268 BALCH— INTERNATIONAL QUESTIONS 



the future political development and power in the world of either 

 party to the cause of difference. To the latter group belong all the 

 cases of difference upon whose solution depends the future political 

 power and prestige in the world of one or more of the contesting 

 nations. 



As far back at least as the first suggestion of the Geneva Tri- 

 bunal, discerning jurists and publicists had appreciated that the cases 

 of disagreement which arose between nations naturally separated 

 into these two groups of cases, the first of which is more strictly 

 legal, and the second of which is more strictly political. And as 

 more and more of the former class of cases, that is legal cases, were 

 successfully referred for settlement to international tribunals named 

 ad Jioc, while at the same time cases of the second group, that is 

 political cases, were referred to the arbitrament of war, the vital 

 difference between these two classes of international cases became 

 apparent to an ever-growing number of jurists. And the present 

 war should make it clear to every one possessed of ordinary common 

 sense, that as the social organism of the world is now constituted, 

 there can be no hope of eliminating all wars. For where it becomes 

 not a question of which of two nations or groups of nations is 

 right, according to the rules and usages of the law between nations, 

 but which of such contestants shall have the power to map out the 

 political policy of a larger or smaller portion of the world in its 

 own interest, a judicial court, even were a supreme court of the 

 world in existence, could not decide which side was the stronger. 

 All that a court of law can do is to decide which contestant is right 

 according to the law. And between municipal and international 

 tribunals there is this radical difference at present ; that back of the 

 former there is the whole police anci military force of the state of 

 which any given court is an organ to enforce the judgment of that 

 court. While back of an international tribunal to-day there is only 

 the public opinion of the world, and the military power of one of 

 the contestants, or one group of contestants to any case to insure 

 the acceptance of the decision. And if the last sanction is invoked 

 it means a return to the original arbitrament of war. 



To designate these two great classes of cases mto which the 

 questions of difference arising between nations naturally seem to 



