During his term of office, continued Lord Lansdowne, he had
signed five Arbitration Treaties ; and two more were in course of negotiation. But while it was good to settle disputes amicably, it was better to prevent them arising at all ; and, in his belief, the new Convention with France would remove many dangerous questions from the area of controversy. The good results of the new understanding had already been shown by the assistance France had given in settling the difficulty with Russia. We congratulate Lord Lansdowne on his speech, and still more on the tact and ability he has shown in handling a most difficult crisis. If, however, we were superstitious, we should be inclined to regard his words about arbitration and the Hague Conference as of evil omen. The world has been full of wars and rumours of wars ever since the first Hague Con- ference, and the epoch of Treaties of Arbitration has coincided with an epoch of strife. Still, we do not desire to seem
