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INTERNATIONAL CONCILIATION
Published monthly by the
American Association for International Conciliation.
Entered as second-class matter at Greenwich, Conn.,
Post office, July 3, 1920, under Act of August 24, 1912.


I. CUBA, BUSTAMANTE AND THE PERMANENT COURT OF INTERNATIONAL JUSTICE.
II. CUBA, THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE LEAGUE.
OF NATIONS.
Addresses delivered March I and 5, I922, in connection
with the Fifth Annual Meeting of the Cuban
Society of International Law, Havana, Cuba
By COSME DE LA TORRIENTE


I
i
I


SEPTEMBER, 1922
No. 178


AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR INTERNATIONAL CONCILIATION
EDITORIAL OFFICE: 407 WEST II7TH STREET, NEW YORK CITY
PUBLICATION OFFICE: GREENWICH, CONN.






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CONTENTS
I. Cuba, Bustamante and the Permanent Court of
International Justice............  5
II. Cuba, the United States of America and the League
of Nations......7.................         17




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CUBA, BUSTAMANTE AND THE PERMANENT
COURT OF INTERNATIONAL JUSTICE
Address delivered at the opening session of the Cuban Society
of International Law, Havana, March I, 1922
By COSME DE LA TORRIENTE
Mr. Secretary of State,
Mr. President of the American Institute of International Law,
Mr. President of the Cuban Society of International Law,
Ladies and Gentlemen:
It is only in compliance with the repeatedly expressed
wishes of the President and of the other directors of our Cuban
Society of International Law that I venture to address you
in this solemn session which is to inaugurate the work of our
annual meeting. For in a meeting of this kind only such voices
as those of a James Brown Scott, an Alvarez, an Anderson, a
Montoro, a Bustamante, a Sanguily, and others of equal
importance and reputation, who are possessed of such profound knowledge in the field of law as these men, should be
heard. But before I accede to these wishes, I desire first of all
to greet from this platform the three first-mentioned gentlemen, famous members of the American Institute of International Law and illustrious men from the Continent, who honor
us during these days with their presence.
After Cuba was born to international life as a free and sovereign nation on May 20, I902, after the war of independence,
in the course of which so much Cuban blood was shed, and
after the Spanish-American war which ended with the Treaty
of Paris, the act of our public powers which, more than anything else, has made our country an international factor by
virtue of what it achieved, was the joint resolution of Congress of April 7, 19I7, declaring a state of war between the
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Republic of Cuba and the Imperial German Government. By
this act and in recognition of the noble treatment accorded us
during the last century by the American people, we assisted
with our strength the peoples who were struggling for the
triumph of freedom, law and justice.
We public men of Cuba, who during this period directed the
destinies of the Republic either in the Government or in Congress, were certain that it was the clear duty of Cuba to enter
into the great war as soon as the United States had done so, a
duty which had been ours ever since the Americans had sent
their sons to fight side by side with the Cubans to assure
Cuba's independence. A further obligation for our nation
became in future the creation of closer international relations
with all those Powers with which we cast our lot in the terrible
struggle.
The Peace Conference in which Cuba took part, represented
by the President of our Society, Dr. Antonio Sanchez de
Bustamante, the Treaty of Versailles with Germany and the
other conventions arising from the Conference signified a
new era in our international life. Hitherto Cuba had maintained the best relations with many of the principal Powers of
the world. Its representatives had taken part in conferences
and congresses of great importance, such as the Hague Conference of 1907 and the International American Conferences of
Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires of i906 and i910. It had
received and sent diplomatic missions to various nations and
had negotiated many treaties and conventions with many
Powers, with the result that in spite of the few years of our
independent existence our nation had become well known in
the field of international relations.
The entry of our country into the war had as a consequence
the strengthening of relations with all the Allied Powers which
fought against the Imperial Central Powers of Europe. And
the fact that Cuba was one of the signatories of the Treaty
of Versailles made our country a member of the League of
Nations immediately after ratification of the Treaty. Already
the League of Nations has 5i members, with whom our rela[6]




