The New York Times of September 1st printed a remarkable
address on " The Spirit of Lawlessness " which Mr. James M. Beck, the American Solicitor-General, gave to the American Bar Association. Mr. Beck showed that the revolt against authority was world-wide, and he cited, among other examples, the wholesale evasion of the liquor laws in America, and the attempts of the " Triple Alliance " and the " Council of Action " in this country to starve the nation and to-dictate its foreign policy so as to help the Bolsheviks. Mr. Beck regarded the war not as the cause but rather as one of the symptoms of this restlessness, which he would attribute in part to the multiplication of man's possessions by the machine and therefore of his desires. He saw no hope for the future unless the rights of the individual were maintained, for progress depended on huinan character. We agree with Mr. Beck in believing that the secret of true progress depends on personality. Reform is not to be effected by new laws or new organizations of society, but must begin with the individual.
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