The Washington herald., 1917-03-04

Increasing the opportunities Of advance
ment for the lower classes In Great
Britain, and In curtailing the special
privileges Of pedigree and wealth In the
government The English aristocrcy
was the impeachment 70 democracy and
liberty against which he was directing the
energies OF his exuberant nature. Then
suddenly q real enemy to democracy ap-
peared. Germany SUDDENLY acted on her
long-discussed theory that no nation and
no people had any rights which Germany
was bound TO respect except those de-
tended by force, and that there was no
God or morals above the German state.
The TASK suddenly shifted from a ques-
ton OF the Improvement OF British de-
mocracy to the existence OF Il, and the
existence Of liberal government in the
rest OF Europe. As Mr.. Lloyd George
said In his first speech as premier. to
Parliament:
Would Crush MiIitarism.
''The allies entered into this war to de-
fend Europe against the aggression of
Prussian military domination and they
must insist that the end is a most COM
plete and effective guarantee against the
possibility OF that caste ever again dis
turbing the peace of Europe.
Prussia, since she got into the hands
OF that caste, has been a bad neIghbor-
arrogant threatening. bullying, shifting
boundaries at her will, taking one fair
teld after another from weaker neighbors
! and adding them to her own doninions,
ostentatiously piling up weapons Of Of
Tense, ready on a moments notice to be
used.
she has always been an unpleasant,
disturbing neighbor to US. She got thor
ougnly Oh. the nerves of Europe and there
was no peace near where she dvelt
1T Is dificult for those who were for
tunate enough to live thousands of miles
away to understand what II has meant
, to those who lived near. Even here. with
the protection Of the broad seas between
us, We know what a disturbing factor
the Prussians were with their constant
naval menace. But even We can hardly
| realize what II has meant to France and
Russia Several times there were threats.
There were two Of them within the life
| time Of this generation which presented
an alternative Of war or humiliation.
Internal Influences.
There were many of us who had
hoped that internal influences in Germany
would have been strong enough to check
and ultimately to eliminate this hector
ting. ALI our hopes proved illusory, and
now that this great war has been forced
BY the Prussian military leaders upon
iohSSB AhoooAos ASdiss anu OuTScNeh. IL
would be a cruel folly not TO see to II
that this swashbuckling through the
| streets of Europe TO the disturbance of
all harmless and peaceful citizens shall
be dealt with now as an offense against
the law Of nations.
The mere word that led Belgium to
her own destruction will not satisfy Eu-
rope any more.
I'VE all believed It; we all trusted in
II. 1t gave way at the first pressure of
temptation, and Europe has been plunged
into this vortex Of blood. We will there
fore wait until We hear what terms and
| guarantees there are better than those.
surer than those. which she so lightly
broke. Meanwhile We ought TO put our
trust in an unbroken army rather than
In q broken faith"
Revolution in Germany.
That Is what every Britisher. Canadian.
and also a goodly number of Americans
| In khaki that / saw in the two months
was in Great Britain and France, were
fighting for. As many expressed II, the