d to
be resorted to against a recalcitrant member of the League.

XII. Having discussed International Mediation by International Councils
of Conciliation, I must now turn to two questions which I have hitherto
purposely omitted, although in the eyes of many people they stand in the
forefront of interest, namely, firstly, _disarmament_ as a consequence
of the peaceable settlement of disputes by an International Court of
Justice and International Councils of Conciliation, and, secondly, the
question of the _surrender of sovereignty_ which it is asserted is
involved by the entrance of any State into the proposed League of
Nations.

Now as regards disarmament, I have deliberately abstained from
mentioning it hitherto, although it is certainly a question of the
greatest importance. The reason for my abstention is a very simple one.
I have always maintained that disarmament can neither diminish the
number of wars nor abolish war altogether, but that, if the number of
wars diminishes or if war be abolished altogether, disarmament will
follow. There is no doubt that when once the new League of Nations is in
being, war will occur much more rarely than hitherto. For this reason
disarmament will _ipso facto_ follow the establishment of a League of
Nations, and the details of such disarmament are matters which will soon
be solved when once the new League has become a reality. Yet I must
emphasise the fact that disarmament is not identical with the total
abolition of armies and navies. The possibility must always be kept in
view that one or more members of the League will be recalcitrant, and
that then the other members must unite their forces against them. And
there must likewise be kept in view the possibility of a war between two
members of the League on account of a political dispute in which
mediation by the International Councils of Conciliation was
unsuccessful. Be that as it may, it is certain that in time disarmament
can take place to a very great extent, and it is quite probable that
large standing armies based on conscription might everywhere be
abolished and be replaced by militia.

XIII. Let me now turn to the question of sovereignty. Is the assertion
really true that States renounce their sovereignty by entering into the
League? The answer depends entirely upon the conception of sovereignty
with which one starts. If sovereignty were absolutely unfettered liberty
of action, a loss of sovereignty would certainly be in