Item 49 - Letter from R. W. Rippon to Henry Sidgwick

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Writes requesting Sidgwick's view on his opinion with regard to the distinction of law from morality. Illustrates his theory by putting forward the hypothetical situation whereby each country in the world with a supreme political body identical in constitution to the British parliament vanished, and all those holding subordinate authority, eg., soldiers, judges, policemen are thereby divested of their authority. Believes that at the same time there would disappear Private Law, Constitutional Law and International Law. Puts forward another hypothetical situation whereby the sovereignty of each country ceases to exist. He assumes the simultaneous disappearance of the above three forms of law, which have 'a greater similarity and resemblance to each other than any of them have to morality', the three deriving their existence from the institution 'sovereignty', while morality 'does not derive its existence or any of its validity from governments'. Believes that they should be denominated by the common term 'law'. Considers the common doctrine that a rule of International Law arises from the consent of states as expressed by usage, and that until there is an unanimity between states, the law is doubtful, to be 'entirely erroneous and a priori'. Holds that there is no reason why the International Law of one state should not be as different from that of another state as the private law of each.