A half century ago, Americans believed firmly that we had a good cause of grievance against Great Britain for having allowed, during our great Civil War, the use of her ports for the fitting out of a fleet of Confederate cruisers, which caused our maritime flag to disappear almost entirely from the high seas. We pressed Great Britain long and persistently to agree that our claims, known under the generic name of the Alabama claims, should be submitted for settlement to an impartial arbitration. Finally, with reluctance, Great Britain acceded to our demands. And as a result the two Nations appeared as litigants before the Bar of the International Court of Justice, popularly known as the Geneva Tribunal. The result was a triumph for the United States, but also it was a greater triumph for the cause of civilization. To-day our Government and that of Great Britain have once more come to an _impasse_, this time over the interpretation of the Hay-Pauncefote Panama Treaty. Our Government has definitely granted free passage through the Panama Canal to our vessels engaged in the coastwise trade. And as a consequence Great Britain has entered a protest and given notice that she will request that the Hay-Pauncefote International contract shall be submitted for interpretation to a judicial decision by The Hague Tribunal. Though so short a time has elapsed since the Panama Canal Bill became a law, mutterings have been heard of the possibility that the United States would refuse this request of Great Britain to refer the point in dispute to The Hague Court. But such a policy would be most unwise for the United States to pursue. No better means to injure our foreign trade and relations could be devised. Apart, however, from the material aspect of the question, our national honor and credit would suffer if we refused to refer the matter for judicial settlement at the Bar of The Hague International Court, especially as we have a treaty agreement with Great Britain to refer many forms of possible international dispute to that very tribunal in case ordinary means fail to settle them. In acceding to such a solution of the point of difference between the two Powers, the honor of the United States and Great Britain surely will be as safe in the hands of their respective counsel as the honor of a private individual is in those of his lawyer in a suit before a Municipal Tribunal.