35I


tions will become closer each day, since our interests are not
incompatible at bottom with those of any other nation. Thus,
we have been able and will be able in future to live in the greatest harmony with our allies of yesterday who must be our
great friends forever, with the nations who were neutral during the war, to whom we shall always continue to be most
friendly, and with those Powers with whom we were at war,
since the injuries and losses which they inflicted upon us were
not of such a nature as to make reconciliation impossible
sooner cr later.
That is why, as has already been pointed out by those who
have written on the functioning and workings of the League
of Nations, the position of the Republic of Cuba in the League
is so excellent. Enjoying cordial relations with all the members of the League, well liked by the Allied Powers, greatly
respected by the neutrals, without being hated by those who
during the war were its enemies, in close harmony with all the
American countries which form a part of society, especially
with those belonging to the Spanish-speaking group, neither
too great to be feared, nor too small to be ignored, in view of
the intellectual importance of its sons and its national wealth,
well represented (I am not including myself) upon the two
occasions when the Assembly met, Cuba acted in this Assembly as a bond of union between many nations. And in no way
has its presence provoked envy or grievance, nor has any
one been embarrassed by its attendance; rather has it been a
source of gratification and satisfaction to all those who
attended the meetings.
In view of all these facts it can not be surprising that Cuba
was assigned functions in a number of the more important
commissions of the League. And after it had been decided in
the latter Assembly to assign only one vice-president to Latin
America, this office being intended for Brazil, it was resolved
just before the election to grant another vice-president to
Cuba, the Cuban candidate failing of election by only one
vote (i9 against 20) in opposition to one of the best known
government chiefs of Central Europe. All this occurred in
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spite of the fact that there were only eight Latin-American
nations present on that day.
Again it isnot surprising that whenthe League proceeded to
the election of the eleven judges to form the Permanent Court
of International Justice, which has recently begun to function
at The Hague, there was elected as the fifth judge on the first
ballot, in which only nine candidates were successful, our eminent compatriot, the learned and illustrious international
lawyer of our Society, Antonio Sanchez de Bustamante. He
received the election by 26 votes out of a total of 42 States
voting, and as one of about 8o candidates forming the reduced
list of eligibles after a number of candidates had been withdrawn. More votes were received in this first ballot by Mr.
Ruy Barbosa of Brazil, who secured 38, and who had also been
proposed by Cuba, Mr. Weiss of France, who received 30, and
Messrs. Finlay and Oda of Great Britain and Japan, respectively, who received 29. Fewer votes were cast for Messrs.
Alvarez of Chile, Anzilotti of Italy and Loder of The Netherlands, who received 24, and Altamira of Spain, who secured
23. Mr. John Bassett Moore who, although he comes from
the United States of America, was not proposed by his country, which does not belong to the League, but by other national groups, was elected on the second ballot by 2I votes.
On the fifth ballot, finally, Mr. Huber of Switzerland was
elected, receiving 22 votes.
In the first place, it should be clear to all my hearers that
Cuba would never have obtained what I consider the greatest
honor that has ever been bestowed upon it during its short life
as a nation, if we had not been able to present to the consideration of all the Powers of the world belonging to the League of
Nations a candidate combining the intellectual, cultural and
popular qualities and the profound knowledge of international law that are possessed by our eminent compatriot Sanchez de Bustamante. Cuba, without a candidate like Bustamante, would never have won the great honor and the confidence which have made it a member, through one of its sons,
of a court of eleven judges to which all the Powers of the
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world will assuredly have to submit their disputes and which
from the very moment of its establishment has been considered as the most important court of justice of the globe.
But Bustamante without a Cuba which is respected, esteemed
and even loved, in spite of those who, although living here and
owing everything they have to this country, do not tire of
maligning it, would not have been elected by a majority of the
national delegations which on the beautiful morning of
September 14, 1921, the day of the raising of the Cross, met in
the Salle de la R~forme, and by the representatives of the
Powers sitting in the Council of the League, who met in the
Palace of the Nations, on both shores of the picturesque Lake
Geneva, in the beautiful city of Calvin and Rousseau, Geneva,
in legendary Switzerland, the home of William Tell. For a
nation and a candidate without such qualifications, the efforts
of the delegation composed of Messrs. Aristides de Aguero,
Guillermo de Blanck, Miguel Angel Campa and the speaker,
who had the honor of presiding, our efforts, I say, to secure a
judgeship for one of our compatriots in so high a court would
have been useless.
I am convinced that, except for a small majority which
follows international events, the great significance for our
country of Bustamante's election as judge of the Permanent
Court of International Justice has passed unnoticed. It is for
that reason that I take this opportunity to call attention to it,
among other very important facts connected with the election
that caused so much rejoicing among the members of our delegation when it was achieved.
According to Article io of the Statute creating the Court, it
was necessary, in order to be elected judge, among other
conditions, to secure an absolute majority of the votes in the
Assembly and the Council, the election having taken place
separately in each body in accordance with the provisions of
Article 8. It is recalled that almost all the Powers belonging
to the League had presented national candidates and that
candidates had even been presented from nations not belonging to the League. Furthermore, it must be remembered that,
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since all the candidates were in general men of exceptional
ability and importance, it was quite natural that most of the
delegations in the Assembly and most of the representatives
in the Council were eager that their fellow-countrymen be
elected. Under these circumstances it will be understood that
it was not an easy task to obtain the election of a candidate
as judge notwithstanding the two indispensable conditions,
namely, known competency and high reputation, as well as
the greatest sympathy with, and the highest confidence in,
the moral character and juridical development of the nation
to which the candidate belongs.
In view of all these conditions the Powers represented only
in the Assembly, to which Cuba belonged, were able to obtain
the election of their candidate with more or less facility in the
Assembly. That was the case, for instance, with our delegation. But the task was infinitely more difficult when we
came to the Council composed of only eight nations, to wit,
Great Britain, France, Italy and Japan, in their capacity as
permanent members, and Belgium, Brazil, Spain and China
as non-permanent members.
Of these eight Powers represented in the Council six succeeded in having a judge of their own nationality elected.
China secured only a deputy judge and Belgium none at all,
in spite of the great sympathy which this country enjoys, and
notwithstanding the fact that the Council repeatedly elected
first as judge and then as deputy judge the Belgian candidate
Baron Descamps, Minister of State, Senator, Professor of
International Law at the University of Louvain, former
Minister of Sciences and Arts, former Secretary General and
President of the European Institute of International Law,
member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The
Hague, and, most important of all, President of the Advisory
Committee of Jurists, appointed by the Council of the League
of Nations to study and draw up at The Hague the draft of
the Statute which with certain modifications was approved on
December 13, 1920, by the first Assembly of the League. This
draft created the Permanent Court of International Justice.
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subject to ratification by the majority of the members of
the League.
In spite of the many qualifications and the great reputation
of Baron Descamps throughout the world he was not elected
as judge or as deputy judge by the Assembly. Only on one
ballot did he obtain I3 votes; in other ballots he secured
considerably less.
On the other hand the Assembly showed a strong determination to secure for America more than the three places which
it finally secured, being represented in the court by John Bassett Moore of the United States of America, Ruy Barbosa of
Brazil and Sanchez de Bustamante of Cuba.
With this end in view the Assembly elected on the very first
ballot the eminent publicist and secretary of the American
Institute of International Law, Dr. Alejandro Alvarez of
Chile, whom we have the honor of seeing with us tonight.
Subsequently, when the Council failed to elect him judge, Mr.
Nyholm of Denmark being finally named the eleventh judge,
Dr. Alvarez was elected deputy judge three times by the
Assembly. In one ballot he secured as many as 26 votes.
Finally, it was necessary to resort to the provision of Article
12 of the Statute which stipulates that a conference committee
be appointed composed of three members of the Assembly and
three members of the Council to bring about an agreement
between the two bodies, but not until the Chilean delegation
withdrew the candidacy of Mr. Alvarez was it possible for
