[This series of articles may be quoted in whole or

in part by any newspaper desiring so to da, provided that the usual acicnowleclgments are made as to the original publication by the " sracrieron.n IANattempt has thus been made to summarize the con- sequences which have ensued, both in respect to public and private morals, from the German endeavour to substitute wholly different ideals of civilization in the place of those which have heretofore been sanctioned by the public opinion of the rest of the world. It is extremely difficult for Englishmen to realize fully the change which has taken place in Germany, or the moral and material dangers with which they, in common with all other civilized communities, are threatened. They find themselves brought in contact with an intellectual and moral atmosphere to which they are wholly unaccustomed. They are bewildered by a sophistry with which they are totally unfamiliar. They cannot believe that

ideas which are so absolutely at variance with their own can be generally entertained by any nation which has preserved its sanity and mental equilibrium. Nevertheless, it is high time that they should realize the absolute truth of the judgment delivered by Mr. Harbutt Dawson, who says

"Germany stands forth, on its own confession, as the repro- *tentative of national and social conceptions, ideals, and aims which are entirely alien to those pursued by other civilised nations. Its culture is a tribal culture based on force, yet it seeks to impose this culture on mankind for mankind's benefit. German national life has been perverted into an immense egoism which views the whole world as an arena for sordid ambitions and giddy conquests which, if realised, would throw back civilisation, and in the end compel mankind to do much of its work over again. Germany is still, in fact, in the fighting stage of human development, a stage in which every man's hand is against his neighbour. A country with such ideals is a menace not only to Europe but to the world at large."

At the commencement of this series of articles a list was given of the objects which Great Britain and her Allies seek to obtain at the close of the present war. We are now in a posi- tion to embrace all those objeota in one general definition. It is often said that we are fighting to crush "militarism." What is meant by " militarism"? If by that term it is intended to imply the adoption of a system under which the military would predominate over the civil elements in the government of the country, and the introduction of practices and habits of thought at all similar to those which prevail in Germany, then no one can be a stronger anti-militarist than myself. But, by a strange perversion of thought, the term has in this country often been made to apply to a phase of opinion which merely aims at improving the efficiency of the Army. Moreover, in some quarters it appears to be held that the encouragement of "militarism," in the legitimate and rational sense of the term, must necessarily involve the growth of the highly obnoxious type of " militarism." I believe that this is a pure delusion. I maintain that there

• Continued from the Spectator of August 14th,

is not the smallest risk of German militarism ever seriously taking root in this country. However ibis may be, it will be well to avoid the use of so ambiguous an expression. It will he more correct to say that we are fighting to suppress, not militarism, but Kaiserism. This Kaiserism, Mr. Harbutt Dawson very truly says, "is a system which enslaves both mind and conscience, perverts judgment, and makes a lisalthy and honest public opinion impossible. It is based upon the negation of all thought and conviction. It reduces free men to the level of serfs and it undermines the very foundations of constitutional government. A nation which assents to or tolerates such a system cannot claim to be a nation of free citizens or even of good subjects. This is one of the things that are to-day most wrong in Germany."

The points to which allusion was made at the commence- ment of this series of articles are all of great importance. It is desirable that the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine should revert to France, that Poland should acquire its independence or semi-independence, that the very legitimate aspirations of Italy and of Serbia should be satisfied, that Belgium should be saved from ruin, and that the Turk should be driven out of Europe. But whether the scene of action be the plains of Flanders or the swamps of Galicia, the banks of the Isonzo or those of the Euphrates, the Dardanelles or the South African veld, the main cause for which we are fighting is the same. It is the final and complete suppression of Kaiserism. Unless this object be achieved, the lives of the gallant Britons, Frenchmen, Belgians, Russians, and Italians which have been sacrificed in the cause of civilization will have been spent in vain. Talleyrand once said that any one who could induce Napoleon to keep quiet would confer a benefit on the universe. It is the duty of the present generation of men to confer a somewhat similar benefit on their contempormica and on posterity by fettering for all time the action of the Kaiser and his successors. It is this which differentiates the present war from all others recorded in history. Although it is in a sense true that at the commencement of the Revolutionary wars the Allies of that time were fighting for a principle— and in their case a wrong principle—and although it is also true that the Napoleonic wars had for their chief objective the destruction of the predominating influence of one man, it is none the loss a fact that on most former occasions when war has been waged it has been found possible to arrange terms of peace by territorial concessions and by compromises of various sorts upon the several points at issue between the antagonists. It has not been necessary to demand of the vanquished that they should effect a complete change, not only in their political institutions, but also in the fundamental principles which have so far guided their public conduct. In the present instance, unless such a change can be brought about, the principal object of the war will not have been attained.

