Norwich bulletin., 1919-10-18
PROSPECTS OF ENDURING PEACE

I to encourage her prosperity before the war, and it will be interesting now to see how she win be able to use her native skin in this direction aftsr los ing her iron claw Learningt has long been the pride of Germany. Some of her scholars and scientists still are left. but many of the promising young men have been slain in the war. In deed, many of the more competent German scholars and scientists may find better employment abroad than at home. especially in the United States. and this will deprive Germany Thus the future of Germany affords little ground for optimism
 What of the future of the allies
 That is as difficult to predict is the
 do is to speculate a little on the pro- cess of negotiations among the allies
 to see that their future relations are
 very uncertain It would be rash in
 ture. The League of Nations has
 been inaugurated but there is no
 ground for believing that it is firmly
 established. It has no more assurance of its perpetuity than had the famous
 Holy Alliance. Usually when num-
 Der of nations unite in this way for
 mutual interest it is inevitable that
 differences will arise from conflict
 terms of the League of Nations by no
 means suggest impartiality of inter
 ests among the members. Some coun
 tries will be greatly benefited by the
 terms and others as much injured
 Therein lies it's weakness and the seed of its undoin- some day. The whole
 thing leaves rf on the mind of the his
 torian the possibility of some sudden
 Italy, for examrie which nourishes
 grudge in regard to the peace treaty. will probably foment difficulty in the future.
 As to the mutual harmony Eng land. France and America in future. opinions vary. They may remain
 friendly Or come to daggers drawn,
 but no one can tell. What the world is more concerned with is the prob lem of the effect Of the war on civ ization. On this problem also most of the prophets and historians for bear to express any definite opinions. The future makes towards of us all. All seem agreed that the future will be different from the past that con- ditions after the war will be quite diff ferent from those prevailing before the war. This, however, is a safe forecast and means very little in itself. The new idea that the present peace is t6 be founded not on skilful nego tiations and force but upon righteous ness and justice is supposed to make a vital change in interna tional rela tions. Others hold that in the fu- ture in the past peace will depend on balance of power and on arma- ments; and others again believe that war has forever ceased. and that all conflict between nations will be economic. While this sort of speculation goes on most of the great powers are touching up their arma- ments and armor and keeping ready 1 for further bloodshed- Some see future war in the conflict between the political democracy of England and l America on the one side and the so- cial democracy of northern Europe on the ~.her: war of classes so to speak ending with the destruction of lutocracv in all it's forms. All are thus like blind men feeling an ele- phan- and trying to describe their i'm i presSiors one saying the animal is a big leg another contends lie is little tail, q third a tusk and fourth a trunk and so on. We are too near the war yet to gain a proper perspective of it's results; and the historian is ! wisest who maintains a careful re serve as to opinion.