The sun., 1916-09-03
H. EDWARD
NE OF the best known thinkers

of France, indeed a man whose
eminence is rather European
than American and who Is known
very we'll indeed In the United States,
said to me in Paris:
This war Is the great struggle of
the soul OF democracy, and therefore.
the interest in it of the United States
4 vital"
But when I asked'him II We had be-
,rayed our trust as n democracy in
keeping out OF the combat, ne would
rot say that he believed that to be the
case.
The man who spoke was Henri
Bergson. world famous as an author.
educator. lecturer on philosophy. He
Is and may be accepted ms the repre-
sentative OF that humanized philos-
ophy which opposes the frultion OF
what It denounces ms the mercilcss
Teutonic doctrines which prepared the
soul Of Germany for the methods Of
combat which she has followed from
the outset Of the war.
We had our long talk In his home
In Paris at a time when at the front
the war was raging very fiercely. on
my way TO him I had encountered a
great squad OF wounded soldiers, train
ing In the use OF artificial legs, and, a
little later. following the example of
the street crowd. I had looked up to
see the superb spectacle OF on air
squadron in a spectacular and wonder
ful drill above the city.
The Germans were driven far away
from Paris long ago.. and no one now
conceives the possibility that they ever
even measurably will approach again,
but the atmosphere Of war ~ very
real here one the less-very real and
very grim and very detailed.
II Is the atmosphere OF n war in
which the people fight because they
want to fight; 1t is such. an atmos-
phere Of war as one would wish to see
in an American city II. unhappily. cur
nation should be forced to go to battle
for Its llfe-that Of willingness. deter
mination. dauntless pluck and calm
ability.
The inevitable impression that n
stranger gains as he studies the
French soldier Is that each individual
lighting man Is supporting. not a gem
eral. but an individual ideal. and. Curl
ously enough. II was this point OF view
which ~as the first that Prof Rergson
voluntarily touched upon after We
were comfortably seated in his library.
"This Is a war unique" said he. II
do not think there ever was another
war with such a plain philosophical
significance. Almost all other wars
have been for national or personal in
terests. sometimes confused with come
philosophical idea. but never with that
idea appearing very plainly. In this
war II is clear.
I'm this conflict two different and
d.ametr!cally opposed ideals are OPP
posed. One..I hope. is the ideal of the
future and surely already is The ideal
Of the really high minded nations. The
other is that OF a very remote past
suddenly reviviied and thrust up
falsely as a thing worthy Of support
by modern man.
"The first OF the two is that Of ma
tional independence, the conviction
that nations. whether great or small,
are like persons. provided that, as ma
tons. they are conscious OF them
selves: and that. being like persons
they ought to be respected. ought to
be acknowledged to have rights which
must not be and cannot be violated
any more than the rights OF indiv!d-
uals ought to he.
IN a city individuals may he tall or
short. strong or weak. thin or fat
prosperous or poor, yet they all have
the same rights as long as they al
perform the same duties. 1t should he
the same with nations. Whether large
or small they are entitled to the same
rights from the beginning of the mo-
ment when they have become really
conscious nations and as long as they
remain conscientious nations.
THE opposing ideal is the ideal OF
force. This Is founded on the theory
that force Is the of right
that the more strength a nation has
the more rights it has; that force
therefore means right. force being
sort Of divine gift. and the nation
which has most force showing by this
mere possession that it is elect OF Coo
and chosen for some superhuman ant
benelcent purpose.
THAT has been the German ideal
Obviously this ideal is very inferior Il
the other which | have outlined.
The ideal Of force Is the ideal OF
very ancient times. 1t may have beer
that ot the Middle Ages. but even II
the Middle Ages ! think there was {
higher one. In these days it surely !:
a retrogression. a going back into th'
remote past.
When ! say this | am not at,r.h
ut!ng 10 Germany any idea Of my ~
trying To make her case out for hcl
worse than she has made it out 70
herself. I am simply attending I,
what Nietzsche and many other mod
ern theorists OF the state have said II
Germany. developing a principal whic!
already was to be found in Hegel. Ac
cofd.ng 10 these ideas the state Il
above justice. or rather justice only
concerns the relations between indi'
vidrals within a given state. hav!ni
nothing 10 do with the relations lie
tween different states 'mcaninS b,
state Of course "a natiOu),
According to these ideas mere nigh
signifies right and whatever can he
imposed by force Is good.