German Legislation for the Occupied Territory of Belgium by Charles Henry Huberich;Alexander Nicol-SpeyerReview by: L. B. R.University of Pennsylvania Law Review and American Law Register, Vol. 63, No. 7 (May,1915), p. 699Published by: The University of Pennsylvania Law ReviewStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3313786 .

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BOOK REVIEWS.

GERMAN LEGISLATION FOR THE OCCUPIED TERRITORY OF BELGIUM. Edited by Charles Henry Huberich and Alexander Nicol-Speyer. Pp. viii and Io8. The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, I915. The Second Peace Conference opened at The Hague, June 15, I907. Part

of its work was the adoption of a Convention of fifty-six articles "Respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land", which modified a Convention on the same subject by the First Hague Conference of I899. Of the Convention of I907, Articles 42 to 56, inclusive (Section III), deal with "Military Authority Over the Territory of the Hostile State".

When the German army, during the month of August, I914, occupied by force all but a small part of Belgium soil, a state of facts arose to which the Convention of I9o7 became applicable.

"German Legislation for the Occupied Territories of Belgium" is a chronological compilation of the official texts of the Ordinances, Proclama- tions, and Notifications issued by the German military authority in Belgium. The official German text is given, and then the official translation, first into French and then presumably the official Belgian language, which appears to be very similar to Dutch with French construction. All told, therefore, the book does not contain more than thirty-six pages of legislation. A short introduction contains Articles 42 to 53 of the Convention of I907 "Respecting the Laws and Customs of War on Land".

Turning specifically to its contents we glean some interesting facts with- out concerning ourselves with the difficult problem of criticising the German military legislation in the light of the Hague Convention of I9o7. Of the forty-one Ordinances issued between August 26, I914, and December 23, I914, all do not regulate strictly different matters, as a fair proportion either extend temporary orders or enlarge the scope of earlier ones. They fall into three broad classes, political, civil and military. Of the Ordinances of a political nature the most interesting are those transferring governmental authority from the Belgians to the Germans. Of the legislation which may be roughly classed as civil, several Ordinances relate to the supervision of banks and to payments to enemy countries. Branches of banks of enemy countries, established within the occupied territory, are commanded to wind up their affairs and deposit their assets where directed, the private rights of individuals being respected; Belgian banks are placed under the supervision of a German Commissioner, they are commanded not to conduct their affairs in a manner inimical to German interests, and are forbidden to transport funds directly or indirectly to enemy countries. Payments to England and France and their possessions are forbidden and all engagements benefitting citizens of those countries are suspended. Not until November 28, 1914, was a similar ordinance directed against Russia.

The book impresses us as a useful compilation for the student of public international law. As German occupation continues the frequency of military legislation will probably tend to increase; this tendency is, indeed, shown throughout the four months represented by the publication under review. The compilation should be brought down to date. The small amount of the legis- lation and the moderation of its language are somewhat of a surprise. But after all, the test of moderation is the spirit in which the legislation is executed-legislation couched in broad terms and judged in military courts.

L. B. R.

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