Norwich bulletin., 1917-05-23
Views of the Vigilantss
TESTIMONY OF AN Ex-PACIFIST
BY Amelia Josephine Burr of the
VieiIantes.

In july of 1914 I was an extreme
pacifist, believing it uhehristian under
any circumstances to oppose agrees
sion with physical force. O-ike many
others did not scrupple to avail my
self of the services of the police. but
the Inconsistency of this did not Oc-
cur to me them When the Great
War broke out, l chung to my senti-
ments, though admitting that in the
event of my mother being attacked
would not hesitate to defend her with
any weapon that was convenient. Tt
IS so much easier to be a martyr in
person than by deputy I still main
tain that such action would be a re-
version from Christianity to high
class paganism of the Old Testament
type, and believed in disarmament a s
preventive against the nation being
over taken by such baclxsliding as
expected in my own case. A nation
yielding itself meekly to martyrdom
might be the salvation of the world,
true. We have yet to see the result
of Armenia,s sacrifice. But time and
thought have made me realize that
such exalted harmony of action would
not be possible in a country of this
size and build. even if it were desir-
able. While some of the units might
lay down their lives rather than take
up the sword, others would inevita-
bly, fight to the death. Are these
wrong? Are they unchristian? Among
the last words of Christ were, He that
hath no sword. let him sell his gar
ment and buy one" An inspired man
has interpreted that as meaning, 'fBet-
ter face the winds of the world naked
than not be armed to protect the weak
and the oppressed" That is the be-
lief which l hold today.
I do not believe there are left in
the world any thinking people who
believe that war in itself is a good
thing. 1t is undeniably the contrary,
and there are those. who agree with
the editor of New York magazine
that, ANY peace is better than a con-
Here is another point of view. how
ever, from man who has seen at
close quarters on the Eastern and
Western fronts that very "idiotic
butchery," and still can say, There
can be nobody in this country who
hates war and desires peace as earn
estly as those men do. Remember
they are living day by day the things
it sickens you to read about. But
they feel that the only possibility of
fight this through to a decision now;
and if that fight is to cost their lives
they give them freely to establish a
better order for those who shall csme
after them. They are fighting the
last great war against war" Or read
if you have already done SO, read
again; it worth remembering
Lord Dunsany's preface to his last
book. uSt now the ciViliza ton of
Europe seems almost to have ceased,
and nothing seems to grow in her torn
fields but death, yet this is only for
a while and dreams will come back
again and bloom as of old, all the
more radiantly for this terrible
ploughing, as the flowers will boom
again where the trenches are and the
primroses shelter in shelI-holee for
many seasons when weeping Liberty
has come home to Flanders. To some
of you in America this may seem an
unnecessary and wasteful quarrel as
other peoples quarrels often are; but
it comes to this, that though we are
all killed there will be songs again,
but If we were to submit and to sur
viye, there could be neither songs nor
dreams nor any joyous free things
any more" This F'renchman and this
Irish1nan whom I have quoted are not
theorists who have formed their opin-
ions at a safe distance. They are men
who have jeoparded their lives for
their faith in the high places of the
fed. Dunsany wrote his brave words
in a barrack hospital. There are many
among us to whom the conviction has
come that we must bear our part in
this great conflict, with sorrow that
war is, with hope that war may never
be again. Some feel, like a friend of
my own, I'D rather risk my life
twenty times than set out to kill an
other man, but If I believe the cause
is worth fighting for, and expect
to fight for it, why should
put the dirty work on the other fell
low" For others, it is impossible to