the conference committee to come to an agreement. Notwithstanding his notable achievements and his great reputation,
he never received a majority of the votes in the Council. This
is certainly to be ascribed to the fact that some of the members
of the Council felt that a greater representation in the Permanent Court should not be given to America, or at least to
the Spanish-speaking countries.
Accordingly, it was extremely difficult for each of the i6
Spanish-speaking nations, who are members of the Assembly,
to elect their candidates, since there was a manifest tendency
in the Council not to grant more than two representatives on
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the court to our race. This led to a contest between our delegations which could have been avoided easily. Furthermore,
Article 9 of the Statute had to be considered. It provides that
all the great groups of civilized nations and the principal
juridical systems of the world be represented.
What I have said thus far has shown you the importance for
Cuba of the fact that one of its most illustrious sons is among
the eleven judges of the Permanent Court of International
Justice, called upon to settle disputes arising between the various Powers of the world, which will in time no doubt all agree
to compose their difficulties in a peaceful manner when they
are unable to solve them among themselves or by diplomatic
means. Thus, they will avoid bloody conflicts such as those
which, to the disgrace of humanity, have devastated the world
morally and materially for many years. But I would not be
discharging the duty which I gladly accepted of addressing you
this evening if I did not say a few words about the origin of
the Permanent Court and the Statute upon which it is based.
On this subject I must be very brief because distinguished
members of our Society will surely deal with the organization
and functioning of this court in future sessions.
The Hague Peace Conferences of i899 and I907 established
by the Convention for the Pacific Settlement of International
Disputes the Permanent Court of Arbitration. The members
of this court are not to exceed four in number for each Power
signing and adhering to the convention. From the list of names
thus chosen the parties to a dispute select the judges who are
to compose the court which is to deal with the question submitted to arbitration by the parties.
At the time of the Hague Conference of 1907 it was felt
necessary to create a really permanent court of arbitral justice, composed of a limited number of judges whose decisions
should be based on the rules of international law and the
treaties founded upon the principles of this law. The American delegation to the Conference of I907, pursuant to the instructions of the Secretary of State, Elihu Root, proposed the
creation of a court of arbitral justice and the conference
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recommended to the signatory powers of the Final Act the
adoption of a draft annex to the convention which was to
come into force as soon as an agreement could be reached upon
the manner of selecting the judges and the composition of the
court. During the Naval Conference of London in the latter
part of i908 and the beginning of i909, the American Secretary of State, Robert Bacon, endeavered through the American Delegation to have the interested Powers examine once
more the creation of the Court of Arbitral Justice, and in
March, i909, he addressed the Powers represented in the
Conference with regard to the matter.
In October of the same year, Philander C. Knox, who succeeded Bacon as Secretary of State, insisted again on the
recommendation. Some of the Powers began to consider the
matter, and when the administration of President Taft was
coming to an end the Secretary was planning to send a commissioner to Europe with a view to bringing about the creation of the court by some of the Powers already interested in
the plan.
At the beginning of 1914, Mr. Loudon, Minister of Foreign Affairs of The Netherlands, at the suggestion of an eminent American international lawyer, who from his office in
the Department of State at Washington had been the principal instrumentality in the negotiations which I have mentioned, proposed to the Great Powers his plan for the creation
of the Court of Arbitral Justice. But the Great War broke
out soon afterward as a result of the attitude of AustriaHungary toward Serbia upon the occasion of the assassination at Sarajevo of the heir apparent to the throne of the
Monarchy. This paralyzed all the activities toward creating
the court. Perhaps it would have been possible to avoid the
disastrous struggle if the court had already been in existence
at that time.
When in the fall of i9i8 the Central Powers of Europe had
met with disaster and signed the Armistice, all those in favor
of the creation of the court began to work with renewed vigor
toward its achievement. From January i8, i919, on the day
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of the opening of the Conference of the Allied and Associated
Powers at Paris, they brought their influence to bear upon the
commission presided over by President Wilson, which was to
form a League or Society of Nations. The Draft Convention
presented to the Commission by him for that purpose did not
propose the creation of the court. However, the work of
certain members of the Commission, especially the same
eminent American lawyer to whom I have already referred,
surely was instrumental in inserting in Article 14 of the Pact
the obligation on the part of the Council of the League to
formulate and submit to the members plans for the establishment of a Permanent Court of International Justice, to
have jurisdiction over all disputes of an international character submitted to it by the interested parties, and the further
obligation of giving its decision on any dispute or question
submitted to it by the Council or the Assembly of the League.
As soon as the Council could, it appointed an Advisory
Committee of Jurists, which met from June i6 to July 24,
I920, in the Peace Palace at The Hague. In this committee
the following countries were represented: the United States
of America, Great Britain, France, Italy, Japan, Spain,
Brazil, Belgium, The Netherlands and Norway, under the
presidency of Baron Descamps, of Belgium. The United
States of America were represented by Elihu Root, former
Secretary of State and President of the Carnegie, Endowment
for International Peace, who throughout the labors of the
Commission enjoyed the assistance and the efficient cooperation of the Secretary of the Endowment and Director of its
Division of International Law and President of the American
Institute of International Law.
The Council submitted, with certain modifications, the
Draft Convention prepared by the Advisory Committee of
Jurists to the First Assembly of the League. This Assembly,
after introducing some changes in its provisions, principally
with regard to the jurisdiction of the court, approved the
Draft Convention, as I have said, at its session of December
13, 1920.
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Article i of the Statute, which I shall not examine for reasons which I have already stated, provides that independently
of the Court of Arbitration, created by the Hague Conferences of i899 and I907, and of the special courts of arbitration
to which the States are always at liberty to entrust the settlement of their disputes, there is created in accordance with
Article I4 of the Covenant of the League or Society of Nations, a Permanent Court of International Justice. The
Statute then contains three chapters. The first deals with the
Organization of the Court and covers Article 2 to Article 23
inclusive; the second chapter deals with the Competency of
the Court and covers Article 34 to Article 38 inclusive; the
third chapter deals with Procedure and covers Article 39 to
Article 64 inclusive, which is the last article. There is also
inserted in the Statute, together with the Protocol of Signature, the so-called optional clause by virtue of which the
States that have accepted it recognize the obligatory jurisdiction of the court upon the conditions which they have
deemed advisable. For the other States, the jurisdiction is
not binding.
A cursory comparison between the Draft Conventions, prepared since the Hague Conference of 1907, and the Final
Statute of the Court, leads one to the inevitable conclusion
that a majority of the principles of the Statute are based on
the work already prepared by the officials of the American
Department of State and by the Carnegie Endowment.
And as the eminent international lawyer who has taken
such a great part in all the work of which I have spoken is
none other than the President of our American Institute of
International Law, the honorable James Brown Scott, whom
we have the honor of seeing in our midst for a few days and
who has just spoken, it is only just, very just, that in concluding my remarks I should extend my greetings to him and,
in the name of our Society, congratulate him for having at last
witnessed the realization of his labors of so many years, in
which he always maintained unfaltering faith, trusting from
one day to the next that the great work would be achieved
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which he more than anyone else has by his learning and his
personal efforts helped to bring about.
It has been said of the League of Nations that L6on Bourgeois, the learned and illustrious President of the French Senate, is its grandfather and that Woodrow Wilson, the eminent
champion of liberty and democracy, Lord Robert Cecil,
the illustrious parliamentarian, and General Smuts, the noted
Prime Minister of South Africa, are its fathers. In the same
way, I may say that if the Permanent Court of International
Justice also has parents, no one deserves this name more fully
than Elihu Root and James Brown Scott, the two great
Americans who play a leading part in directing the Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace, which has given birth
to the American Institute of International Law and to our
own Cuban Society of International Law.


