AT THE HAGUE PEACE CONFERENCE: IV-1899 319 



June 22. 



Up at four o clock and at ten attended a session of the 

 first section at the House in the Wood. Very interest 

 ing were the discussions regarding bullets and asphyx 

 iating bombs. As to the former, Sir John Ardagh of 

 the British delegation repelled earnestly the charges 

 made regarding the British bullets used in India, and of 

 fered to substitute for the original proposal one which 

 certainly would be much more effective in preventing 

 unnecessary suffering and death; but the Eussians 

 seemed glad to score a point against Great Britain, and 

 Sir John s proposal was voted down, its only support 

 being derived from our own delegation. Captain Cro- 

 zier, our military delegate, took an active part in sup 

 porting Sir John Ardagh, but the majority against us 

 was overwhelming. 



As to asphyxiating bombs, Captain Mahan spoke at 

 length against the provision to forbid them: his ground 

 being that not the slightest thing had yet been done look 

 ing to such an invention; that, even if there had been, 

 their use would not be so bad as the use of torpedoes 

 against ships of war; that asphyxiating men by means 

 of deleterious gases was no worse than asphyxiating them 

 with water; indeed, that the former was the less dan 

 gerous of the two, since the gases used might simply in 

 capacitate men for a short time, while the blowing up of 

 a ship of war means death to all or nearly all of those 

 upon it. 



To this it was answered and, as it seemed to me, with 

 force that asphyxiating bombs might be used against 

 towns for the destruction of vast numbers of non-combat 

 ants, including women and children, while torpedoes at 

 sea are used only against the military and naval forces 

 of the enemy. The original proposal was carried by 

 a unanimous vote, save ours. I am not satisfied with 

 our attitude on this question; but what can a layman 

 do when he has against him the foremost contempo 

 rary military and naval experts? My hope is that the 