The ancient Greeks held that if any State had allowed its sanctuary of the gods to be polluted, it must undergo purifica- tion by driving out what they termed eb dyes—" the accursed thing." " The accursed thing" of modern times is Kaiserism. It threatens to pollute the whole world. It must, in the general intereste of civilization, be expelled from its birth- place, Germany. How can this change be effected ? Certainly not by patching up a premature and unsatisfactory peace. It is natural enough that not only extreme pacificists, but every reasonable man who does not come within that category, should wish to put an early stop both to the waste of treasure which is threatening all the combatant nations, though least of all England, with bankruptcy, and also— which is much more important—to that terrible loss of life which is chiefly Lorne by the flower of each nation's manhood, and which is bringing uutold grief and desolation to the homes of half, and probably more than half, of all the families in Europe. Whispers are already heard that if France and Belgium were freed from the presence of the invaders, and if some reasonable concessions were made to Italy and Serbia, the main objects of the war would have been achieved, and that peace might then be concluded. There cannot be a greater fallacy. The temptation to make a prema- ture peace most be resisted. We one it to ourselves, to our posterity, and to the cause of civilization that this contest should be fought out to a finish. A premature peace, which did not involve breaking the back of Kaiserism, would merely mean a renewal of the contest at no very remote perind,

whilst during the interval which would elapse before it was renewed the whole of Europe would be a military camp, social and other reform would have to be indefinitely post- poned, and no hope could be held out to the over-burthened populations of the recently combatant countries that there could be any diminution of armaments, or consequently any relief from taxation.

It is sometimes said that we are not at war with the German

nation, but only with a clique of Germans. In some respects the argument is purely fallacious. The whole German nation are responsible for the war. They have been led to believe that thew. are fighting for their national existence, which is now to some extent true, though the fact that they themselves provoked the war is studiously hid from them. Prince Billow was quite right when he said to the Reichstag : "In no country in the world are the Army and people so closely united as in Germany. When we say the Army is the German nation in arms, that is not an empty phrase,. but the simple truth." It is impossible, bearing in mind the nature of existing political institutions in Germany, to separate the Army from the nation. There is, however, a sense in which this argument is valid. The control of the whole vast military machine of Germany is in the hands of one individual, who is assisted and often inspired by a small military clique, and who by a stroke of the pen can dispose of the destinies of

his country and influence those of Europe with as great ease as the driver of a locomotive can turn on or shut off steam. The Kaiser uttered no empty boast when he said to his soldiers: " For you there is only one enemy, and that is my enemy." No satisfactory peace is possible which does not take this absolute control out of his hands.

It cannot be too clearly understood that the main obstacle

which stands in the way of concluding peace consists in the fact that it is useless to negotiate with a Government and nation which deliberately assert the right to violate their most solemn and recent engagements, should they find it con- venient to do so. After the experience which has been gained, it would be sheer folly to attach any value to whatsoever guarantees the existing Government of Germany would plight its faith. The German nation must collectively become parties to any arrangements which are made. The German Parliament must cease to be what Mr. Harbutt Dawson very correctly calls it, "a mere adjunct of the Crown." It is only thus that some hopes can be entertained that engagements will be respected and a durable peace secured. Mr. Harbutt Dawson, whose words have been frequently quoted, not only on account of his intimate acquaintance with German affairs, but also because his views appear to me to be eminently Wise and statesmanlikeasays :- "Nothing short of a full and unconditional acceptance of Parliamentary government as free nations understand it, guaran- teed by consequential amendments. of the Constitution, will meet Germany's groat need."

The need of the rest of Europe is identical with that of Germany itself.

It is this consideration which renders it imperative on the

Allies to continue the contest to the bitter end at whatsoever cost of life and treasure. It cannot be hoped or supposed that the power of the Hohenzollerna will be shattered, or that German political institutions will undergo any radical change, unless the defeat 'of Germany is decisive. Even then the subject will require most skilful treatment. On the one hand, if Germany is defeated the Germans cannot be left entirely alone to work out their own political salvation, for experi- ence has shown that their existing institutions, which they may possibly wish to preserve intact, are a standing menace to Europe.. On the other hand, any reforms imposed at the point of the sword by hostile aliens, whose. interference would without doubt be strongly resented, would in all probability not be durable. But the interests- of Europe point to the conclusion that, if victorious, the Allies should absolutely refuse to discuss the terms of peace until the. Germans themselves make such changes in their institutions as will afford some solid guarantee that their Army is brought under popular control, and that it shall no longer, at the bidding of an absolutist monarch, constitute a danger to the rest of the world. This can only be effected by the introduc- tion of genuine constitutional government in the place of the sham constitutionalism which at present exists. It is for the Germans themselves to decide on the precise nature of

the changes which should be made. It is for the Allies to judge of the adequacy of the guarantees which will be given.

Whether it will be possible to attain this object depends, of course, on the success of our arms. The fight will be long and arduous. The foe, whatever other defects he may possess, is heroically brave and eminently skilful. But the tenacity and determination of Great Britain, which has at last become somewhat tardily alive to the degree of effort which is required, the buoyant loyalty of her distant offspring in both hemi- spheres, the heroic courage and self-sacrifice of France, the steadfastness of Russia, the dash and enthusiasm of Italy, the endurance of Serbia, the splendid national qualities displayed by Belgium, and the fact, which is by no means devoid of moral importance, that the best elements of public opinion throughout the civilized world sympathize with the cause of the Allies, should carry us through. We must not be vanquished, and if we are steadfast and united wo shall not be vanquished.