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II
CUBA, THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE
LEAGUE OF NATIONS
Address delivered at the closing banquet of the Cuban Society of
International Law, Havana, March 5, 1922
By COSME DE LA TORRIENTE
Mr. Secretary of State,
Mr. President of the American Institute of International Law,
Mr. President of the Cuban Society of International Law,
Fellow Members:
Diplomatic successes and failures, wherever they occur, are
always attributed to him who is charged with the direction of
matters of diplomacy, namely, the Minister of Foreign
Relations. It is, therefore, fitting that I declare here to whom
we should ascribe in the first place the success won by the
Cuban delegation in the Second Assembly of the League of
Nations at Geneva. This person is our Secretary of State, Dr.
Rafael Montoro, who does us the honor of presiding tonight.
May God grant that, as on this occasion, but as has not always
been the case during our short history as a Republic, our Secretaries of State be given more time to deal adequately and
solely with international affairs. And may diplomatic negotiations with the representatives of all nations never be conducted through any other channel than the Secretary of State.
When this secretary possesses the qualities and the merits
of Dr. Montoro, it can not be surprising if, as Dr. Montoro
did, he should send in times so difficult for the Republic as
these last months have been, a delegation to the Second
Assembly of the League of Nations with instructions to see to
it that Dr. Bustamante be elected member of the Permanent
Court of International Justice.
Surely the President of the Republic also played an im['7]




