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Show 108 IO9 If this estimate is correct, can any one even attempt to meas» ure the blessings which might be purchased with the money which has been spent in even a few of the world's greatest wars ?- ‘hhuw lmmhnl'l INUIH "It is startlingr to think," says Dr. Trueblood, "what the world might have been economically at the opening of the present century if the war system could have been done away with a hundred years ago, a system of pacific settlement of disputes and of gen- eral international co-operation adopted and the 14,000,000 vounrr men slain in the wars of the century saved to their ditleren: countries. Their earning power, at $300 each per year, would have been $5,000,000,ooo, a sum equal to nearly twice the entire estimated wealth of the United States, and fully equal to the combined wealth of Great Britain (colonies excluded), France Germany, Russia and Austria-Hungary." , In the past half century the world has doubled in populat ion btit the expenditures for war purposes and its indebtedness attribu: table to wars have quadrupled The various nations of the world have now by far the greatest and most expensi ve naval and military organizations in the history of the world. Shall civilization, which dared to grapple to the death all these other evils, shrink from her duty here and now? Shall war at last prove conqueror and the god of battle ever rule the hearts ot men? However fierce war is, can we not find a greater power wherewith to conquer? livery established evil which has been suppressed has been compelled to yield to a more powerful influence. The influence which is destined to undermine militari sm and the spirit of war is that of arbitration. That war is unnecessary is becoming' a universal sentiment. That it may be obviated by arbitration has been repeatedly illustrated. Today as never before the world is not only thinkingr and talking arbitration, but is exercxsin;r it in settling national disputes. Arbitration in international matters has within the past few years moved forward with rapid strides. I . A recent issue of The Advocate of [More makes, the follmvint,r important statement concerning arbitration: hu"(I13:12:31]:hitrlleCiU:1Hie Treaty of Ghent, 18H, about two ‘ , g t inteinational controversies have been settled, or an average of three a year for the whole period of ninety years. More than sixty of these were in the decade from 1890 to 1900, and twenty-one of them have occurred since the twentieth century opened. So common has the practice of arbitration become in recent years that cases are nowadays constantly pending between some of the nations, there being several at the present time. "The United States has been a party to nearly sixty of these settlements, Great Britain to more than . wenty, while fourteen of the cases have been between these two Eng‘lish-speakingr nations alone. "France, Spain, Germany, Portugal, ltaly, Holland, Den- mark, Belgium, Greece, Turkey, Russia, Switzerland, Japan, Afghanistan, Persia, China, Morocco, Mexico and Liberia have each been parties to one or more of these settlements. l'rance with over thirty cases comingr next to the United States and Great iritain. Nearly all the South and Central American States have had arbitrations." Again in a later issue it is said: "The treaties of obligatory arbitration signed by ex-Sccretai‘y Root duringr tookioor) were with France, Switzerland, ltaly, Mexico, Great liritain. Norway, Portugal, Spain, The Netherlands, Sweden, japan, China, Peru, Salvador, the Argentine Republic, l'mlivia, Ecuador, Haiti, l'ru« guay. Chile, Costa Rica, Austria-llungary and Brazil, twenty» three in all. and signed in the order given above. Two of them were signed in February, 1908. two in March, [our in April, three in May, one in October, three in December and eight in January this year. Of these treaties, the first eleven have been ratified by both the Senate and the President, and ratifications exchanged with the foreign powers and the treaties proclaimed. The remain- ing twelve have been ratified by the President and the Senate. but ratifications have not yet been exchanged. These twelve treaties were ratified by President Roosevelt on March I, three days before his term of office expired. "It is expected that the ratifications will be exchanged and the treaties proclaimed by President Taft at an early date. It will be noticed that as yet no treaties have been concluded with Russia and Germany, though it is expected that a treaty with Germany will be announced at an early date." These numerous arbitrations and peaceful settlements, embody- |