Time, then, is less likely to bring favor to the victor than to the vanquished. There is a further point to bear in mind. This effort must not only be made but be sustained like the upkeep of a great household. Conquered enemy provinces can, of course, bring additional wealth, but they may not always be enough to meet the additional outlay. If they do not, the strain will gradually increase and in the end resources may be exhausted.
Time is thus enough to bring about a change unaided.
We maintain, on the contrary, that war is simply a continuation of political intercourse, with the addition of other means. This is as it should be. Their quarrel should be with the policy itself, not with its influence. If it has the opposite effect the policy itself is wrong. Only if statesmen look to certain military moves and actions to produce effects that are foreign to their nature do political decisions influence operations for the worse.