148 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY 



than four members, who must be learned in international law. If a 

 dispute occurs the disputants select two of these four from each country, 

 or others not permanent members. These parties choose an umpire, 

 and the settlement is to progress according to stipulated arrangements 

 of procedure. So by this conference a world tribunal was established. 



Strange to say, the nations did not submit any cases for arbitra- 

 tion in this court until the year 1902. To the present time five cases 

 have been submitted. The first was the Pious Fund Case, 1902. This 

 concerned a dispute over the disposition of a fund created for the 

 support of certain missions in Mexico. In 1697 the Jesuits in Mexico 

 had collected a fund for their monastic and missionary enterprises. 

 After the abolition of the order of Jesuits in 1768, the government 

 seized the property of the Pious Fund, but distributed its income 

 among the missions concerned. After California became a part of the 

 United States, these annual payments were not made to the missions 

 in California. Our government protested on the part of the missions 

 concerned, but to no avail. Finally, both departments of state con- 

 cluded to let the matter be judged by the Hague Tribunal, and there 

 the award was given to the claimants of the United States. Mexico 

 was asked to pay the arrears and to continue the regular annual pay- 

 ments. Another case was between Venezuela, on the one hand, and 

 a number of European countries and the United States, on the other. 

 The chief facts of the case are the following: Owing to numerous 

 revolutions in Venezuela, the government was heavily in debt and was 

 unable to meet its financial obligations to European and American 

 creditors. Venezuela disagreed as to the amount to be paid and wanted 

 time to reorganize her finances. Several of the European countries 

 brought pressure to bear on Venezuela with little success. Finally, 

 it was decided to arbitrate the claims at The Hague. This was accom- 

 plished in February, 1904. The claims in the aggregate did not amount 

 to very much, but the precedent was very important. Decisions in the 

 other three cases have not yet been rendered. 



Fully as important as the cases which have been submitted to the 

 Hague Tribunal is the recent agreement of Norway and Sweden. In 

 drawing up the final terms which provided for the peaceful separation 

 of Norway and Sweden, those two powers agreed for a period of ten 

 years to submit to the Hague Tribunal all matters of dispute, except 

 those which affect the independence, integrity and vital interests of 

 either. Similar treaties of arbitration have been drawn up by the 

 other powers, but this treaty differs from the others in one important 

 respect. In the other treaties either party decides whether the point 

 in dispute is of vital interest or not. In the case of Norway and 

 Sweden, the Hague Tribunal decides whether the point in dispute is of 

 such vital importance as can not be decided justly by the tribunal. 



