The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1918-04-16
Thousands in Trenches, Says
Bishop Bashford of the
Methodist Church
BELIEVES END OF
AUTOCRACY SURE
Inconclusive Peace Cited as One of
Worst Possible Contingencies-Sig
nifcant influence in Importance Of
Tabor


Labor
NEW YORK, April 1G.-Bishop ".
Bashford of the Methodist Episcopal
church said in an interview that $780,
900 Chinese are aiding the allies in
France. OF these, $4,000 are Chinese
troops fighting in the trenches.
''There are about 5000 Chinese
serving in France as farmers, trench
diggers and laborers, = said the Bishop.
THE French government began i'm
porting them last summer. 1t offered
to pay each man so a month and to
send another $40 to his family at home.
AS the ordinary laboror earns from
| eight to 10 cents day in China this
feared it was too good to be true. They
were little sceptical of the French
government 5 good faith, and went to
the Christian missionaries in their vii
lagos asking for advice. 1t was
through the influence of these mission
aries that the movement gained It's first
Roadway.
! Discussing ultimate results of the
war, Bishop Bashford said that, from
any point of view, it must mean the
end of autocracy and worldwide ac
ceptance Of democracy. Dissmissing a
German victory as inconceivable, the
Bishop said:
1.-The next worst thing that could
happen would be an inconclusive
peace.
''Bismarck said years ago that Rus
sia, Germany and Austria must stand
together to preserve autocracy III the
world He said that England had
fallen hopelessly away toward popular
government. that France had already
become a republic and that the only
strong nations left to preserve i'm
pcrialism were Germany, Austria and
Russia Austria and Russia were two
pillars, with Germany as the central
arch. Now one of the pillars is broken
the other is weakening aud the whole
edifice is doomed.
All this is based on the premise
that we accept an inconclusive peace
6itANIt H. tilt NpASt lbSSiDit OutCpulS
Even so | should say that we are IN
new world. 1t may take the German
people a quarter of a century to real
lie Just what is happening. But any
ono familiar with events in the Orient
, and Oh all the outskirts OF civilization
= knows that a democratic wave is gath
, cring momentum rapidly, and that il i,
f bound to sweep Europe as well as tn,
, rest of thc world.
) There arc other proofs of the
growth of democracy, even iii this tim.
:. of tremendous struggle, when all tht
forces of the world are concentrated OF
! war There is the extension of suffra z,
: to women. Six million have Just beer
: cnfranehised in England. Women s in
tluence in government is going to coun
. for temperance, for the conservation q
= childhood and the principles of Chris
! tianity and against the social evil
: Another significant influence toda,
i is the growing Importance Of labor
From now on there will be CONSTANT,
= increasing number of representative
: of labor in the governments Of Eng
!, land, the United States and every 9th
: er country. Other evidence of tn
: growing strength of democracy are t
!, be found III the increasing importanc
OF the temperance movement, socia
evil crusades and our general rccoo
milton OF social responsibility, not onl
:, II our own cities at home, but in til
;, foreign mission fields and all over tn
!. world
: 81 have tried to indicate that "
;, are really III a new world 1t is to b
a great democratic world, a world 0
:, brotherhood, world for the enthrone
: ment of Christian ideals Other nation
! have already accepted i. and German
! will have to come to it. Autocracy
militarism, might makes right-al
these primitive old doctrines ar
r # #