362


portant part in this success, for it was he who approved with
great readiness the recommendations of Dr. Montoro with
regard to the sending of the delegation. He is not among the
last to deserve credit for its triumph.
In the second place, I give credit to the delegates who
attended the First Assembly and to those who took part in
the Second. To those who were present at the first because
they prepared the ground by establishing better relations
with the representatives of all the States belonging at that
time to the League. The president of this delegation was onof the most illustrious and competent officials of our diplomatic service, Dr. Aristides de Aguero, Minister Plenipotentiary of Cuba to Germany. In honor of him and all the other
delegates to that Assembly, Dr. Rafael Martinez Ortiz and
Ezequiel Garcia, the former Minister to France and the latter
until recently Minister in Italy, and in honor of Dr. Miguel
Angel Campa, our Minister to Japan and Secretary General
to the delegation, I ask you to applaud most warmly.
The second delegation, representing Cuba at the Second
Assembly, was presided over by myself, since the President
of the Republic, Dr. Zayas, and Dr. Montoro kindly desired
to confer this honor upon me. It was really not necessary
that anyone else than Dr. Aguero, who had presided over the
previous delegation, should preside over this one. With him
as president and with the other delegates the election of Dr.
Bustamante would have been secured in precisely the same
way. I could add to their efforts only the experience which I
have acquired in the various positions held by me in the
foreign service of the Republic, as Envoy Extraordinary and
Minister Plenipotentiary in Spain during the administration
of our great President Estrada Palma until he resigned his
high position, also as Secretary of State for a time during the
early administration of President Menocal, and as President
of the Committee of Foreign Affairs of the Senate for a
number of years. In consideration of this service it was agreed
that I should act as First Delegate and as President of the
Delegation. It would not be just if I omitted to say what you
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know I do not say merely out of modesty. The other members
of the delegation, namely, Dr. Salaya, Dr. Aguero, Mr.
Guillermo de Blanck, our present Minister in Holland and
in Switzerland, and Dr. Campa were just as instrumental as
myself, if not more so, in bringing about the election of Dr.
Bustamante. All of them endeavored from the very first moment to prepare the soil for the election, and I say "prepare"
advisedly, since you must know that in an assembly composed
of the delegations of 42 States coming from all parts of the
globe, in an assembly in which each country has three delegates, it was natural that many of those present were not
sufficiently informed with regard to the qualifications of
Cuba's candidate.
Our country is sufficiently well known in the world through
the achievements of some of its sons, perhaps more through
Dr. Bustamante than any one else. But it must not be forgotten that the delegates of Cuba at Geneva, both in the
previous Assembly and in this latter one, came together with
many countries with which we had hitherto had no relations
at all. Cuba has 24 or 25 ministers in foreign countries, and
whereas at the present time there are 5i States in the League
of Nations and Cuba maintains some of its legations in countries not represented therein, for example, the United States
of America, Mexico and Germany, it may be said that our
country has no relations of any kind with one-half of the
nations in the Assembly. In some of these countries we do
not even maintain consular agents and we are familiar with
them, as they are with us, only by virtue of what we read in
books and periodicals.
Notwithstanding statements to the contrary, as I declared
the other day in the solemn session inaugurating the labors of
our Society for its Fifth Annual Meeting, which is now closing with this banquet, I can assure you that the sympathy for
Cuba is at the present time very great in the League of
Nations. And in this connection I would make clear to you
the opportunity which our Republic has at the present time
more than ever before of becoming known in foreign coun1 19]




364


tries. It is an absolute necessity, I say, that we publish books
both in the name of the State and in the name of individuals,
carrying on this work of propaganda.
Several times during my stay at Geneva it happened that
persons, desirous of securing information on Cuba, turned to
me and spoke to me at length on our people. They were surprised by the facts that I gave them, which were so contrary
to what they had believed. Very frequently questions were
put to me which showed only too clearly that the questioners
had no conception of the form of government in Cuba. I
recall that the representative of a small country, which has
risen to independent life as the result of the dismemberment
of the great Russian Empire, desiring to appear very well
informed with regard to Cuba and after weighing the question
well in his mind said to me: "What Power has the mandate
over Cuba?" All of you know the significance at the present
time of the mandate in international law.
There is no doubt that Cuba has profited tremendously by
joining the international concert of the League of Nations.
It has profited by the understanding brought about through
the League and by its organization in spite of its defects.
There is no doubt that the statesmen of some of the States
belonging to the League will have much work to do, especially
those of us in our American nations who occupy ourselves
with these matters. Possibly it would be well to direct the
activities of our American Institute of International Law into
these channels, thus bringing it about in time that the Covenant be modified wherever necessary. There is also no doubt
that among the majority of the members of the League there
exists a good spirit. They are willing to make revisions and to
take into account and to comply with the desires of the
United States of America once they decide to join. They also
realize that the American nations can not agree with certain
articles of the Covenant, above all with the organization of
the Council.
Without fear of contradiction I can assert that in the Assembly of the League every Power, great or small, is con1201




365


sidered and dealt with in the same manner. I must say that as
president of the delegation from one of the smallest Powers of
the globe, I was always treated with the highest consideration.
My opinion was respected and I was drawn into the discussion. I was accorded the same attention as the representatives
of the greatest Powers of the world were accorded. Directly
in front of me sat the great Balfour, one of the most illustrious
men of the powerful British Empire. Behind us, the Cuban
delegates, were seated the Greeks. Across the aisle our sister
nation Costa Rica was seated, represented by my old friend
Mr. Peralta. And in front of him in this beautiful concert were
the delegates of the State that had fought vigorously against
the Allied Powers, namely, Bulgaria. At our right, separated
by another aisle, were the delegates of one of the most important American States, Brazil, presided over by one of the best
friends of Cuba, Ambassador Gastao da Cunha. A little
behind them were the representatives of immortal France, the
grandsire of the League, Leon Bourgeois, with Viviani and
Hanotaux, who repeatedly showed their affection for Cuba.
A little farther away was the former Minister of State, Conde
de Jimeno who, with Ambassador Quifiones de Leon and the
Under Secretary Palacios, constituted the delegation of our;r      old mother country, Spain. And thus were scattered in alphabetical order throughout the great Salle de la Reforme, where
the sessions took place, the delegations from all America, in
close harmony with us.
Gentlemen, there was not a single occasion in the Assembly
during the discussion of important questions by the League in
which the great men of the most important Powers of the
world did not reveal the same interest in the opinion held by
any of our small American nations as they evinced in the
opinion of the most powerful States of the world.
We were given posts of the greatest importance; we took
part in all the deliberations and had seats in every kind of
meeting. It may, therefore, be asserted that the League is
+       functioning with the democratic spirit of equality which it
was hoped it would have. And if at any time certain articles
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of the Pact are modified, as I have said before, and the organization of the league is improved, principally with regard to
the Council, positive results will follow from its labors. Accordingly, I believe that during these first months, the principal duty of the American Governments is to arrive at a preliminary understanding whereby, when their delegates return
to Geneva, they may be able to propose a general plan for
revising the League, of such a nature that no State will be
able to remain outside of the League and which will above all
make the entrance of the United States of America easier.
For the United States will enter sooner or later, since that
nation cannot refuse to occupy the position which belongs
to it in this splendid association of all the peoples.
The United States of America have not desired to enter the
League. Yet sooner or later those few nations that have not
yet adhered will do so. Argentina, which as you know belongs
to the League, presented an amendment to Article i of
the Pact in the First Assembly and thereupon withdrew its
delegates, and it did not attend the Second Assembly either.
Hereupon, after delayed consideration, it was decided to
postpone a study of the Argentine proposal until the meeting
of this year's Assembly. This latter Assembly will surely
accept the proposal with some modifications if the delegation
of the Argentine Republic will attend. If the proposed amendment is accepted, it will make easier the entrance of those few
nations of the world that do not yet belong to the League.
In America the Republic of Ecuador has not ratified the Pact
and has, accordingly, not entered the League. It is to be
hoped that Ecuador will ratify very soon. It is also hoped
that the admission of our sister Republic, Mexico, will take
place sooner or later. This State has perhaps not yet joined
the League because of international difficulties resulting from
the political struggles of the immediate past. The same will
have to take place in Santo Domingo as soon as its government
is reestablished in accordance with the wishes of our Continent. This republic, together with Ecuador, the United


