ORAL ARGUMENT OF CHRISTOPHER ROBINSON, Q. C. 601 



property which would make him a trustee, and I am also aware, as a 

 general rule, that people would rather not be trustees ; but I do not 

 understand a trust, the nature of which trust is to sell the property to 

 the cestuis que trust, and to fix your own price upon it. Then it is not 

 a price, recollect, to be regulated by what it may cost the trustee for 

 the performance of his trust, what it may cost him out of pocket, or for 

 his time required to perform the duties of the trust. On the contrary, 

 I find in Mr. Palmer's letter that 18 mojiths before he wrote, it was 

 generally supposed this property would pay to the trustees an interest 

 on the outlay of two thousand per cent. 



Now, under these circumstances, is it any wonder that other nations, 

 contrary to all the usual rule in trusts — because if there is one thing 

 better known about trusts than another, it is that a trust is said to be 

 an onerous and thankless office, which every one is unwilling to under- 

 take, and which everybody is anxious to escape from — surely if is no 

 wonder that the other nations of the world, and England in particular, 

 are very anxious to range themselves among the trustees in this case, 

 rather than to be numbered among the cestuis que trust. It is a very 

 unusual case, but it is the case here. England says, "I would rather 

 help you in discharging the benefits of this trust to the world. I would 

 infinitely rather assist you and be trustee, than retain the position 

 which you are good enough to assign me of cestui que trusW^ Is there 

 any reason why she should not do it? 



However this may present itself, in whatever almost ludicrous aspect, 

 is there anything contrary to the facts. Is not that the exact nature 

 .of the trust which the United States are assuming; and they are 

 assuming that trust upon the plea that they are conferring blessings 

 upon mankind. This is certainly the most attractive form of philan- 

 thropy ever heard of, and all men would be very glad to practice it if 

 they only could get the opi)ortunity. To assume the trusteeship of a 

 property out of which you make a thousand i)er cent, and have at the 

 same time the blessing of an approving conscience and the satisfaction 

 of conferring blessings on ihe world, is a thing very desirable, if it can 

 be attained by law. But it is no wonder that other nations think that 

 this trusteeship, so peculiar in its character, and peculiar in its bene- 

 fits, should not be altogether assumed by the United States. 



Then how is the performance of this trust to be enforced? It is care- 

 fully stated that it is beyond question. Perhajjs I had better read that 

 sentence, because I do not wish to over- state or under-state anything. 

 At page 92 of the United States Argument, it is said : 



It is in the highest and truest sense a trust for the benefit of mankind. The 

 United States acknowledge the trust and have hitherto discharged it. Can anything 

 he clearer as a moral, and under natural laws, a legal obligation than the duty of 

 other nations to refrain from any action which will prevent or impede the perform- 

 ance of that trust? 



At page 59 the same subject is recurred to, and at page 61 it is said: 



It is the characteristic of a trust that it is obligatory, and that in case of a 

 refusal or neglect to perform it, such performance may be compelled, or the trustee 

 removed and a more wortliy custodian selected as the depositary of the trust. 



Now, let me ask in all seriousness — for that must be meant seriously 

 or it is not meant at all — supposing Great Britain, as the most largely 

 interested of the cestuis que trusts, should believe, and have good reason 

 to believe, that the United States were unfaithful trustees; that they 

 were wasting the trust pro|)erty ; that they were mismanaging it; that 

 they were not conferring the blessings upon Great Britain in particu- 

 lar — for I do not think she would trouble herself much about the rest of 



