The Detroit times., 1916-03-11
A WAR CLASSIC
az Or. FRANK GRIMM
Copyright. 1918. By Frank Crane,


tons in the minds of the people of this
day is War.
II the islands of Japan had suddenly
sunk in the ocean, destroying millions of
lives; if plague had appeared in Eu-
rope. carrying off whole cities; if all the
inhabitants of Illinois had one day yone
mad and let out to butcher one another
the condition could not be more puzzling.
more horrifying, more dominating in it's
interest than the present situation, where
the leading countries of civilization have
abandoned all the arts of culture and
plunged into terrific brute struggle to
kill men, destroy the works Of men.
And the point that engrosses thinking
people is not which side is right nor
which will conquer, but why the hideous
cataclysm exists at all.
Of course, the explanation given for
the outbreak by the various participants
are piffle: no sane man pretends to be-
lieve that one or the other of the bellig-
erents is entirely to blame. II is like
fighting school-boys crying out, "He hit
me first
significant contribution toward the
solution of this world enigma is furnish
ed by Bertrand Russell in his book Jus
tice in War Time" recently issued by the
Open Court Publishing Company of Chi
cago.
MIR. Russell approaches his subject not
as Pacifist nor as Militarist, not as
pro-ally or pro-German, but as thinker.
as member Of that hierarchy or pure
Intelligence which IL tine determines the
issue of all matters of human passion and
controversy.
He sits far above the din and smoke Of
clashing national vanities, and those who
read him may partake Of his mountain
clarity and GOODNESS of judgment. One
cannot resist the conviction that the final
verdict will be as indicated in this
volume.
There are three causes of war. They
are simple as human nature They are
reasonings of diplomacy, nor the heated
arguments of patriotic group egotism.
nor the cynic solutions of greed experts.
The three causes are % Fear, (2)
Pride, and (3) Lust, our old familiars
from hell who are now carrying forward
their work with all the assistance of
modern science and skill in organiza-
ton
1t is Fear that makes Armaments. and
Armaments make invasions. The only
reason Germany invaded France was the
French army. She did not want to take
French territory nor to annex the French
people. She wanted to crush the French
army, because she was afraid of it. So
France had an army because she was
afraid of Germany, and England's basis
for her feet was likewise Fear.
The second reason is Pride. Bernard
Shaw suggests that, now that all the
contesting states have been shown how
strong and brave they are, they get to-
gether, put their cards on the table,
strike an intelligent balance, and quit be-
fore they are bankrupt. The only thing
that prevents this is Pride, otherwise
known as national honor" and pres
tige" and the like.
The participants do not want justice,
they want dominance. They do not want
to talk, they want to crow. They do not
care for the people, they care for nation
| al policy"
The third reason is plain lust for
lbloodshed 1t is hard to admit this, but
lit is true. The instinct for fighting and
killing is as old as the instinct for mar
rying And in it's present outbreak, in
stead of being tempered by centuries of
intellectual and ethical growth, it is in
initely more hideous, british, frightful,
and shocking than any war back as far
as the memory of man runs. Never was
such a weller of blood-lust on the globe.
The only solution Mr.. Russell sees, as
every right mind sees, is the establish
ment of some central government of the