Law or war? Until the 1790s, modern nations settled disputes either through negotiation or war. At the close of the American Revolution and following British withdrawal, many important disputes remained, any one of which could have rekindled a war, including disputes over borders, fishing rights and confiscation of property.
President Washington sent U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Jay to London to try to settle matters. The issues seemed intractable, but the negotiators agreed on a solution: if they were unable to settle an issue, they would appoint a neutral to settle the matter. One commissioner asked, “Why shall not all the nations on earth determine their disputes in this mode, rather than choke the rivers with their carcasses and stain the soil of continents with their slain?”
