Abbildungen der Seite
PDF
EPUB

international law, public policy and national system is rather verbal than real.

Of the highest interest, however, is the concluding chapter dealing with public order in treaty law, and particularly as it is affected by the several conventions that resulted from the Hague Conferences. In these conventions we find ample justification for the opinion expressed, that the field or conflict in private international law is likely to be reduced within comparatively narrow limits, at least so far as nations sharing a common inheritance of law are concerned, and we see some ground for hope that "public order" may in the course of time come to denote a very limited class of matters in which, by general agreement, the option if left with the individual state to apply the foreign law according to generally established international rules, or its own national law, as may best accord with public sentiment and the genius of its institutions. JAMES BARCLAY.

A Handbook of Public International Law. By T. J. Lawrence, M. A., LL. D., 7th ed. London: McMillan & Co., Limited, 1909. pp. xvi, 189.

Dr. Lawrence's Handbook of Public International Law has more than justified its preparation, for it is already in the seventh edition. It is therefore so well-known as not to need extended comment, for it was and is the best brief digest of the subject. The book is, as Dr. Lawrence says, practically rewritten and is fully abreast of the latest developments. The great changes in international law brought about by the Hague Conferences and the Naval Conferences of 1908 and 1909 have been noted, and each section is supplied with carefully selected references which will enable the student to round out his knowledge of the subjects treated.

The sections on the Definition and Nature of International Law (Chapter I), the History of International Law (Chapter II), the Subjects of International Law (Chapter III), and the Sources and Divisions of International Law (Chapter IV) form an admirable introduction to the subject.

Brief as this book is, it is believed that its mastery would give the average reader a fair and clear conception not only of international law as a system, but considerable insight of the steps by which international law has grown to be what it is. The value of the work is enhanced by an index placing its contents at the disposal of the reader.

JAMES BROWN SCOTT.

International Incidents for Discussion in Conversation Classes. L. Oppenheim, M. A. LL. D. Cambridge: University Press. 1909. xi, 129 pp.

In the introductory paragraphs of the preface to his modest collection, Professor Oppenheim states the origin, purpose and limitation of this interesting little work:

For many years, he says, I have pursued the practice of holding conversation classes following my lectures on international law. The chief characteristic of these classes is the discussion of international incidents as they occur in everyday life. I did not formerly possess any collection, but brought before the class such incidents as had occurred during the preceding week. Of late I have found it more useful to preserve a record of some of these incidents and to add to this nucleus a small number of typical cases from the past as well as some problem cases, which were invented for the purpose of drawing the attention of the class to certain salient points of international law.

As I was often asked by my students and others to bring out a collection of incidents suitable for discussion, and as the printing of such a little book frees me from the necessity of dictating the cases to my students, I have, although somewhat reluctantly, made up my mind to publish the present collection.

The present reviewer has followed a somewhat similar method in the class-room and has spent a few minutes in each hour in informal discussion of various incidents taken from the current press. He has therefore read Professor Oppenheim's collection with the greatest of interest, and while a few of the incidents are old friends somewhat disguised, most of the cases are new, in the sense that they have occurred within the past few years, and actual, in the sense that they have been the subject of discussion in the press, while others would seem to be modelled upon actual incidents. Whatever their origin, they are all interesting and valuable, and there can be no doubt that the collection will serve a very useful purpose in the class-room, especially if international law is taught by the lecture or text-book system.

Professor Oppenheim has printed the text on writing paper and on one side of the page, so that ample space is left either for additional cases or for the annotation of the student. Some of the incidents are difficult and for their solution require no inconsiderable knowledge of international law, which in itself is a recommendation. Professor Oppenheim has wisely refrained from notes, annotations, or suggestions, so that the student is forced to rely upon his own knowledge and ingenuity. The collection, consisting of 100 incidents, is as useful as it is unpretentious and deserving of praise.

JAMES BROWN SCOTT.

The Great Design of Henry IV. Edited by Edwin D. Mead. Boston. Ginn and Company. 1909. xxi+91 pages. List price, 50 cents net, mailing price, 55 cents.

Whether or not The Great Design of Henry IV was in reality his work or the project of the Duke of Sully, from whose memoirs it is known, is a matter of controversy; but, whatever its origin and authorship, the Great Design has influenced thought and marks a date in the history and evolution of federation. Mr. Mead was therefore well-advised to undertake its publication in popular form and to make it the beginning of a series of monographs dealing with the subjects of federation. arbitration, and pacifism. It is well-known that William Penn refers to the Great Design in his plan for the perpetual peace of Europe as showing the feasibility of his own project, and it is common knowledge that Saint-Pierre's project of perpetual peace and Rousseau's famous essay are based upon the Great Design of Henry or his minister.

