s, and especially in the more democratic
countries, an international consensus of public opinion has gradually
grown up, making itself the voice, like a Greek chorus, of an abstract
justice. It is quite true that of this justice, as of justice generally,
it may be said that it has wide limits. Renan declared once, in a famous
allocution, that "what is called indulgence is, most often, only
justice," and, at the other extreme, Remy de Gourmont has said that
"injustice is sometimes a part of justice;" in other words, there are
varying circumstances in which justice may properly be tempered either
with mercy or with severity. In any case, and however it may be
qualified; a popular international voice generously pronouncing itself
in favour of justice, and resonantly condemning any Government which
clashes against justice, is now a factor of the international situation.
It is, moreover, tending to become a factor having a certain influence
on affairs. This was the case during the South African War, when
England, by offending this international sense of justice, fell into a
discredit which had many actual unpleasant results and narrowly escaped,
there is some reason to believe, proving still more serious. The same
voice was heard with dramatically sudden and startling effect when
Ferrer was shot at Barcelona. Ferrer was a person absolutely unknown to
the man in the street; he was indeed little more than a name even to
those who knew Spain; few could be sure, except by a kind of intuition,
that he was the innocent victim of a judicial murder, for it is only now
that the fact is being slowly placed beyond dispute. Yet immediately
after Ferrer was shot within the walls of Monjuich a great shout of
indignation was raised, with almost magical suddenness and harmony,
throughout the civilized world, from Italy to Belgium, from England to
Argentina. Moreover, this voice was so decisive and so loud that it
acted like those legendary trumpet-blasts which shattered the walls of
Jericho; in a few days the Spanish Government, with a powerful minister
at its head, had fallen. The significance of this event we cannot easily
overestimate. For the first time in history, the voice of international
public opinion, unsupported by pressure, political, social, or
diplomatic, proved potent enough to avenge an act of injustice by
destroying a Government. A new force has appeared in the world, and it
tends to operate against those countries which are