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States of America and Mexico, are the only nations of America
that do not yet form part of the League of Nations.
Reports come from Europe that Germany and Turkey will
very soon become members of the League. Perhaps you have
read the recent dispatches which announce that the Prime
Ministers of France and England have discussed this subject.
As soon as these Powers have solved certain preliminary
questions to show their willingness to comply with the stipulations contained in the Treaties of Peace, this will take place.
It is also said that Russia will join sooner or later if, as it is
hoped, its present government loses power or at least if it
shows greater respect for treaties and private property.
When all this has taken place and when the Powers of our
Continent have proposed a good plan for revising the Pact so
that no country can remain outside of the League, there is no
doubt that the principal statesmen of the United States and
American public opinion will realize that the League is the
most fitting association for the realization of the great and
noble ideals which have always been cherished by the North
Americans.
After conferences of such importance and crowned with
such success as the recent one held in Washington, there is
no doubt that the United States of America must remain in
close touch and must preserve the best diplomatic relations
with the Great Powers of the world. But that is not sufficient
for the realization of the ideals and the aims which have been
assigned to the United States by Providence. They must
cooperate with all the nations in order to guarantee peace
and good feeling and to bring about the reign of justice and
respect for treaties. Still this can never be achieved except if
the United States become a member of a league or society of
nations in which their representatives take part in the discussion and on a footing of equality reach helpful agreements
with the representatives of all the Powers of the world, the
greatest. as well as the smallest.
Under the existing government, international relations in
Cuba are entrusted to the executive power and delegated by it
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to the Secretary of State. In certain cases also they are entrusted to Congress and delegated to the Committees on Foreign Affairs of the two legislative houses, principally of the
Senate, because by virtue of our constitution it devolves upon
the Senate to approve the treaties made with other nations,
with the exception of treaties of peace and laws declaring war.
These latter must be approved by the two houses of Congress.
Furthermore, it is a special function of the Senate to take
cognizance of and approve all nominations to diplomatic and
consular positions made by the President of the Republic.
Hence, it is so important and necessary that the Secretaries
of State should maintain intimate relations and act in unison
with the Senate through the Committee of Foreign Affairs,
as I did when I held the position, and as is being done at the
present time with such consistency and success by Dr. Montoro.
If any country must constantly cultivate its international
relations, that country is the Republic of Cuba. The patriots
who fought for independence for half a century sought to
found the Republic, as they hoped, without any class distinctions, just as all the nations that form the constellation of
American Republics were born to independent life. Our geographical position, our terrible struggle against the old
Mother Country, which sent such great armies across the
Atlantic to stifle the revolution, armies never before equalled
by any force sent to combat the longing for independence on
this Continent, and the important relations and great economic
interests between Cuba and the United States, all these things
prompted the United States during the saddest days of our
struggle for liberty to intervene in the contest. But when this
intervention took place, the Congress of the United States
immediately voted the famous joint resolution wherein it
declared that Cuba is and by right should be free and independent. When the war ended victoriously the Americans
bound themselves in the Treaty with Spain, signed at Paris, to
entrust the Government of Cuba to the Cuban people. And
thus, on that beautiful midday of May 20, 1902, all of us who
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had fought for independence, and perhaps those too who had
done nothing to achieve it, all of us witnessed how over the
Castillo del Morro in this city of CUba there was hoisted the
flag for which so many thousands of Cubans had lost their
lives.
When the Republic of Cuba was established, the Constituent Assembly had first of all to accept what was called the
Platt Amendment, namely, the conditions under which the
Congress of the United States of America permitted the
American Government to entrust the government of Cuba to
the Cuban people. A little later President Estrada Palma
accepted these conditions and made the permanent treaty with
the United States of America. In this treaty there were included the stipulations of the amendment which, according to
repeated declarations of the Government at Washington,
serve only to strengthen and to consolidate Cuban independence. For those of us who fought to win this independence it
has always been unpleasant and painful that the Republic
could not be born to international life without those conditions
contained in the treaty. However, we cannot deny that the
members of the convention would have been unable to act
otherwise, and while the treaty exists it must be applied. I
desire to recall that the Platt Amendment was only a law of
the American Congress, while the permanent treaty concluded
between the Governments of the two nations binds the two
peoples. For this reason I never speak of the Platt Amendment without mentioning the permanent treaty, because the
latter legally creates reciprocal relations between the Governments of Cuba and North America.
I believe that without the Platt Amendment and without
its provisions as incorporated in the permanent treaty, the
latter could have been adopted in another form, establishing
even closer reciprocal relations between the two nations.
Instead, the amendment has given rise to many controversies
and has made it possible for the enemies of Cuban independence to paralyze the nationalistic feelings of the Cuban people. But all this does not hinder me from declaring here that
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most of the difficulties which have arisen for us because of the
treaty have been the fault of the Cubans themselves. If we
had not greatly disturbed the peace by our political struggles,
especially when we had to reestablish by constitution the executive and legislative powers, and if, moreover, we had been
extremely careful in all matters relating to public service and
our treasury, perhaps some of the difficulties would have been
avoided.
I have no doubt that in the United States there have existed
and do exist public officials who in their relations with Cuba
have wished to interpret the permanent treaty in a narrow
and improper manner which could not be anticipated by the
men who voted for the joint resolution, neither by those who
came to our country to fight for its independence, nor yet by
those who were responsible for the Platt Amendment and later
negotiated the treaty.
There is no doubt that we Cubans could have continued to
help secure what we thought we had secured in the time of
Estrada Palma, namely, the disappearance of the permanent
treaty, its going out of force by disuse and lack of application.
Far from having followed this path, in order to avoid what has
actually come to pass, we have given reason for the invocation
of certain clauses of the treaty and have even given our neighbors occasion to interpret the treaty as they are not justified in
interpreting it.
By reason of the functions which I have held, or am now
holding, I have always considered it important to be informed
with regard to our international relations with the United
States of America, and I have often had the opportunity of
discussing these problems with representative men from that
nation. On these occasions I have called their attention to the
necessity of their giving heed to the manner and form in which
their public. officials interpret the principal clauses of the
Platt Amendment incorporated in the permanent treaty. For
this is the only means of avoiding that persons, unfamiliar
with these matters and unaccustomed to the study of international law, notwithstanding their general intelligence
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otherwise, who have not taken the trouble to study the provisions of the treaty but rely upon this unjust interpretation,
shall help to bring about in our country a state of suspicion
or disgust that explains the difficulties between two peoples
who have always maintained and should continue to maintain the most intimate and the most cordial relations.
It is an urgent necessity for us today that those who govern
the Cuban Republic should give all possible opportunity
in our international affairs to those brilliant young men
whom we have today, with their knowledge and their training,
and who are under the guidance of Dr. Bustamante not only
in his capacity as professor of the University, but also as a
leader in the Cuban Society of International Law. From day
to day he delves deeper into these important studies with the
result that, as was said in one of our recent sessions, the University of Havana is now considered, even in foreign countries, as one of the world's centers devoted especially to the
study of international questions.
By virtue of our situation as a consequence of the relations
that we maintain with our neighbors on the north, a situation
brought about by the permanent treaty with them, we have
turned perhaps more than any other people of our Continent
t     to the study of international law. For this very reason we
have become conscious of the fact that our situation cannot
be changed in future, but that it can improve by the force of
our intelligence, by consolidating the Republic even more in
future, so that it can never be in danger and will always subsist for our children and our children's children, as they
dreamed who fought for it. We can not do otherwise than
strive with all our patriotism and energy to bring it about that
the clauses of the permanent treaty should always be interpreted as they ought to be. And mindful of our duty as a
respectable law-loving people, we should see to it that those
clauses fall into disuse by lack of application, with the result
that some day we shall be able to substitute for that treaty
one which will serve to do away with all kinds of difficulty and


