AMERICA AS THE DEFENDER OF NEUTRAL RIGHTS. 



By L. S. Rowe>, Ph.D., LL.D. 

 {Read April 13, 1916.) 



To the historian of international law, the year 191 5 will stand 

 forth as marking a crisis in the development of the spirit of legality, 

 similar in many respects to the crisis of the early years of the nine- 

 teenth century. It is too early to predict the condition in which our 

 system of international law will emerge from the present conflict, 

 but it is evident that this condition will depend in large part on the 

 attitude and policy of America. It is no less clear that at the close 

 of the present struggle the system of international law must be sub- 

 jected to revision of a far-reaching character. The lack of har- 

 mony between the rules of international law and the conditions of 

 modern warfare has been a source of constant irritation, and it is of 

 great importance to the world's peace that these causes of irritation 

 be removed. 



Whatever may be the nature of these changes, it is evident that 

 the pressing, immediate problem is to preserve the existing fabric 

 of international law, and to await the termination of the war before 

 any radical changes are undertaken. The civilized world, and par- 

 ticularly the neutral nations, look to America to assume the leader- 

 ship in the performance of this world service. That the United 

 States is called upon to play an important part in the performance of 

 this service is attested by the contributions of this country to the 

 development of international law during the nineteenth century. 

 These contributions point the way to the larger role which we are 

 now called upon to play. 



We sometimes take for granted that there is an inherent and in- 

 evitable tendency of international law constantly to develop toward a 

 higher and higher plane, and forget that there have been several 

 periods in history during which the achievements of one epoch have 

 been sacrificed by its successor. The shifting of the equilibrium of 



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