rich. But, deeming that the punishment of their enemies was sweeter than any of those things-that they could fall in no nobler cause-they determined at the hazard of their lives to be honourably avenged, and to leave the rest. They resigned to hope their unknown chance of happiness; but in the face of death they resolved to rely upon themselves alone. And when the moment came they were minded to resist and suffer rather than to fly and save their lives; they ran away from the word of dishonour, but on the battlefield their feet stood fast, and in an instant, at the height of their fortune, they passed away from the scene, not of their fear, but of their glory." Thus spake Perioles of the Athenian dead, and we may echo his brave words with pride and sincerity. 1914 to November 1918, and poor, may one day become has engaged more men and used more machinery than ever were engaged or used in the history of the world. And we did not die of joy. Our first emotion was an emotion of solemnity. The relief and the thankfulness which obsessed us were nearer to tears than to laughter. The shouts in the street, the natural expression of the popular happiness, seemed strangely inapposite until our ears were accustomed to them. The war was fought with too grave an object, it exacted too great a sacrifice to be expressed in terms of hilarity. And then suddenly it came upon us that the shouters were in the right of it. After a long hour of tension all that is human within us demands relief. We return to the normal with a cheer. After the murder of Duncan in "Macbeth" there was heard the knocking at the door, and then followed the ribaldry of the porter about those who went by the primrose path to the everlasting bonfire. And now that the relief is here, we know that we shall come back to a world which we did not know before. Our freedom and happiness have been saved by the young, who will not enjoy them. They have won the fight, and they have paid for the victory with their blood, "None of these men were enervated by wealth or hesitated to resign the pleasures of life; none of them put off the evil day in the hope, natural to poverty, that a man, though The youth has saved the country, and our joy in their supreme achievement is tempered by the knowledge that many of those men, worthy sons of England, will return home no more. Yet they died not in vain, nor without their due reward. They have received the meed of praise and the noblest sepulchre, in which their glory and the gratitude of their country survive. "For," said Perioles, "the whole earth is the sepulchre of famous men; not only are they commemorated by columns and insoriptions in their own country, but in foreign lands there dwells also an unwritten memorial of them, graven not in stone, but in the hearts of which, still unhampered by the men." Nevertheless, let us pernicious doctrine of the freeremember, in giving them the dom of the seas, saved Europe poor reward of unforgetfulness, now as it saved Europe a hunthat they died without thought dred years ago. of meed or glory. It was enough for them that England was in danger, that the homeland was threatened with death and slavery, and they came willingly from every corner of the Empire to make their sacrifice. And what an achievement has been theirs! With the help of our brave Allies they have broken the power of the worst despot who ever aimed at the dominion of the world. The men of our Empire have fought in the East and the West, in France and Macedonia, in Mesopotamia and Palestine, and everywhere viotory has crowned their arms. Even the glorious defeat at Gallipoli has been avenged by our triumph over the Turks. It was a favourite superstition of the Germans before the war that Great Britain was sunk in sloth, and had no other thought than of money-making. And we have proved that our ancient energy is unimpaired, rather is enhanced. We have oreated armies where no armies were; we have learned the oraft of fight as we went on. We called vast factories into being, and produced by our own effort enough munitions of war to defeat a nation which had cherished the ambition of destroying the world for half a century. Nor shall we ever forget the splendid vigilance of our Fleet, which made victory certain from the first, and Thus we stand at the zenith of our power; thus by our endeavour and example we have aided our Allies in the task of preserving the liberty of the world. We have won, because neither at home nor in the field have we admitted the possibility of defeat. We have never doubted. Even in the dark days of disaster-and we have known many dark days -we were still confident of the ultimate victory; and since wars are decided, as Marshal Foch, whose leadership ensured the triumph of the Allies, has argued, by moral as well as by material force, our resolution has not been without its No effect upon the enemy. And if the Allies to-day are at the summit, into how deep a pit has Germany fallen! Her fall appals her the more grimly, because for four years she has lived upon boastfulness. nation ever vaunted herself as loudly as did Germany. To look back upon the speeches which her Kaiser made, upon the manifestoes which her professors and preachers and politicians have published, is to plumb the abyss in which she lies prostrate. They outdid one another in schemes of aggrandisement. This one was determined at all hazards never to let go of Belgium. That one had made up his mind to lay violent hands upon the channel ports of France. Another, yet bolder, drew a rough line from the German frontier to Toulon, and exclaimed, all that shall be mine. And all were resolved never to surrender Longwy and Briey-not that they had any right to them, but because they contained such mineral wealth as might be of use to Germany. And now the dream is over. The whole Rhineland is in process of being evacuated, and Mayence, Coblentz, and Cologne will within a few days be garrisoned by the Allies. Unhappily there is still a fly in our ointment. The politicians once more fell below the height of their opportunity. In accepting the German demand for an armistice they declared, without cause or warrant, that a conference would presently arrange terms upon the basis of President Wilson's fourteen points. Why these points were introduced irrelevantly we know as little as we know what they mean. But, indeed, there are not a few misunderstandings which the meeting at Versailles seems to justify. Why, for instance, was Lord Reading in attendance upon the Prime Minister? Lord Reading is Lord Chief Justice of England, and he is British Ambassador at Washington. For neither of these activities is Versailles the proper place. Why, then, was he there? He is not a representative of the British people, from which he is alien in blood. He is not trusted by the British people, and it is unfortunate that, at the moment of the victory of the Allies, he should be in truded into our councils. But a far more dangerous intrusion than that of Lord Reading is the intrusion of the fourteen points. Now the making of a peace after a great war is the most solemn duty that statesmen are ever asked to discharge. Upon their wisdom and courage depend the destinies of the world. They should approach the task in a spirit of humility. It is not their business to to think of politics or politicians. As they ought not to shrink from the ruthless punishment of their blood-stained foe, so they should not scruple, if need be, firmly and courteously to oppose a friend. It seems as though our Ministers could not divest themselves of their customary levity even at this solemn moment. They mentioned in the same document the armistice and President Wilson's fourteen points. Only one reason could possibly justify the introduction of the fourteen points: that they are in themselves the wisest and best terms which the united prudence and understanding of the Allies could devise. Does M. Clemenceau believe this, or Mr Lloyd George? We think not, and the conclusion is forced upon us that the fourteen points were established as a basis for the discussion of peace merely to save the face of President Wilson. We may go further than this, and assert that the majority of President Wilson's own countrymen have very little respect for the fourteen |