The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-01-30

the world" formulated in a book IL years ago by the late William Thomas Stead. Europe has got over it's first war intoXication, and now it is get ting a chastened, introspective mood Its chief problem is: who will pay for the damage, who will repair the damage, who will supply new meth 1 ods and new spiritual inspiration which will set civilization on steadier 1 legs than those which have been ruth lessly shorn off by the sword? The answer to this question is inevitably America" America is the only great power left neutral; and when peace comes America will be the only great power on earth. All the old elements of American superiority have increased during the past IS months. Many of the principles, methods and eaten
 words of Europeanism have proved to 1 be shams. It is case of either Amer
 ica as Europe's regenerator or no Eu-
 rope at all.
 Germany, the country of forethouGht
 and big generalizations, has thought
 the coming Americanization most thor
 oughly out. Lately, in the ReichstaS'
 two speakers said that the strongest
 argument for peace lies in the lacI
 that America threatens Europe with
 mateTldI ana nlOEdl Cpilll Ol- INiNiAeNi0
 Essler, formerly president of the West
 phalian Coal and Iron association, pre-
 diets that Germany and her allies must
 depend on America even more than the
 entente powers because the German
 group is depicting supplies. wearing
 out railroads, and in everything eN-
 cept destruction of property, using up
 national wealth more quickly than lIS
 enemies. eve must prepare says Ess- stock Of American
 influence and control; it will embrace
 all Europe; and it will effect SLOW revolution toward Americanism Tn ali departments of our life. F1rstly tnis will be in finance and trade, put att erward not the less surely III our ways of thinking, acting, and governing, ana in our social life. An organism with exhausted vitality is most sensible to impressions and influences; and eN- hausted Europe will for long be an of America, victim ol America's unmerciful energy and mas terfulness"
 Germany's most diplomatic newspa- ner. the organ of Wilhelmstrasse, the Koelnische Zeitung, admits that allei the war diplomacy will De Ainerlodn Ii- ized It quotes Count Julius Andrassy' son of the greatest Austrian dlplomal of the last century, for thls: .a
 Europe's diplomacy, says Andfassy' le a fraud It is too much under eighteenth century traditions. Ali the European 7in,omats who accomplished anything In the last generations were "Amerlcah III the sense that they were amateurs. Dis marck became ambassador to Russia without ever having represented Prussla even as attache in a foreign country Marschall von Biebstein, who laid the oasis of Germany's Turkish alliance, and long was uncrowned Sultan of Turkey was plueked at an advanced age rom the Imperial Insurance office. Neither Pauncefote nor Bryce, England's two best ambassadors in recent times, had training. America dlplo- mats" says the German paper succeed because they have no diplomatic tradl- -ions they hold that relations between modern states should be regulated on the ines which seem right to sensible men who are negotiating, or carrying on husl- ness deals between modern individuals.
 DIPLOMACY STANDS STILL
 This is not the way of Europe's diplo- macy. European states in most of their functions have moved ahead with the times, but diplomacy has not moved at all it is based on the secrecy, suspicion, personal ambition. and catehwords which inspired the diplomacy of Talleyrand, Metternich, and Kaunitz. Disharmony ensues and war follows, because the mod ern state instinctively resists this hand ling The American diplomat in Europe knows little about past treaties; and he troubles himself about them only when they directly concern the affair he has in hand. The American diplomat, says the "Koelnische Zeitung,' aims at get ting diplomatic work done, and he con siders success attained only when deal is peacefully completed. Europe's diplo- mats associate their fame with personal triumphs; they prefer to get name for outwitting a rival than for making treaty" All diplomacy will be Amer icanized after the war. Diplomatic notes and treaties will be published at once, and probably all European constitutions