The conventions concluded at the Central American Peace Conference in 1907 contained provisions respecting peace and amity; the establishment of a Central American Court of Justice; extradition; the establishment of an international Central American bureau and a pedagogical institute; and regarding commu nications.
The following are the treaty negotiations of 1911: 24 February, new treaty with Japan was ratified by the United States; and on 4 April ratifications were exchanged at Tokio. The significant feature of this treaty is its omission of any explicit stipulation concerning the regu lation of the emigration of the people of one country to the other. As part of this treaty, which is one of commerce and navigation, the representatives of the two countries agreed upon the proctocol of a provisional tariff ar rangement and a declaration on the subject of immigration made by the Japanese govern ment. Japan further agreed to continue to grant to the United States the ((most favored nation" treatment in tariff matters, pending the negotiation of a special agreement.
On 17 May 1911 the draft of a general treaty of arbitration was submitted by Secre tary Knox to the British and French Ambas sadors; and on 28 June it was announced at Washington that this treaty had been agreed upon in every important provision. It is the first comprehensive agreement for arbitrating practically all disputes that can arise between two sovereign nations, including even questions of vital interest and national honor. It pro vides for arbitration by The Hague court of all questions, without reservation, that are re garded by the contracting parties as proper for arbitration. All other disputes are to be submitted to a commission of inquiry, to be composed of the permanent court of The Hague. This commission will investigate and report whether or not the matters in contro versy should be arbitrated. This treaty was signed 3 Aug. 1911 between the United States, Great Britain and France and was finally ratified 7.March 1912.
On 28 June a treaty abolishing pelagic seal ing was signed at Washington by representa tives of the United States, Great Britain, Rus sia and Japan.
On 26 January the reciprocity agreement between the United States and Canada was submitted to the legislative bodies of both countries. It was upheld in Congress, but in the Canadian elections on 22 September the party supporting the proposed trade reciprocity was defeated.
The most important event in which the treaty-making power of the United States was involved at the end of 1911 was President Taft's abrogation of the Russian Treaty of 1832 with this country. This was done 17 December by his directing the American Am bassador at Saint Petersburg to denounce the treaty in friendly terms. The notification that he had so acted was delivered to the Foreign Office 18 December. The action was taken by
the President on the primary ground that Rus sia had violated the terms of the treaty by refusing to vise passports for American citizens of Jewish birth or Catholic faith. The House had voted 300 to 1 demanding abrogation. The operation of the treaty— which was one of commerce and navigation — ceased by this ac tion on 1 Jan. 1913.
Under an agreement entered into between the United States and Great Britain 20 July 1912 all outstanding claims between the two countries shall be submitted to arbitration. The arbitration treaty with France which expired in 1913 was renewed in February of the same year. In 1914 the so-called Bryan-Wilson treaties were presented by the United States to various foreign countries. The object of these treaties was to provide a means of pre venting international trouble from developing into war. In general these treaties stipulate that the contracting parties to the treaty shall, in each case, submit to a commission all in ternational disputes that cannot be settled by diplomacy. The contracting parties to each treaty bind themselves not to declare war or begin hostilities until such time as the com mission shall have submitted its findings. Each nation is free to disregard the report of the commission if it should see fit to do so. The following countries entered into the Bryan Wilson treaty agreement with the United States: Salvador, Guatemala, Panama, Hon duras, Nicaragua and The Netherlands in 1913; Bolivia, Persia, Portugal, Costa Rica, Switzer land, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Den mark, Italy, Norway, Peru, Uruguay, Argen tina, Brazil Chile Paraguay, China, France, Great Britain, Spain, Russia, Ecuador, Greece, Sweden, in 1914; and Norway in 1915. For the Peace Treaty of the World War, signed 28 June 1919, see WAR, EUROPEAN — TREATY OF VERSAILLES. Ste also INTERNATIONAL CLAIMS AND DISPUTES; HAGUE COURT, THE; INTER NATIONAL LAW.
Bibliography.—Balch, 'International Courts of Arbitration' (Philadelphia 1896); Bigelow. John. 'Breaches of Anglo-American Treaties' (New York 1917) ; Burnham, S. M., 'Struggles of the Nations' (Boston 1891); Corwin, E. S., 'The Doctrine of Judicial Re view' (Princeton 1914); Crandall, S. B., (New York 1904; Washington 1915) ; Devlin, R. T., 'The Treaty Power under the Constitution of the United States' (San Francisco 1908); Foster, 'Arbitrations and The Hague Court) (Boston 1904); Hertslet, Sir Edward, 'Treaties, Conventions, Etc., Between the United States and Other Powers> (Wash ington 1910); Moore. J. B., 'History and Di gest of the International Arbitration to Which the United States Has Been a (Wash ington 1898); Morris, 'International Arbitra tion and Procedure' (New Haven 1911); Snow, F., 'Treaties and Topics in American Diplomacy' (Boston 1894).