RELIGIOUS ENCYCLOPEDIA
Peaoe Movements
the subject of armaments and their growing burdens, there was great skepticism and pessimism as to the prospect of any good coming of his proposals. Even his second rescript, sent out in the 9. First following January, did not remove Hague this feeling. Largely out of courtesy Conference, to the czar, as the head of a great 1899. and powerful nation, the governments of the twenty-six powers which had been invited to send delegates to a conference one by one accepted the invitation. On May 18, 1899, the delegates of these governments, about 100 in number, met at The Hague. There was a general feeling among them when they arrived, that little would come except the decent burial of the czar's proposals. This feeling, however, did not continue long. From all parts of Western Europe and the United States, especially those sections where the peace movement had developed most, telegrams, cablegrams, memorials, and private letters urging upon the conference the necessity of doing something to establish a substitute for war in dealing with international differences began to arrive at The Hague in immense volume. Several days were devoted by the delegations and by the president of the conference to the reception and consideration of these messages, which represented the wishes of great numbers of the most intelligent citizens of the different countries from which they came. The result was that the skepticism as to results disappeared, and the conference set itself diligently to work to accomplish the task which had been given it by the mandate of powerful pacific public opinion. After ten weeks of most patient and careful study, three conventions were signed and sent to the governments for their ratification. The most important of these was that for the pacific settlement of international controversies, under which provision was made for the establishment of a Permanent International Court of Arbitration. After two years this convention was ratified by a majority of the twenty-six powers (subsequently by all of them except Turkey and Montenegro) and the Court of Arbitration was declared to be duly established and ready for business. In spite of the skepticism which still prevailed in all ihe countries which participated in the conference, as to whether anything further would ever come of the Court of Arbitration, in due time the United States and Mexico called the tribunal into operation by an agreement to refer to it the long-standing dispute about the Pious Fund of the Californias. The speedy and inexpensive settlement of this dispute cleared away for the most part the skepticism which bad prevailed, and in due time other disputes were referred to the court for adjustment. The settlement of these controversies called to the bar of the eourt nearly all of the great powers.
The large and unexpected success of the work of the First Hague Conference soon led to the feeling among the friends of peace that another should be held to continue and complete its work. This wish was voiced particularly by the Interparliamentary Union at its session at St. Louis in 1904. The result was that, on the initiative of the government of the United States, the second peace con-
ference was assembled by the czar, and met at The Hague in June, 1907. This conference showed great advance over the first. Whereas
only twenty-six powers had been re-
10. Second presented in 1899, forty-four, or practi-
Hague cally all of the important powers of
Conference, the world, sent representatives. It
1907. was essentially a world assembly. For
the first time in history all the nations of the earth, with the exception of two or three unimportant ones, had met in council to consider the important problems affecting their common interests, and to develop still further the foundations of universal and perpetual peace among them. The men who composed this conference had been selected from among the ablest ambassadors, ministers plenipotentiary, and jurists of their respective countries. In its results this conference went much beyond what had been accomplished by the first. The convention for the pacific settlement of controversies was revised, enlarged from sixty-two to ninety-seven articles, and much strengthened, and the nations which had not been represented at the first conference became parties to it. The Court of Arbitration has become a world court open to all of the powers on equal terms. Of the other conventions signed by the second Hague conference the more important from the point of view of the peace movement are: That forbidding the collection of contractual debts by force until arbitration has first been tried or refused; that prohibiting the bombardment from the sea of unfortified coast cities, towns, and ports; one making the international mail service immune from disturbance during war time; another neutralizing coast fishing fleets; another making the territory of neutrals inviolable; still another forbidding the throwing of projectiles and explosives from balloons. All these agreements are strictly peace pacts. They exclude war and its destructiveness from certain very important fields. The other conventions, which deal with the laws and customs of war on land and sea, as to the opening of hostilities, the laying of mines, the conversion of merchant into war vessels, the duties of neutrals, etc., are all of a nature to make the commencement of hostilities more difficult and to restrict their violence after they have begun. The international prize court, provided for by the conference, has been considered by some a very notable achievement. In case a war breaks out hereafter, this court, as one of final appeal, will take the passing of final judgment upon prizes captured out of the power of the captor and put it into the hands of a disinterested international tribunal. The interests of justice will thereby be served even in time of war, and whatever promotes impartial justice tends to the further discrediting of violence and the final suppression of war. The great accomplishments, however, of the conference of 1907 were outside of the formal conventions signed. The delegations voted without a dissenting voice for periodical meetings of the conference hereafter, determined the time of the next meeting, and recommended the creation of an international commission, two years in advance, to prepare the program. This means,
Peace Movements Pearson, John