Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 11.djvu/661

 PEASANTS

697

PEASANTS

ica to meet in a general congress at Washington on 24 November, 1882, "for the purpose of considering and discussing methods of preventing war between the nations of America". This meeting did not take place owing to a variety of reasons, but subsequently, by virtue of an Act of Congress of the United States an invitation was issued by the president to Mexico, the Central and South American Republics, Hayti, Dominican Repuljlic, and Brazil to join in a conference to be held in the city of Washington, the project being to consider: (1) measures tending to preserve the peace and promote the prosperity of the South Amer- ican States; (2) measures looking to the formation of an American Customs Union; (3) the establishment of regular and frequent communication between the various countries; (4) the establishment of a uniform system of customs regulations, invoices, sanitation of ships, and quarantine; (.5) the adoption of a uniform system of weights and measures, and of laws to pro- tect ]>atent rights, copyrights, and trade marks, and for the extradition of criminals; (6) the adoption of a common silver coin; (7) the adoption of a definite plan of arbitration of all questions, disputes, and dif- ferences; and (8) such other subjects relating to the welfare of the several States as might be presented by any of them. The congress assembled at Washington on 2 October, 1889. Eighteen American nations, in- cluding the United States, had their representatives. The conference adopted a plan of arbitration of in- ternational differences, together with various recom- mendations relating to trade, law, extradition, patents, customs, and sanitary regulations. It further de- clared arbitration to be a principle of American International Law and obligatory "in all controver- sies concerning diplomatic and consular privileges, boundaries, territories, indemnities, the right of navigation, and the validity, construction and en- forcement of treaties; and that it should be equally obligatory in all other cases, whatever might be their origin, nature or object, with the sole exception of those which in the judgment of one of the nations involved in the controversy, might imperil its inde- pendence; but that even in this case, while arbitration for that nation should be optional, it should be obli- gatory on the adversary power" (7 Moore Int. Law Dig. p. 7). One notable result of the conference was the establishment of the Bureau of the American Republics. All the republics of South America are represented in this bureau, which continues for periods of ten years subject to renewal.

II. L.\TEST Developments. — A. Firsl Hague Con- ference. — On 12 August, 1898, in a circular letter ad- dressed to the representatives of different nations, the Emperor of Russia proposed to all governments, which had duly accredited representatives at the imperial couit, tlie holding of a conference to consider the prob- lem of the preservation of peace among nations. Dur- ing the summer of 1900 the conference assembled at The Hague and on 4 Sept. formal notification of the ratification of the convention for the pacific settle- ment of international disputes was given by the United States, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Italy, Persia, Portugal, Rumania, Russia, Siam, Spain, Sweden, Norway, and the Netherlands, and subsequently by .Japan. A permanent court of arbitration was established at The Hague, composed of representatives of each of the signatory powers ap- pointed for a term of six years. Arbitrators called upon to form a competent tribunal may be chosen from a general list of the members of the court when any of the signatory powers desire to have recourse to the court for a settlement of any difference between them.

The South and Central American republics were not represented at the conference, but at the second International Conference of .American States which was initiated by President McKinley and held in the

City of Mexico, 22 October, 1901, to 31 January, 1902, a plan was adopted looking to adhesion to The Hague convention, the protocol being signed by all of the dele- gations except Chili and Ecuador, who subsequently gave their adhesion. The conference authorized the Governments of the United States and Mexico to negotiate with the other signatory powers for the ad- herence of other American nations. At this confer- ence the project of a treaty for the arbitration of pecuniary claims was adopted, and the signatories agreed for a term of five years to submit to arbitration (preferably to the permanent court at The Hague) all claims for pecuniary loss or damage presented by their respective citizens and not capable of settlement through cli|ilomatic channels, where they were of suf- ficient iiiipiiitance to warrant the expense of a court of arbitration.

B. Second Hague Conference. — A second interna- tional iieace conference was held at The Hague from 15 June to IS October, 1907. Forty-four States were represented, including the principal nations of Eu- rope, North and South America, and Asia. The con- ference drew up thirteen conventions and one declara- tion. They are as follows: for the pacific settlement of international disputes; respecting the limitation of the employment of force for the recovery of contract debts; relative to the opening of hostilities; respecting the laws and customs of war on land ; respecting the rights and duties of neutral powers and persons in case of war on land; relative to the status of enemy merchant- ships at the outbreak of hostilities; relative to the con- version of merchant-ships into war-ships; relative to the laying of automatic submarine contact mines; re- specting bombardment by naval forces in time of war; for the adaptation to naval war of the principles of the Geneva convention; relative to certain restrictions with regard to the exercise of the right of capture in naval war; relative to the creation of an International Prize Court; concerning the rights and duties of neu- tral powers in naval war; and a declaration prohibit- ing the discharge of projectiles and explosives from balloons.

The movement towards the settlement of interna- tional difficulties by arbitration has made great ad- vances, as will be seen by the foregoing summary. None, however, have attempted to settle by such methods any questions which may touch upon "the vital interests, the independence or the honour" of the different States.

President Taft, in a recent address, has made a plea for negotiation even of the excepted questions, so that there may be an "adjudication of an international ar- bitration court in every issue which cannot be settled by negotiation no matter what it involves, whether honour, territory or money ". The public sentiment of the world upon this subject is crystallizing, and an- other decade may witness results perhaps even more far-reaching than those that have been already attained.

Balch, The New Cyneas of Emeric Cruci (Philadelphia. 1909); Idem, Crwce, VHolldion deVaTbitrage internatwial; Moore, Inter- national Law (from this work the facts relating to American peace congresses have been taken) : Moore. Digest of International Law; Wilson, Hand Book of International Law (St. Paul. Minn., 1910); Scott. Text of the Peace Conference at The Hague 1907-1909: Hio- oiNs, The Hague Peace Conference.

Walter George Smith.

Peasants, War of the (1524-2.5), a revolt of the peasants of southern and central Germany, the causes of which are disputed as a result of religious and politi- cal prejudice. At present the opinion prevails that the revolt was brought about mainly by economic die- tress. The conditions which must here be taken into consideration arc the following. Vp to the end of the fourteenth century the peasants enjoyed a relatively advantageous position, even though they did not own their land in fee simple, but held it at a rental, either hereditary or fixed for certain periods. Conditions,