8529. TREATIES, Binding force of.—[further continued].
The doctrine of Grotius,
Puffendorf and Wolf is that “treaties remain
obligatory, notwithstanding any change in the
form of government, except in the single case,
where the preservation of that form was the
object of the treaty”. There, the treaty ex
tinguishes, not by the election or declaration
of the party remaining in statu quo, but independently
of that, by the evanishment of the
object. Vattel lays down, in fact, the same
doctrine, that treaties continue obligatory,
notwithstanding a change of government by
the will of the other party; that to oppose
that will would be a wrong; and that the
ally remains an ally, notwithstanding the
change. So far he concurs with all the previous
writers:—but he then adds what they
had not said, nor would say,—“but if this
change renders the alliance useless, dangerous
or disagreeable to it, it is free to renounce
it”. (Vattel. 2. 197.) It was unnecessary for
him to have specified the exception of danger
in this particular case, because that exception
exists in all cases, and its extent has been
considered; but when he adds that, because
a contract is become merely useless or disagreeable
we are free to renounce it,—he is
in opposition to Grotius, Puffendorf and
Wolf, who admit no such license against the
obligation of treaties, and he is in opposition
to the morality of every honest man, to whom
we may safely appeal to decide whether he
feels himself free to renounce a contract the
moment it becomes merely useless or disagreeable
to him.—
Opinion on French Treaties. Washington ed. vii, 619.
Ford ed., vi, 227.
(1793)