The appearance, therefore, of Mr. Mead's edition with its interesting introduction and Dr. Hale's paper on the United States of Europe, is of interest to the general reader for whom it is primarily intended, and the announcement that the Great Design is the first of a series of several volumes devoted to the classics of the peace movement" such as the Nouveau Cynée and Kant's Eternal Peace, will be welcome to the large circle of intelligent readers and thinkers interested in the peace movement.

[ocr errors]

The book is properly kept within very small limits, the introduction is but 14 pages, the Design itself 51 pages, the related documents taken from Sully's Memoirs 23 pages (pages 54-76) and the United States of Europe by Dr. Hale 14 pages (pages 77-91), only a little over 100 pages.

It is suggested in no captious spirit that Dr. Hale's contribution does not add to the value of the publication, and it would seem that an introduction by the learned editor to the various volumes selected for publication would be sufficient to meet the need of the general reader, and that the views of commentators as to the value and importance of the texts selected would find a more appropriate place in the editor's introduction.

JAMES BROWN SCOTT.

Consular Cases and Opinions from the decisions of the English and American Courts and the Opinions of the Attorneys General. By Ellery C. Stowell, Docteur en droit (Paris), Graduate of the Ecole Libre des Sciences Politiques, Secretary of the College of the Political Sciences. Washington: John Byrne & Co. 1909. pp. xxxvi, 811.

In compiling this book Doctor Stowell has not only rendered a great service to the many young men who are pursuing courses of study in our colleges and universities with a view of entering upon a career in the consular service recently made possible by the application of civil service principles to appointments in that branch of the public service, but he has also provided a most useful reference book for consuls, lawyers and others who may be called upon to deal with problems connected with the exercise of consular functions. Any one who has had to refer to the decisions of the American courts upon consular questions can not but feel grateful to Doctor Stowell for making a laborious task comparatively

easy.

Perhaps the best way to describe the book would be to follow the order of its arrangement. There are a list of abbreviations, alphabetical and chronological lists of cases, tables of judges and of the opinions of the Attorneys General, usually found in books of this character. The regulations of the Institute of International Law relating to consular immunities are given an appropriate place in the first part of the volume.

The American and British cases relating to consuls with the appropriate references to dates and the volumes in which reports of the cases may be found occupy the next 450 pages of the book.

The cases are followed by the opinions of the Attorneys General relating to consuls, chronologically arranged and supplied with very satisfactory synopses which aid materially in quickly ascertaining the purport of any opinion.

In addition, there have been included a useful subject analysis of treaties in relation to consuls to which the United States is a party, prepared by Mr. Woislav Petrovitch, formerly American Vice-Consul at Belgrade; an index to the Federal Statutes relating to consuls prepared by Messrs. Scott and Beaman, and a table of cases cited.

Besides a comprehensive index to the volume, Doctor Stowell has added a compendium, the purpose of which is to arrange under subject headings references to the pertinent cases and opinions somewhat in the manner of an index-digest. The compendium is one of the most practical and useful features of the book and enables one to see at a glance

precisely what cases the courts have dealt with upon any branch of the general subject.

In this connection one can not but regret that the compendium should have been limited to a brief statement of the point involved in each case to which reference is made. It would seem that the book would have been vastly improved if all the cases and opinions in their entirety had been arranged chronologically under the appropriate subject headings so that one endeavoring to find the law upon any branch of the subject might turn to the proper head and find thereunder all that had been said upon the point by the American and British courts and by the Attorneys General. The arrangement suggested would have been invaluable to the busy consul or professional man using the book occasionally to whom convenience is of prime importance.

It is also believed that the volume would have been much more useful had the author seen fit to supply in all cases a succinct statement of the facts, and a synopsis of the opinion of the court as well as the full opinion instead of limiting himself in a majority of instances to a brief statement of the holding of the court.

The volume is not designed to cover a much broader field than that covered by Doctor Stowell's first book on "Le Consul" and therefore does not include cases and opinions referring to the exercise of extraterritorial jurisdiction by consular officers. As the author intimates, this subject is really one deserving separate treatment and furthermore is likely to become less important as time goes on. Already within ten years this special jurisdiction has been abolished in Japan, Zanzibar, Samoa and Siam, and there are indications that the time may not be far distant when a similar change may take place in Turkey.

On the whole the book is creditable piece of work and one that can not but prove of great value to consuls as well as to students of consular affairs and to lawyers, who have hitherto felt the need of a compilation in convenient form of the information which this volume contains.

WILBUR J. CARR.

Letters to "The Times" upon War and Neutrality (1881-1909), with some Commentary. By Thomas Erskine Holland. Longmans, Green, and Co., 39 Paternoster Row, London: 1909. pp. xi, 166. During the Civil War a series of letters, over the signature of Historicus, dealing with questions of belligerency, appeared in the London Times. They were written by the late Sir William Vernon-Harcourt while at the bar, who, yielding to the judgment of competent authorities,

« ZurückWeiter »