New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-12-16
LETTERS TO An OLD GARIBALDLAN


Europeans to-day are so fundamental
that I still find it easier to talk about
them to you as to an old friend, rath-
en- than put it in the shape Of
pamphlet In my last letter | pointed
out two facts which are pivots. The
first is that, to any really cultured
person, Prussia is second rate. Inc
second is that TO almost any Prusslan
Prussia is really frst-rate, and IS pre-
pared, quite literally, to police the
rest of the world.
For the first matter, the compare
tive inferiority Of German culture
cannot be doubted by people like you.
One of the German papers pathetical-
~ said that, though the managing OF
Malines and Rheims was very sad'
il was a comfort 10 think that yet
nobler works of art would spring up
wherever the German culture had
passed in triumph. From the point
of view of humor, it is really rather
sad that they never will. The Ger
man Emperor's idea of a Gothic catne-
dral is as provocative to the fancy as
Mrs. Todgers's idea of a wooden leg.
But ! think il perfectly probable that
they really intended to set up sucn
beautiful buildings as they could
Having been blasphemous enough 10
ruin such things, they might well DC
blasphemous enough to replace them.
Even if the Prussian attempt on Paris
had not wholly collapsed as II has, l
doubt whether the Prus SLAMS would nave
DESTROYED everything. ] doubt whether
they would even have destroyed the
Venus de Milo. More probably they
would have put a pair OF arms on ~
designed BY some rising German artist
the Emperor or somebody. Ana the
two arms thus added would look at
once like the arms Of q woman at
Nyashtub. The destroyers of the
tower of Rheims are quite capable OF
DESTROYING the Tower of Giotto. But
tEev are equally capable of the greater
chine Of completing il. And II they
nut on "A spire, what a spire IT would
be- What an eXtinguisher Tor tnaJ
clear and almost transparent Chris-
tian candlel Have you read some OF
the German explanations OF Hamlet
Did ! tell you that Leonardo's mar
must have been German HAIR, because
so many Of his contemporaries Sald ~
was beautiful? This IS what ! cali
being second-rate. All the German
excitement about the colonies OF Eng
land is only a half understanding Oh
what was once heroic ana Is 10"
largely caddish. The German Empe--
ror's naval vision is q bad copy OIL
Nelson. as certainly as Frederick the
Greats verses were bad copy Oh
Noltaire.
Fail in Diplomacy.
But the second point was even more
important: that weak as the thing IS
mentally il is strong materially, ana
win impose itself materially II we per
nit il. The Prussians have failed IN
everything else, but they nave NOV
failed in getting their subject th0us-
aads TO do as they are told ihey
cannot put up black and white towers
in Florence; but they can reaiiy put
m white and black posts IN Alsace'
They have failed in diplomacy. l sup
nose it might be called a 1allute ~
dinlomacv to come into the nght WIN
Two enemies extra and one ally the
Ices. If the Germans, instead OF SEND
inc spies 10 study the Belgian SOL,
I'D sent spies to consider the Belgian
soul. they would have been saVeu haIu
,yorE for a week or two. They nave
fs;led in controversy. suppose II
MIGHT he called a failure IN contro-
veTsv to say that England may De
keeninc her word for some wicked
nurpose. while Germany may be break
mo her word for some noble purpose
And that is practically all that Ihc
Germans can manage 10 say lhe1
-ov that we are an Unsuitable, IN
scIunulous. piratical power, and TINS
,r;ld shirt whirled US into the mao
course of respecting treaty we hau
S;onod They can find in US no trea-
,,n evcept that we keep our treaties
fo;linc 10 do this call failing IN CON
troversv. They have failed IN popular
rors,,a.ion. They have had very
a,ood onportunity. The British En-
20 does contain many people VINO
10 been badly treated IN various
,"avs-the Irish, the Beers; nay
st' Americans themselves, whose
.'tio,ai existence began with
ho;nC badly treated. With these the
D.,,ssiors have done comparatively
1;ttle. and with Europeans OF your s0iC
notbipr. They have never once reallg
svmpathized with the leellng Oh
! Switzer for Switzerland; the teeilng OF
+ a Norwegian for Norway; the leeIihE
of a Tuscan for Tuscany. Even when
nations are neutral, Prussia can hhIuis
+ boor theu TO be patriotic. Even "heh
/ they are counting every one else nv
I cor nraisp no one but themselves
/ S;bev fail in diplomacy, their fan IN de-
| hate. they fail even in demagogy' lhey
| 80 etunid plotz. stupid explanations
/ ond eyen stupid apologies. But tnere
t. one thing they really do not FAN IN
| Tbev do not fail i'm finding people STU
/ mid enough to carry them out
Now. II is this question | would ASK
go, 70 consider: you, as good middle
l fvne Of the Latins, Llberal puL
| ca+boIic. an artist but a soldier. Inc
Sarcor 10 the whole civilization OF
,+b;cb Rome was the fountain lies IN
/ tb;s. That the more this strange Fruss
neople fail in all the other Things. inc
moro they will fall back on TINS mere
fact of n brutal obedience. lhey VIII
Give orders: they have nothing else 70
5ive. | say that this IS the question
for YOU; 1 do not say, | DO not dream
of saying, that the answer IS lot me-
Instigated Intrigues.
It is for you TO weigh the chance that
choir very failures in the arts OF peace
will drive them back upon the arts OF
war They could not, and they did not,
dune your people in diplomacy lney
aid the most undiplomatic thlng thdI
can be done: they concealed preach
oe partnership without even conceailhg
tho concealment They instigated the
intrigue in Austria in such a way thaI
Iesiv could honestly claim all the free
- ~ mast IGNORANCE, combined with
al the disillusionment of present
cmowledce They 50 ran the Triple
Alliance that they had to admit your
Grievance, at the very moment when
,bcv claimed your aid. The English
are stupider and less sensitive thar,
Won are: but even the English found
/ The German Chancellor's diplomacy not