The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-05-18
Today's Best Joke:
 This is "Peace Day"

"This is Peace Day" when all the nations of the world, except Great Britain. France, Russia, Germany, Austria Turkey, Serbia, Belgium. Monten egro. Japan and few others who are too busy for such foolish ness will celebrate the anniversary of the first peace conference at The Hague In Amerfea Peace Day.. has been observed in the past by teaching children such statistics as that the money spent in the construc- ton of one modern battleship would build fifty manual training schools, in which trades could be taught 75,- 900. children annually; that the cost of warHke preparations would be suf- fcient to wipe out tuberculosis and many other plaques which afflict hl-. manity, and that the. Germans, in the piping days of peace, contributed one dollar out of every eight of their earnings toward the 1sustenance and development of the war machine.
 Peace Day. this year is about the grimmest imaginable joge. Yet those responsible for the celebration of the day. do not despair. They declare that the horror of the terrible con-, flict now raging is making a deep impression upon the minds of hu- manity and that, futile as that peace conference at The Hague now seems, the movement of universal peace will arise more powerful than ever from the ruins of conflict.
 There is much to be said in fa- vor of this view of the future. It is probable that peace-permanent peace-never seemed so desirable to the world as now. The illusion that war is glorious thing has been eff fectua1ly banished from the minds of men. Among the warning nations there is manifest a grim deternlina- ton to fight to a finish, but the goal all claim to strive for is lasting peace. There is little inclination to paint war in glowing colors. It is now seen in it's true light-fi1thy, obscene, horri- ble and fiendish.
 The adoption of the eighteenth of May as Peace Day. is due to the fact that the first conference at The Hague was opened on that date iH 1899. God hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth is the watch word of the Peace Day movement, which has for it's objects the substitu- tion of Judicial methods in place of warfare, arbitration instead of bat ties, goodwill and brotherly cooper ation for national se1fishness, hatred, and disorder.
 The Permanent Court of Arbitra- ton of The Hague, which was provid- the Dutch capital. in 1899, has up to date settled disputes between the United States and Mexico, in 1902; between Venezuela and creditor na- tions, 1904; between Great Britain, France and Germany on the one hand, and Japan on the other, in 1905; the Casab1anca, dispute between Germany and France, in 1909, and disputes between Great Britain and France, and between Norway and Sweden, in the same year; the North Atlantic fisheries case between the United States, and Great Britain, ana the Orinoco' steamship case between the United States and Venezuela, in 1910; disputes between Great Britain and France in 1911; between Russia and Turkey, and Italy and Peru, in 1912, and two cases between France and Italy in 1915
 This showing is not a remarkable one, and, except n the Casablanca quarrel between Germany and France there was no likelihood that any of these disputes would have led to war Since most great movements have a very humble beginning however The Hague court may in the course of time become a powerful institution able to put into effect that universal peace and worldwide human broth erhood which through all the blood stained past has been but the vision of vain dreamers.