ARBITRATION AND PEACE.

Auckland Star, Volume 55, Issue 212, 6 September 1924, Page 6

The Auckland Star: WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News and The Echo.

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 1924. ARBITRATION AND PEACE.

For the cause that lacks assistance, For the terong that needs resistance, For the future in the distance, And the pood that «r< can do.

Whatever may be thought of certain aspects of Mr. Ramsay MaeDonald's attitude towards the League of Xations, it is certain that the British Prime Minister sympathises with the objects of the League, and that he is anxious to promote co-operation between the Powers to secure the world's peace. His visit to Geneva to attend the League of Xations Assembly is a sufficient indication of his attitude, and his proposal for an international Court of Arbitration, as expounded at Geneva, shows that he is earnestly desirous of utilising the opportunity thus afforded to promote, as immediately and effectually as possible, the great cause of international peace. It seems to us that Mr. MaeDonald's attempt to revive public interest in International Arbitration is well-timed and opportune. For the enthusiasm aroused, by President Wilson's eloquent advocacy of the League of Nations project in the first place tended to obscure the immense practical difficulties in the way, and on the other hand induced most people to forget all about Arbitration and the inestimable services that it Kad actually rendered to peace and civilisation in the past. Aa a matter of fact, Arbitration as a means of settling peacefully international disputes and thereby averting war has been frequently employed during the past cen- i tury. Between 1820 and IS4O eight such difficulties were settled by Arbitration; between 1840 and 1880 74 questions were ■thu3 settled; and between ISSO and 1900 no less than 90 disputes, any one of which \ might have become dangerous if not tactfully handled, were thus peacefully arranged. When the Hague Conference, summoned by the late Czar in 1898, had established the Hague Tribunal, which began its activities in 1900, nearly all the civilised States in the world were ready to avail themselves of its services. As early as IS9B a treaty had been arranged between Italy arid the Argentine pledging the two countries to refer to Arbitration every subject of controversy for which such a method of settlement seemed suitable. But a more important step in the same direction was taken by Britain andj France in 1904, when, by the Anglo-French Agreement, the two countries not only definitely settled all outstanding differences, but pledged themselves to submit to Arbitration every dispute that might arise not affecting the honour or jeopardising the existence of the nations. So potent was the example thus given that within the next six years—that is, up to 1910—over 100 treaties of this type were signed between various countries and States. There were, however, two formidable obstacles to be faced by the advocates of International Arbitration. There was, first, the determined opposition of Germany and Austria, which resolutely set themselves against all attempts to supersede by peaceful methods of settlement "the dread arbitrament of war." And there was so far always a means of evading arbitration left open in all these treaties,by the exclusion of questions affecting the national safety and honour. To obviate this the Hague Conference at its second session in 1907 drafted 24 schedules to include all possible types of international dispute?, and suggested means for dealing with them. But Germany and Austria negatived every one of the proposals on the list, and thus the experiment failed. The Conference then suggested that in' cases affecting "vital interest" or "honour" the parties to the controversy should agree to submit their cause to an independent commission and should bind themselves to take no action till its report had been presented and discussed. This scheme was derided at the time as Utopian, but it actually bore rruit in 1914, after the Great War had begun. For in that year the UDited States concluded with Britain and France two remarkable treaties by which the contracting parties bound themselves to utilise Arbitration to the utmost possible limit. All disputes not capable of being settled by ordinary Arbitration methods are to be submitted to an international commission selected by the parties concerned; the commission is to report within twelve months, aud the contracting parties bind themselves not to commit any act of hostility till the report is submitted and considered. If only these principles had been universally adopted the Great War need never have come! And we can hardly wonder that Mr. MaeDonald, realising a3 he must the tremendous difficulties that- are to be overcome before the League of Nations can function effectively, should be inclined to favour the old and well-tried method of averting war rather than the new.