I ^^cL.<^i ^r/^ ^ THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS STARTS MACMILLAN AND CO., Limited LONDON • BOMBAV • CALCUTTA • MADRAS MELBOURNB THE MACMILLAN COMPANY NEW YORK • BOSTON - CHICAGO DALLAS • SAN FRANCISCO THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. TORONTO THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS STARTS AN OUTLINE BY ITS ORGANISERS MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON 1920 ii , r COPYRIGHT FOREWORD The League of Nations is commonly spoken of as if it were a closely knit, compact entity, directed by a clearly defined individuality. It is almost never visualised as a co-operative association wherein the nations seek to overcome their mutual differences by means of a complex organization ramifying through many fields of international interest. We speak of " The League " much as we speak of " England " or " Italy," but whereas with individual countries the appellation con- notes aU the separate actions of government, in the case of the League, unfortunately, it brings to mind merely a single, very general, abstract principle. If this error is natural because of the extreme newness of the League, it is none the less dangerous because -of the tendency which it fosters to prevent our analysing the actual structure and method of operation of the League. Just as it is essential to the success of national governments to under- stand exactly what their duties and powers are, so, but to a still greater degree, is it essential to know what are the duties and powers of a League embracing most of the civilised world. The League, indeed, can be analysed in just the same way as any other human association. It has its plenary organiza- tion, its executive committee, its permanent staff, its Court, and its special departments of health, labour, armaments, ; vi THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS communications, finance, and information. To understand it, we must understand the elements which go together to compose it. Such a study of international machinery is, of course, absolutely new. Until the creation of the League of Nations, there existed hardly enough international activity to make it worth while. Within the past twelve months, however, there has evolved an international structure which, if still very incomplete, is yet sufficient to satisfy the general desire to know by what processes the nations of the world will eventu- ally be brought into federation. Even to-day, we may see the oak in the seed. Wholly apart, however, from the novelty and interest attaching to what may well become the most ambitious political movement ever attempted, a very real end is to be served in the bringing forth of constructive criticism. The present League of Nations is admittedly imperfect ; it satisfies its friends hardly more than it satisfies its enemies ; it has been launched on a long career of evolution and development it is faced by obstacles which at times seem insuperable ; yet it cannot be doubted that the main ideas underlying it must be made in one form or another to succeed. That can be done only by the intelligent, constructive suggestion of those who believe in it. There will always be a plethora of hostile critics, of selfish interests, of narrow- minded individuals, to endeavour to cripple and destroy it, for it is now obvious that the spirit underlying the League of Nations is dangerously far in advance of present day practice. There remains for its friends, then, the task of aiding, guiding, and counselling the League into the channels which correspond with the world's better interests. Only disaster can come from the attitude of sitting comfortably back with the thought FOREWORD vii that the League is now launched and has but to go its own way to success. The League will undoubtedly meet with many set-backs ; that must clearly be foreseen. Complete success is altogether too much to expect of any human association, especially in the political field. The fair measure to apply to the League is to ask, not if it has done everything that lay open to it to do, but rather, if its creation has made the world a little better than it used to be. In other words, we must strike a broad average of accomplishment for the League, just as we strike a broad average of accomplishment for a national government. If we do not hold the latter a complete failure for not having averted crime or suppressed corruption, so we must give the League that same generous allowance for human fallibility, remembering above all else that it is but at the beginning of its development. With these general ideas in mind, a number of men, familiar with both the broad policies and the detailed development of the League, have written a series of chapters, each on his own particular field, showing exactly how the League is organised and is functioning in its various activities. It is the hope ofthe writers that this analytical study will illuminate the general outlines of the League structure as it exists to-day, and stimulate public discussion and suggestion along those helpful and constructive lines which alone will make the League the success that the world has the right to expect. CONTENTS PAGE I, The Structure of the League. By Raymond B. FosDiCK, formerly Under-Secretary-General of the League of Nations . .1 II. Inter-Allied Machinery in War-Time. By George RuBLEE, Delegate to Inter-Allied Maritime Transport Council . • .29 III. First Pages from the History op the League of Nations. By Dr. J. T. Shotwell, Professor of History in Columbia University, New York City . 