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which will make the relations between the two countries closer
than ever.
It would not be difficult for me to show to any American
statesman that certain clauses of the Platt Amendment such
as are incorporated in our permanent treaty, far from favoring
the interests of the United States of America on our Continent, harm them. I could show that these clauses do not
grant any kind of powers to the United States which without
the amendment have not been exercised in most of the countries washed by the Caribbean. The existence of these clauses
has always helped to keep alive the impression that the
Americans maintain a preponderant position in Cuba which
they should not exercise and that both in Cuba and outside of
Cuba there are many who claim that the existence of the
permanent treaty as it is, is injurious to our Republic and
makes international relations difficult. This is especially true
of the manner and form in which the principal clauses of the
treaty have been interpreted.
There is no country in the world today which could exist
very long without foreign intervention if it did not guarantee
and protect the life, liberty and property of all those living
within it. And with or without the Platt Amendment it would
not be possible for any nation, in view of the interdependence
of all, to ride roughshod over the life and property of citizens
and foreigners. This only shows how unnecessary the clause
in question is which has been carried over from the Platt
Amendment to the permanent treaty.
Neither can any nation today fail to fulfil its international
obligations of an economic character without entailing enormous difficulties. If it had not been for the attitude which the
Monroe Doctrine has always prompted the United States to
assume, certain European Powers, who had made demands on
some American nations for the payment of indemnities or
debts, would have established themselves in this Continent
on several occasions in the past, for they repeatedly sent
their warships over to make their claims effective. Thus, the
great people of Harding have helped to preserve the inde1 28 ]




