Part 6

The second aim should be to prevent the sudden outbreak of war on account of a political dispute and to insist on an opportunity for mediation. For this reason the League should stipulate that every State, previous to resorting to arms over a political dispute, must submit it to an International Council of Conciliation and must at any rate listen to the advice of such Council.

The third aim should be to provide a sanction for the enforcement of the two rules just mentioned. For this reason the League should stipulate that all the member States of the League must unite their economic, military, and naval forces against such member or members as would resort to arms either on account of a judicial dispute which ought to have been settled by an International Court of Justice, or on account of a political dispute without previously having submitted it to an International Council of Conciliation and listened to the latter's advice.

These should be, in my opinion, the three aims of a League of Nations and the three rules necessary for the realisation of these aims. However, it is not so easy to realise them, and it is therefore necessary to face and solve four problems: There is, firstly, the problem of the Organisation of the League; secondly, the problem of Legislation within the League; thirdly, the problem of Administration of Justice within the League; and fourthly, the problem of Mediation within the League--four problems which I shall discuss in the two following lectures.

I have only named three aims and four problems because I have in my mind those aims which are the nearest and those problems which are the most pressing and the most urgent. The range of vision of the League of Nations, when once established, will no doubt gradually become wider and wider; new aims will arise and new problems will demand solution, but all such possible future aims and future problems are outside the scope of these lectures.

SECOND LECTURE

ORGANISATION AND LEGISLATION OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS

SYNOPSIS

I. The Community of civilised States, the at present existing League of Nations, is a community without any organisation, although there are plenty of legal rules for the intercourse of the several States one with another.

II. The position of the Great Powers within the Community of States is a mere political fact not based on Law.

III. The pacifistic demand for a Federal World State in order to make the abolition of war a possibility.

IV. Every attempt at organising the desired new League of Nations must start from, and keep intact, the independence and equality of the several States, with the consequence that the establishment of a central political authority above the sovereign States is an impossibility.

V. The development of an organisation of the Community of States began before the outbreak of the World War and is to be found in the establishment of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at the Hague by the First Hague Peace Conference of 1899. But more steps will be necessary to turn the hitherto unorganised Community of States into an organised League of Nations.

VI. The organisation of the desired new League of Nations should start from the beginning made by the Hague Peace Conferences, and the League should therefore include all the independent civilised States.

VII. The objection to the reception of the Central Powers, and of Germany especially, into the League.

VIII. The objection to the reception of the minor transoceanic States into the League.

IX. The seven principles which ought to be accepted with regard to the organisation of the new League of Nations.

X. The organisation of the League of Nations is not an end in itself but only a means of attaining three objects, the first of which is International Legislation. The meaning of the term 'International Legislation' in contradistinction to Municipal Legislation. International Legislation in the past and in the future.

XI. The difficulty in the way of International Legislation on account of the language question.

XII. The difficulty created by the conflicting national interests of the several States.

XIII. The difficulty caused by the fact that International Statutes cannot be created by a majority vote of the States. The difference between universal and general International Law offers a way out.

XIV. The difficulty created by the fact that there are as yet no universally recognised rules concerning interpretation and construction of International Statutes and ordinary conventions. The notorious Article 23(h) of the Hague Regulations concerning Land Warfare.

THE LECTURE

I. In my first lecture on the League of Nations I recommended the following three rules to be laid down by a League of Nations:

Firstly, every State must submit all judicial disputes to an International Court of Justice and must abide by the judgment of such Court.

Secondly, every State previous to resorting to arms, must submit every political and non-judicial dispute to an International Council of Conciliation and must at any rate listen to the advice of such Council.

Thirdly, the member States must unite their forces against such State or States as should resort to arms without previously having submitted the matter in dispute to an International Court of Justice or to an International Council of Conciliation.

And I added that these three rules cannot create a satisfactory condition of affairs unless four problems are faced and solved, namely: The Organisation of the League, Legislation by the League, Administration of Justice and Mediation within the League. My lecture to-day will deal with two of these problems, namely the Organisation and the Legislation of the League.

Let us first consider the Organisation of the League. Hitherto the body of civilised States which form the Family of Nations and which, as I pointed out in my first lecture, is really a League of Nations evolved by custom, has been an unorganised Community. This means that, although there are plenty of legal rules for the intercourse of the several States one with another, the Community of civilised States does not possess any permanently established organs or agents for the conduct of its common affairs. At present these affairs, if they are peaceably settled, are either settled by ordinary diplomatic negotiation or, if the matter is pressing and of the greatest importance, by temporarily convened International Conferences or Congresses.