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the roots of them, by constantly denying their natural
Sropensities to honoiirs, riches, and earthly pleasures, till it is admitted by Catholic theologians that Christ added no new merely moral precepts to the natural law. There is of course a moral obligation to believe the truths which the Master revealed oonceming God, man's destiny, and the Church. Moral obligations, too, arise from the institution of the sacraments, some ot which are necessarv to salvation. But even here noth- ing is added directly to the natural law; given the rev- elation of truth by God. the obligation to believe it follows naturally for all to whom the revelation is made known; and given the institution of necessary means of grace and salvation, the obligation to use them also follows necessarily.
As we saw above, the Master abrogated the dispen- sations which made polygamv and divorce lawful for the Jews owing to the s]>ecial circumstances in which they were placed. In this respect the natural law was restored to its primitive integnty. Somewhat similarly with regard to the love of enemies, Christ clearly ex- plained the natural law of charity on the point, and urged it against the perverse interpretation of the Pharisees. The Law of Moses had expressly enjoined the love of friends and fellow-citizens. But at the same time it forbade the Jews to make treaties with foreigners, to conclude peace with the Anunonites, Moabites, and other neighbouring tribes; the Jew was allowed to practise usury in dealing with foreigners; God promised that He would be an enem^r to the enemies of His people. From these and similar pro- visions the Jewish doctors seem to have drawn the conclusion that it was lawful to hate one's enemies. Even St. Augustine, as well as some other Fathers and Doctors of the Church, thought that hatred of ene- mies, like polygamy and divorce, was permitted to the Jews on account of their hardness of heart. It is clear, however, that, since enemies share the same nature with us, and are children of the same common Father, they may not be excluded from the love which, by the law of nature, we owe to all men. This ob- Kgation Christ no less clearly than beautifully ex- pounded, and taught us how to practise by His own noble example. The Catholic Church by virtue of the commission given to her by Christ is the Divinely con- stituted interpjreter of the Divine Law of both the Old and the New Testament.
St. Thomab, Summa O^eologica (Pannftt 1852); Suarek, De Letnbua (Paris, 1856); Fesch. PreglecHones dogmatica, V (Frei- buic. 1900); ]^abbnbaubr, Commentariut in Evangdia (Paris, 1882); GiQOT^ Biblical Lectures (New York, 1901); Palmisri, De Matrimonto (Rome, 1880); Pei/t, HiaUnre de Vancien Testa- ment (Paris, 1901); von HuiCMSUinBR, Commentarius in Bxo- dum, Leviticum, ueut&vnomium (Paris, 1897, 1901); Vxoou- Boux, Did. de la Bible (Paris, 1908); Hastings. Diet, of the BibU CBdinbuigh, 1904).
T. Slater.
Law, International. — International law has been defined to be " the rules which determine the conduct of the general body of civilized states in their dealings with each other" (American and English Encycl. of Law) . Different writers have given varying views of the foundation of the law of nations, some holding that it is foimded merely upon consent and usage, and others that it is the same as the law of nature, applied to the conduct of nations in the character of moral persons susceptible of obligations and laws. Chancellor Kent holds that neither of these views is strictly true; that the law of nations is purely positive law founded on usage, consent, and agreement, but that it must not be separated entirely from natural jurisprudence, since it derives its force "from the same principles of ri^ht reason, the same views of the nature and constitution of man, and the same sanction of Divine revelation, as those from which the science of morality is de- duced ". It follows, then, that by the natural law every state is bouna to conduct itself towards other states In accordance with the rules of justice, irre-
spective of the general rules that have arisen from long
established custom and usage. International law is a
part of the law of the land of which the courts take
judicial notice, and municipal statutes are construed
so as not to infringe on its doctrines. ^ The rules of
international law are to be found in writers of recog-
nized authority, in treaties between civilized nations,
in the decisions of international tribunals, in state
papers and diplomatic corresoondence, and its applica-
tion is to be sought especially in the decisions of the
courts of the different nations where the rules have
been defined in Utigated cases, arising especially in the
admiralty where judgment has been sought m prize
cases. The first great modern authority on the sub-
ject was Grotius. His works have been followed by
those of Puffendorf, Burlamaqui, Bynkershoek, and
Vattel. The works of these learned authors have been
adapted and expanded by various writers, so that now
there is a vast body of literature upon the subject
' remesenting great learning and ability.
The law oi nations is essentially the product of modern times. Ancient nations looked upon strangers as enemies, and upon their property as lawful prize. Among the Greeks prisoners of war might lawfully be put to death or sola into slavery with tneir wives and children, and there was no duty owed by the nation to a foreign nation. Some beginnings of diplomatic in- tercourse mav be traced in the relations of the Greek states towards one another, by agreements relating to the burying of the dead and the exchange of prisoners, while the .^nphictyonic Council affords an instance of an attempt to institute a law of nations among the Grecian states themselves. The Romans show stronger evidence of appreciation of international law, or at least of the beginnings of it. They had a college of heralds charged with the Fetial Law relating to declarations of war and treaties of peace, and as their power and civilization grew, there came an apprecia- tion of the moral duty owed by the state to nations with which it was at war. After the establishment of the empire, especially in its later periods, the law of nations became recognized as part of the natural rea- son of mankind. After the fall of the empire there was a relapse into the barbarism of earlier ages, but. when in the ninth century Charlema^e consolidated his empire imder the influence of Christianity, the law of nations took on a new growth. As commerce de- veloped, the necessity of an international law provid- ing tor the enforcement of contracts, the protection of shipwrecked sailors and property, and the maintaining of narbours, became more apparent. Various codes and regulations containing tnc laws of the sea grad- ually developed, the most famous of which are the Judgments of 016ron", said to have l)een drawn up in the eleventh century and long recognized in the At- lantic ports of France and incorporated in part in the maritime ordinances of Louis XIV; the * Consolato del Mare", a collection of rules applicable to questions arising in commerce and navigation both in peace and war, probably drawn up in the twelfth centur>' and founaed upon the Roman maritime law and early maritime customs of the commercial cities of the Medi- terranean; the *' Guidon de la Mar", which dates from the close of the sixteenth century and deals with the law of maritime insurance, prize, and the regulations
foveraing the issue of letters of marque and reprisal, n addition to these there were various bodies of sea laws, notably the maritime law of Wisby, the customs of Amsterdain, the laws of Antwerp, and the constitu- tions of the Hanseatic League. Ail of these codes con- tained provisions extracted from the earliest known maritime code, the Rhodian Laws, which were incor- porated into the general body of Roman law, and were recognized and sanctioned by Tiberius and Hadrian. During the long period between the fall of the Ro- man Empire and the definitive beginning of modern European states the greatest influence working for a