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pendence of certain American nations without a Platt
Amendment obliging them to do so.
There was no need of a Platt Amendment whet the Americans helped some nations of America and outside of it who
were menaced by poor conditions of sanitation. And in this
respect we Cubans can be proud of the fact that no nation of
the world has a lower death rate or a better organization for
maintaining the public health.
When the United States planned to construct the Nicaragua
Canal and later the Panama Canal, it was logical and natural
that they should desire to have an important naval station
near at hand which would be most accessible to all the points
of embarkation from the Atlantic to the Pacific, or vice versa,
that is to say, Cape Maisi. In return for their aid in winning
our independence and because they were bound closely to us
with a pledge to help us if this independence should be
attacked, and we could not resist alone (just as we would
assist them and as we have done in our little way, when
necessary), we would always be glad to concede to them the
right of a naval station at Guantanamo, as we did when occasion presented itself, also at Honda Bay, and as they renounced in the treaty the extension of the land comprising the
former.
As you see, I have rapidly sketched a series of problems
which are and will always be of great importance and worth
studying not only by our Cuban Society of International Law,
but also especially by the American Institute of International
Law and the societies, in the United States of America and in
the rest of the Continent, corresponding to our Society.
The best way of making the union of all the American Powers closer, the best way of allaying all suspicions between the
great nations to the north and all those peoples speaking our
tongue and the Portuguese and French tongues in America,
is for the men devoted to the study of international law in the
United States to take all these questions which I have mentioned into account, so that in time the work necessary for the
creation of a state of feeling in the United States favorable to
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the abandonment of those clauses of the permanent treaty
which give rise to the difficulties that I have mentioned tonight may be realized. In their place others should be incorporated which will convert the treaty into one of amity and
good relations, or better still into one of real alliance such as
should exist between two nations so closely united by geography, history, commercial relations and friendly feelings, and
so far as Cuba is concerned, by the great service rendered in
the noble and generous act of 1898, which is never to be forgotten, when. the soldiers and sailors of America, under
McKinley and Roosevelt, landed on the coast of Santiago to
help the Cubans to win once and for all their independence.
For the present I realize that perhaps the opportune moment has not come. But the day is coming, and I hope that it
will come soon, when we will again be, as we were in the
earliest period of the Republic, a model, orderly and lawrespecting people, when we shall give no cause for criticism,
not because we do things worse than others, but because our
proximity to and relations with the United States, as they are
regulated by the permanent treaty, oblige us to be more cautious than others and perhaps niot to do what can be done in
other nations without arousing frequent criticism.
Not long ago I was explaining to a distinguished American
the unjust interpretation given by some American Government officials to certain clauses of the treaty and the harm
caused thereby to the international status of Cuba. I said that
sooner or later we would have to negotiate a separate agreement which would contain nothing that could in any way
injure our sovereignty. He replied: "Do you believe then that
without the Platt Amendment and without a permanent
treaty as it exists today there would be no revolutions in
Cuba?" I replied to him: "No, there have been and there will
be revolutions in Cuba, just as in many countries of the world.
But when unjust revolutions take place in Cuba, the Government will assuredly be able to suppress them, supported in its
efforts by public opinion. On the other hand, when the Government tramples upon the rights of the citizens there will also
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be revolutions, with the difference that the revolution will do
away definitely with the Government and that there will then
probably be no future governments that will trample upon the
rights of the citizens."
I am one of those who believes that Cuba must pass through
the same difficulties as other countries have passed through
who have preceded us in the consolidation of their acquired
liberty. All the nations of America have experienced the same
difficulties as we have. Yet some, after a century of independent existence, have not yet been rid of these misfortunes
which trouble us too, in spite of enjoying enormous material
progress and great culture such as is enjoyed by the Cuban
people.
The great advantage that Cuba has gained by becoming a
member of the League of Nations, the great advantage that we
have obtained in having Cuba represented by Dr. Bustamante in the Permanent Court of International Justice, lies
in the fact that from day to day the world will become more
convinced that Cuba is a country well prepared for independent life. And the great American people will understand that
they were not mistaken when they participated in the terrible
war of emancipation against Spain, fought in order that we
might be free. And they will understand that they did not
make a mistake when, in concluding with Cuba the Treaty
of Paris, they incorporated into it the obligation of entrusting
the Cuban Government to the people of Cuba, and that they
were not mistaken on May 20, 1902, when they established
the Republic of Cuba, allowing the Cubans forever to rule
their own destinies as a free and sovereign nation.
By a lofty design of Providence that has thus helped to
exalt the international importance of our country, a son of the
old conquering and civilizing nation, Spain, and a son of the
last of the Spanish colonies to gain its independence, Cuba, are
to represent in the Permanent Court of International Justice
the Spanish race, the beautiful Spanish tongue and the juridiP       cal system common to all the countries of our language. When
in future the nations of our race desire for any reason to appear
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before the court in order to settle disputes that may arise with
other Powers of the world, they know that they will be going
to two judges who of the eleven sitting in the court speak the
language of Cervantes and Heredia, namely, Altamira and
Bustamante.
But especially in Spanish America there is no one who, having greeted with great satisfaction the election of Dr. Bustamante, has not felt regret, just as we Cubans feel it keenly,
that our race did not obtain a third judgeship for Dr. Alejandro Alvarez, the learned son of Chile and eminent writer on
international law who came so close to being elected in Geneva
and whose failure to be elected is due most of all to the organization of the Council of the League.
I do not doubt that sooner or later he will secure a seat in the
Court, since the number of judges may be increased up to
fifteen in accordance with the Statute of Organization. And
when this takes place all America will surely secure the additional judgeship that it merits, obtaining it for Dr. Alvarez,
who deserves it so fully by virtue of his reputation, which is
increasing day by day both in this Continent and in Europe.
And now, fellow members, in closing I call upon you to lift
your glasses and drink to the health of our guests, James
Brown Scott, Alejandro Alvarez, Luis Anderson and George
A. Finch, who have come to Cuba to participate in the annual
meeting of the Directors' Council of the American Institute
of International Law at Havana and to take part in the fifth
meeting of our Society. May their homeward journey be a
happy one and may we meet them here again next year to
celebrate with rejoicing the new triumphs which for the good
of our America and all humanity will have been attained in
the field of international law by the Institute over which Dr.
James Brown Scott presides and the national societies of international law which in harmony with it are so active throughout the whole Continent.


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