46 IV. The Permanent Court of International Justice. By Leon Bourgeois, Member of the Institute of France and President of the Senate of the French Republic, and Andr]^ Weiss, Member of the Institute of France and Professor of International Law at the University of Paris . • • .59 V. Official National Co-operation. By Lt.-Col. Requin, French General Staff and French Service of the • • League of Nations . .81 VI. Direct International Administration. By an Official 91 VII. Indirect International Supervision. By the Hon. W. Ormsby Gore, M.P. • • .101 VIII. Reduction of Armaments. By El Vizconde de Eza, Spanish Minister of War . .126 X THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS PAOE IX. The International Labour Organisation. By H. B. Butler, Deputy-Director, International Labour Office 140 X. Public Health, the League, anh the Ked Cross. By Richard P. Strong, General Medical Director of the League of Red Cross Societies . .155 XI. Economics and Finance. By Mr. J. A. Salter, Secretary-General, Reparations Commission, and formerly Director, Economics and Finance Section, International Secretariat, League of Nations . 170 XII. Transportation and Communications between States. By M. A. Claveille, formerly Minister of Public Works in France, and President of the International Commission of Enquiry on Freedom of Communica- tions and Transit, Paris, 1919-20 . .185 XIII. International Associations of Various Types. By Henri la Fontaine, Member of the Belgian Senate, and M. Paul Otlet . .201 APPENDICES I. The Covenant of the League op Nations, with A Commentary thereon . .213 II. Membership in the League of Nations, July 30th, 1920 . .239 III. Significant Dates in the History of the League OF Nations 242 IV. Council Representatives 244 V. SECRKTARL4.T . 246 VI. Peace Conference . 247 VII. Health Conference 249 VIII. Commission of Inquirv on Freedom of Communica- tions AND Transit . .251 • IX. Statistics . .253 CONTENTS xi PAGE X. Committee op International Jurists . .254 XI. Saar Basin Governing Commission . 255 XII. The Governing Body of the International Labour Office ...... 257 XIII. Labour Organisation .... 260 XIV. International Labour Office . 266 List of Books on the League of Nations . .267 : THE STRUCTURE OF THE LEAGUE By Raymond B. Fosdick, formerly Under-Secretary-General of the League of Nations. The League of Nations—or La Societe des Nations—for the French and English languages are both official—came into existence on January 10, 1920. Eighteen states then became members by giving their final, formal approval to the Treaty of Peace with Germany, which entered into force at that time. The Covenant of the League of Nations—the written Con- stitution of this new political organ and a part of the Treaty —thus became a living instrument. It has a celebrated history, but we cannot pause to narrate that now. The final form of the document is printed in full in the Appendix. The Covenant contains twenty-six brief articles, and is much shorter and more readable than the Constitution of the United States. As yet, it has been subject neither to amend- ment nor to strained interpretation at the hands of any body of jurists or statesmen. Its Members Forty states, spread over the six grand divisions of the world, had, by August 1, 1920, accepted membership in the League without reservation B THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS Europe : I THE STRUCTURE OF THE LEAGUE 3 Of these, the United States is the only Power which has definitely refused to approve the Covenant, although it seems probable that the action of Honduras, Nicaragua, and perhaps Ecuador, will follow that of the United States. In addition to these states, there remain outside the membership of the League, the five Central European Powers : Austria. Hungary. Bulgaria. Turkey. Germany. and other countries which, for various reasons, have not yet been invited to join : Albania. Abyssinia. Andorra. Costa Rica. Dominican Repubhc. THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS Population of League States Argentine Republic . THE STRUCTURE OF THE LEAGUE Area op League States Argentine Republic .... — 6 THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS i Some of these countries, however—the thirteen in itahcs have already applied for admission to the League ; and before concluding a geographical survey of this kind, mention should be made of those parts of the world not belonging to any Member State, but which are directly administered, in some degree at least, by the League itself : L Territory of the Saar Basin, 2.