The Bombing of Civilians The proposals for prohibiting the bombing
of civilians from the air, laid before the League of Nations Assembly by Captain Euan Wallace on Tuesday, have little more than a melancholy academic interest. The suggestion is that the aerial bombardment of civilians should be declared illegal ; that only objectives definitely identifiable should be bom- barded ; that these targets must be attacked in such a way as to avoid the accidental bombardment of civilian populations in the vicinity. An agreement on such matters can be of value only on two conditions : it must be practicable in itself, and there must be general confidence that it will be observed. The practicality of these particular proposals will no doubt be examined by the League committee appointed to study them ; but even if they were pronounced completely effective in theory, and were signed and ratified by every nation in the world, it is doubtful whether a single gas-mask or dug-out would be thought superfluous in any country. It is well, no doubt, that plans for the regulation of air-warfare should be worked out, against the day when the state of the world makes their adoption worth considering. That day appears to grow not nearer but more distant.
* * * *
Previous page
