The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-12-24
The Apostle of Gull ture'' and His Opinion
 of German "Kultl1r'

While most wars are, basicalIy, economic in origin, the immediate provocative cause is usually racial hatred, engendered by differences in religion, language, culture, ideas and ideals. In former times religion was the agency which most often brought to a climax of blood and fire the clash of economic and material ;n- terests. This is no longer true, for today we see Protestant Germany, Catho1ct Austria, Orthodox Bulgaria and Mohamme medan Turkey arrayed on one side. opposed by Protestant Great Britain, Orthodox Russian, Catholic Italy and 'tinfideP' France. If religion was power1ess to prevent the war, it has also been impotent in influencing the alignment of the forces engaged. But if religion has played 8 small part in this conflict of nations, cu1- tura1 interests have taken it's place. Germany, in demanding a place in the sum-" was not concerned only about a market for her industrial products. The Teutons believe, and no doubt honestly, that their ideals in art, literature, government, and in every other domain of human activity are vastly superior to those of their foes. The dominance of 'kuItur,' g which means organized efficiency, they believe to be necessary to the saliva ton of the world. Germany offers undemocratic and paterna1istic social ism. a benevolent despotism,'' as a dividuaIism and wastefuI competition of Great Britain and France.
 Restricting "kultur" to the narrow meaning of the English word t'cul- 1 ture''-a narrowing of it's meaning not Justified by its German definition live find that it is still almost diametrical1y opposed to English and French ideals. The realization of the 1 fIntelligenz- -Staat,'' the state founded on "Geist'' or intelligence, in which | the state becomes an or gan of national
 efficiency, and the individual next to nothing, has naturally been produc- l tvie of a cultural ideal which differs dividuaIistic and democratic neigh bors.
 'Treitschke, Delbrueck,5 Bernhard and many others have given express sion to the German ideals of culture
 It is only necessary to read their works, and then those of Matthew Arnold, the foremost English Apostle
 of Culture'' of the nineteenth century,
 to perceive one of the reasons why Germany and Great Britain are now engaged in a struggle for supremacy. Arnold. who was born ninety-three
 years ago today, Dec. 24, 1922, and
 died in 1888, devoted his life to an attempt to resque his countrymen
 from what he called ..Philistinisrn. D l While his Prussian contemporaries
 were ,1aboring for the spreading of
 '.Geist'' - intelligence - among the
 masses by state conducted institu-
 tions, Arnold was striving to raise the
 standards of culture by individual lwork among individuals. He investi- I gated and disliked the harsh,
 arrogant Prussian way'' of laying
 down the law and believed that the
 cultural salvation of England was to l be accomplished by bringing the peo-
 pie into closer association with 1itera-
 ture and art. In his religious views
 he was scepticaI, although he believed
 in power, not of ourselves, which
 makes for righteousness.' In his
 propaganda of sweetness and light
 he und doubtedly accomplished a great | work, but it is a melancholy fact that i the most beautiful of Arno1d's cuI- | tural structures cannot cope for a moment with the Krupp of t'kultur'' or the army of "Geist.'' Culture exer-
 cises a refining and ennobIing infIu- ence upon individuals, but, unlike tkultur,' it is not applicable to an l army.