AT THE HAGUE PEACE CONFERENCE: IV- 1899 325 



Roumanian delegate, who explained to me the trouble 

 in Switzerland over the vote on the Red Cross Confer 

 ence. 



It appears that whereas Switzerland initiated the Bed 

 Cross movement, has ever since cherished it, and has 

 been urged by Italy and other powers to take still fur 

 ther practical measures for it, the Dutch delegation re 

 cently interposed, secured for one of their number the 

 presidency of the special conference, and thus threw out 

 my Berlin colleague, Colonel Eoth, who had been pre 

 viously asked to take the position and had accepted it, 

 with the result that the whole matter has been taken out 

 of the hands of Switzerland, where it justly belonged, 

 and put under the care of the Netherlands. This has pro 

 voked much ill feeling in Switzerland, and there is 

 especial astonishment at the fact that when Beldiman 

 moved an amendment undoing this unjust arrangement 

 it was, by some misunderstanding lost, and that therefore 

 there has been perpetuated what seems much like an in 

 justice against Switzerland. I promised to exert myself 

 to have the matter rectified so far as the American dele 

 gation was concerned, and later was successful in do 

 ing so. 



In the evening dined at Minister Newel s. Sat between 

 Minister Okolicsanyi of the Austrian delegation, and 

 Count Welsersheimb, the chairman of that delegation, and 

 had interesting talks with them, with the Duke of Tetuan, 

 and others. It appears that the Duke, who is a very 

 charming, kindly man, has, like myself, a passion both 

 for cathedral architecture and for organ music ; he dwelt 

 much upon Burgos, which he called the gem of Spanish 

 cathedrals. 



Thence to the final reception at the house of M. de 

 Beaufort, minister of foreign affairs, who showed me 

 a contemporary portrait of Grotius which displays the 

 traits observable in the copies which Burleigh painted 

 for me twenty years ago at Amsterdam and Leyden. 

 Talked with Sir Julian Pauncefote regarding the Swiss 



