INTERNATIONAL COURT—PROPOSAL FOR. It is necessary to devise means for putting the collectiveand efficient strength of all the great powers of civilization back of any well behaved power which iswronged by another power. In other words, we must devise means for executing treaties in good faith, by the establishment of some great international tribunal, and by securing the enforcement of the decrees of this tribunal through the action of a posse comitatus of powerful and civilized nations, all of them being bound by solemn agreement to coerce any power that offends
____________. All the civilized powers which are ableand willing to furnish and to use force, when force isrequired to back up righteousness and only the civilized powers who possess virile manliness ofcharacter and the willingness to accept risk and laborwhen necessary to the performance of duty are entitled to be considered in this matter should join to create an international tribunal and to provide rules in accordance with which that tribunal should act. These rules wouldhave to accept the status quo at some given period; forthe endeavor to redress all historical wrongs wouldthrow us back into chaos. They would lay down the rulethat the territorial integrity of each nation was inviolate;that it was to be guaranteed absolutely its sovereignrights in certain particulars, including, for instance, theright to decide the terms on which immigrants shouldbe admitted to its borders for purposes of residence, citizenship, or business; in short, all its rights in mattersaffecting its honor and vital interest. Each nation should be guaranteed against having any of these specified rights infringed upon. They would not be made arbitrable, any more than an individual's right to lifeand limb is made arbitrable; they would be mutuallyguaranteed. All other matters that could arise between these nations should be settled by the international court. The judges should act not as national representatives, but purely as judges, and in any given case it would probably be well to choose them by lot, excluding, of course, the representatives of the powers whose interests were concerned. Then, and mostimportant, the nations should severally guarantee to usetheir entire military force, if necessary, against any nation which defied the decrees of the tribunal or whichviolated any of the rights which in the rules it was expressly stipulated should be reserved to the severalnations, the rights to their territorial integrity and thelike. . . .In addition to the contracting powers, a certain number of outside nations should be named as entitled to the benefits of the court. These nations should be chosen from those which are ascivilized and well-behaved as the great contracting nations, but which, for some reason or other, are unwilling or unable to guarantee to help execute thedecrees of the court by force. They Would have no rightto take part in the nomination of judges, for no peopleare entitled to do anything toward establishing a courtunless they are able and willing to face the risk, labor,and self-sacrifice necessary in order to put police powerbehind the court. But they would be treated with exactjustice; and in the event of any one of the greatcontracting powers having trouble with one of them,they would be entitled to go into court, have a decisionrendered, and see the decision supported, precisely as inthe case of a dispute between any two of the greatcontracting powers themselves. . . . [In addition] thereare various . . . states which have never been entitled tothe consideration as civilized, orderly, self-respectingpowers which would entitle them to be treated on termsof equality in the fashion indicated. As regards thesedisorderly and weak outsiders, it might well be thatafter a while some method would be devised to dealwith them by common agreement of the civilizedpowers; but until this was devised and put intoexecution they would have to be left as at present.Of course, grave difficulties would be encounteredin devising such a plan and in administering itafterward, and no human being can guarantee that itwould absolutely succeed. But I believe that it could bemade to work and that it would mark a very greatimprovement over what obtains now. (Independent,January 4, 1915.) Mem. Ed. XX, 184-187; Nat. Ed.XVIII, 158-161.