Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1917-02-06

asking Tor state control to save them
from themselves. The present trend
is toward government ownership and
those who are helping it most are
those who rail against it the loudest.
PEACE WITHOUT VICTORY.
Nonpareil: There has been much
discussion of this term which was a
conspicuous feature of President
Wilson's recent address to the SEN
ate. Much of this debate is acrimon-
ious. Part of it. is commendatory or
lconcilatory. The temper of the de-
batter is usually determined by the
angle from which he views the term.
Literally, there can be no peace
without victory. But there is diff
ference of opinion as to what consti-
tutes victory. The struggle in Eur
ope is a test Of one idea or one the
DRY of national life. 1t is the literal
working out Of the faith that nations
can only grow strong through the
development of physical power on
military lines. According to this the
DRY medical science, invention, COM
mercial organization, education and
diplomacy must all be used to make
the nation strong in both defense
and aggression. In brief, this theory
contends that the nation which holds
a favorable place in the sun must do
so through it's military strength.
The other theory of national life
is that which contemplates a fedora
ton of nations in which each recog-
nizes and admits the inalienable
rights of other nations to place in
the sun as we recognize the inalien-
able rights of individuals under our
constitution. 1t is the live and let
live theory-the Christian ideal. I'm
der this theory the rights OF nations
are to be determined by the rule of
reason rather than the rule of force.
Under this theory the rights Of the
smaller nations are as sacred as the
rights of the lager ones. Under
this theory a contract is a contract
and treaty is a treaty which cam
not under any consideration be
treated as mere "scrap of paper
Every well Informed man in the
world understands this issue. There
can be no peace until the advocates
of militarism admit that their the
DRY is wrong. There can be no peace
until the advocates of the rule of ma
tons by justice and reason have es-
tablished the supremacy of their
principles in the minds and hearts
of majority of the people of the
world. Peace will not come until
there is a victory of Righteousness
over wrong.
Clearly, what President Wilson
had in mind was different point of
view. 1t is his judgment that there
can be no peace in victory which
enables either side to impose on the
other a peace which contains essen
|tial elements of injustice. From that
point of view he is correct.
The essential injustice of his mes
sage lies in the fact that he fails to
appreciate the fact that one side in
this struggle stands for a militaristic
policy. If this side wins victory
then there will be no permanent
peace-nothing but an armed truce
while preparation is made for an
other struggle. The world certainly
wants a peace without victory to
the elements which stand for this
ideal. But this makes it clear that
there can be no peace without the
victory of the other ideal. The adj
vocates of this other idea understand,
of course, that their object would fail
if they lost sight of their ideal in the
Imposition of their terms. They must
be victorious in their ideal and they
must then clinch their victory by the
Justice of the terms which they de-
mand in settlement of all the issues
involved in the present complicated
struggle.
PREPAREDNESS