The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-10-07

However beautiful may be the ex-
preston in this poem. it seems sub
ordinate to the thought, and need not
detain us here The dead speak in
these lines, and VIC who live must
heed
There can he no question as to the
outcome OF this war. The spiritually
and intellectually civilized part OF the
world has resolved that the portion
intellectually civilized only must be
subdued. If this portion had kept the
peace It would have been left to the
breed and barter in its own material
ism; hut it broke the peace and came
raVening out of its Jungle.
The Germans know that they are
going to be beaten, as well as the al
lies know it, For months, however.
Germany has hoped. and she still
hopes that by some chance she may
make peace which will favor her
to greater or less degree Germany
knows that the spiritually civilized
world did not want war and long ago
came to hate this war forced upon
1t. It is here that W. must heed the
voice of those who lie in Flanders
fields If ye break faith.
The creatures called, for want OF
a more precise term. ''pacificists,"
have grown constantly less numer
Noise rather than numbers distin
guished them even from the first.
But to millions Of our people there
comes sometimes the temptation to
long for peace. even though it falls
short Of victory. Has not the torch
been carried almost far enough
Even If taken up, may 1t not he held
a little less high?
These millions OF our people" are
made up of the fathers and mothers
OF the soldiers who have gone to the
front; We are thinking particularly
of the mothers.
You are the mother OF the son with
our forces overseas \ whisper comes
to you that the Germans are ready
for a Just peace. This whisper may
come from neiEhbor, or it may come
in print. or in some other way The
neighhor. or the author of the lines
in print. may be only foolish, or he
may be a sympathizer with Germany
Your son is beyond the Flanders
crosses row on row. along the dan
ger line, facing the exploding shells
and poison gas Of the Implying enc
my. Other men in his company have
been killed PERHAPS YOU would be
more than human If you did not at
least listen to these whispers Perhaps
1t is not strange if YOU are tempted
10 believe. and to say I'VE must
make the Just peace the Germans are
willing to accept" Not strange -
with peace your boy comes home,
without it he stays to face the ex-
ploding shells and the poison,
But what of the son or another mo-
Their. who sleeps in Flanders fieldsa
1--WE are the dead" IF he could speak.
would he say, Let them have their
peace? The answer has been made
by one now himself of their company:
'iTs ye break faith with us who die.
We shall not sleep, though peoples
grow
In Flanders field"
That your son may know immc-
diate samety il must not be that those
other women's sons died in vain They
have given the last full measure OF
devotion" and they more than we
who have given almost nothing. are
entitled to speak. Take up our quar-
rel with the foe" 1t must not be that
their death was fruitless nor must
the son of your son be forced to go
through this same ordeal a quarter
century from now.
For of course the point is here:The
Germans do not want a just peace. A
just peace means The WfplnE out of
their whole military machine and
most of their dangerous feudal sys-
tenn of government, A Just peace
means the hanging Of q considerab BILE
number of Germans Of high rank who
have ordered the violation OF all the
rules OF civilized warfare A lust
peace means that the Germans must
pay for all the unlawful damage they
have done. The Germans do not want
Just peace.
This job must be finished. We shall
not break faith, These dead in Elan
ders did not die in vain. While the
larks still hravely sing, our guns must
as hravely speak below till a peace is
won of which both the dead and the
sons can say They kept faith"
tFrom the October Woman's Home