El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1914-08-15
Tolstoi Saw It Coming Four Years Ago!

: II ,ybi1e vou are here. The only diff
/ cultv is that 1 an not able TO write
/ anvfhina during the time Of the mani
/ festatio3. NV hands are absolutely
| paralyZed-" -t.. 49,,
Il shall be happy to write oo"n "hat
90 YER eood1 That settles the mat
I fer he reblied. I shall try for some
| thing Immediately. There on the tapie
are pencil and paper. or use pen
I whatever you want -t..--- g.
In a few minutes ] was waiting LOT
the Great moment, pencil and paper IN
hand. Ny aged host, leaning PACK IN
he chair. covered his eyes with his
hands and relapsed into an apparently
conatose condition -ts
luteIv motiOnless. Then, Strengthening
IN like one in a trance, ne began IN a
low and hollow voice;
This is a revelation OF events OF a
universal character which must shortly
come to mass Their spiritual outlines
are now before my eyes. / see floating
upon the surface of the sea OF hu-
man fate the huge silhoutte OF a nucS
woman. She is-Wlln ner peduly. polse,
her smile. her Jewels super-Nenus
Nations rush madly after her, each Of
them eager to attract her especially.
But she. like an eternal courtesan, flirts
with them all In her hair ornaments.
OF diamonds and rubieS, is engraved her
name. 'Commercialism.' As alluring
and bewitching as she seems, much de-
struction and agony follow IN her wake
Her breath. reeking OF sordid trans
actions, her voice Of metallic charac-
ter like gold. and her look Of greed are
so much poison TO the nations who fall
victims TO her charms
The Three Torches.
and. behold. she has three gigantic
arms with three torches Of universal
corruption in her hands. The first torch
represents the flame Of war, that the
beautiful coUrtesan carries from city
to CITY and from country to country.
Patriotism answers with flashes OF
honest flame. but the end is a roar Of
guns and Of muskets.
THE second torch bears the flame Of
bigotry and hypocrisy. 1t lights the
lamps only IN temples and on the al
tars Of sacred institutions. It carries
the seed of falsity and fanaticism. 1t
kindles the minds that are still in
cradles and follows them to thei-
''The third torch is that Of the law,
that dangerous foundation Of all unau-
uhentic traditions which first does its
fatal work in the family, then sweeps
through the larger world Of literature,
art and craftsmanship
Predicted the Present Calamity.
THE great conflagrauon will start
about 1912, set by the torch Of the first
arm in the countries Of southeastern
Europe. II will develop into a destruc-
ton and calamity in 1913. In that year
I see all Europe in flames and bleeding.
hear the lamentations of huge battle
fields
But about the year 1915 the strange
figure from the north-a new Napo-
leon-enters the stage Of the bloody
drama He is man Of little militaris-
tic training, a writer or a journalist,
but in his grip most Of Europe will re-
min until 1925.
The end of the great calamity will
mark a new political era for the Old
World There will be left no empires
or kingdoms, but the world will form
a federation Of the United States of
Nations There viii remain only four
great gianJs-the AnglO-Saxon. the
Launs, the Slavs and the MOngolians.
After the year 1925 see a change in I
religious sentiment The second torch ]
Of the cOurtesan has brought about I
the fail Of the church The ethical idea
has almost vanished. Humanity is
without moral feeling
A Great RefOrmer Arises.
But then a great reformer arises. I
He will clear the world Of the relics |
Of mOnOtheism and lay the corner stone
Of the temple of pantheism. God soul. I
spirit and Immortality will be molten I
in new furnace, and I see the peaceful 4
beginning Of an ethical era The man
determined to this mission is a Mongo- !
Ian Slav. He is already walking the '
-dFLn-a man OF active affairs. He
himself does not now realize the mis- (
sion assigned to him by superior pow
srs.
And behold. the flame OF the third
torch. which has already begun to des- /
troy our family relations. our stand /
ards Of art and morals. The relation .
between woman and man is accepted {
IS a prosaic partnership Of the sexes
Art has become realistic degeneracy.
Political and religious disturbances
nave shaken the spiritual foundations
II all nations
Only small spots here and there have
'emained untouched by those three de-
itructiVe flames. The international D
vars in Europe, the class war Of Amer
ca and the race wars Of Asia. have !
'trangled progress for half a century.