ON A CONGRESS OF NATIONS, FOR THE ADJUSTMENT OF INTERNATIONAL DISPUTES, AND for the TOGETHER WITH A SIXTH ESSAY, COMPRISING THE SUBSTANCE OF THE REJECTED ESSAYS. BOSTON: PUBLISHED BY WHIPPLE & DAMRELL, FOR THE AMERICAN PEACE SOCIETY. 1840, Dir. Pagrant 312 54 86627 P R E F AСЕ. A CONGRESS OF NATIONS has been a favorite plan with the American Peace Society, ever since its first organization at New York, in 1828. At the first annual meeting, a premium of thirty dollars was offered for the best Essay on the subject of a Congress of Nations, which was subsequently raised to fifty dollars, but without any adequate result; for, although four or five Essays were presented, one only was thought to have any merit; and that had but little; but it was published by the Society, and pretty extensively circulated and read. As these low offers of the Peace Society did not produce the desired effect, two gentlemen of New York, in the year 1831, offered, through the periodical of the Society, but without taking any vote of the board of directors, five hundred dollars for the best Essay on a Congress of Nations, and one hundred for the second best; and the Hon. Joseph Story, Wm. Wirt and John M'Lean were appointed as the committee to award the premium. About forty Essays were handed in for this prize. The committee of award could not agree on any one Essay as superior to the others, but recommended that the premium should be divided among five of the best, which they designated.* This plan did not suit the gentlemen who offered the premium, and they did not consider themselves bound by it. They therefore rejected it, and immediately raised the premium to one thousand dollars for the best Essay only, and extended the time of receiving the Essays to the 20th of June, 1834; and they appointed the Hon. John Q. Adams, Chancellor Kent and Thomas S. Grimké the committee of award. The much lamented Grimké died of the cholera, in 1834, by which the cause of Peace suffered an irreparable loss. The Hon. Daniel Webster consented to take his place in the committee. But one other Essay was offered under the enlarged premium, though some were withdrawn and published by their authors in one form or another. The second committee were no more fortunate than the first, and could not agree * Award of the Committee.-The subscribers, according to the request of the committee of the American Peace Society, have carefully read the several Essays which have been transmitted to them by the committee, for the purpose of awarding the prizes authorized by the Society for the two Essays. Upon full consideration, they are of opinion that five of the Essays possess very high merit ; and that their merit is so nearly equal, and yet of so distinct a character, that injustice would be done by awarding the highest prize to any one, to the exclusion of the others. With a view, therefore, to a just distribution of the prizes, and, as the best means of accomplishing the important objects of the Society, they respectfully recommend, in lieu of the prizes, as proposed by the Society, that the whole sum of six hundred dollars should be equally divided among the authors of these five Essays; and that each of them should be published for general distribution. In testimony whereof, we have hereunto set our hands, this 29th day of April, 1833. JOSEPH STORY, WM. WIRT, JOHN M'LEAN. in awarding the prize to any one candidate; and it was found impossible to get either committee to revise their labors, being gentlemen of high standing in society, and their time precious; and the gentlemen who offered the prize declined having any thing further to do with the business.* This placed the American Peace Society in a very awkward predicament. They had suffered their periodical to be used for giving publicity to the offer of the premium; and they felt that they were in honor bound to see that the best writers should not go altogether unrewarded. The President of the Society read the Essays, and found that they contained matter too good to be lost to the world; and the Society authorized him, together with such other person as he should choose out of the Executive Committee, to select five of the best Essays, regarding, but not being bound by, the previous awards, to be published in a volume, together with a sixth Essay, composed by the President, and containing all the matter relevant to the subject which was elicited by the rejected Essays, with such other remarks as might occur to him. The Committee obtained all they could of these Essays, amounting tothirty-five. How many were * Award of the second Committee.-The referees, to whom were submitted, by the Secretary of the American Peace Society, the several Essays offered for the premium of one thousand dollars, are of opinion, that among the Essays submitted, there is not one so decidedly superior to all the rest as not only to be worthy of the prize, but exclusively worthy. And as the Essays were submitted on that condition, the referees do not make any award in the case. February, 1837. JOHN QUINCY ADAMS, JAMES KENT, DANIEL WEBSTER. |