The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1919-08-03
England Celebrates Peace
BY j. ID. WHELPLEY


London. July ESPECIAL )-Respondin
to an apparently general desire on the
part of the people, the British govern
ment has arranged for a formal and Of
fetal celebration of the coming of peace
on Saturday, July 10. The government is
contributing funds to move troops to va
rious parts of the countrys to participate
in the celebrations, has arranged for the
navy to take a prominent part and
otherwise is making a pageant of the oc-
casion.
Local governing bodies have also taken
the matter up and some of them have
gone gone SO far as to impose a special
additional tax on the community for the
purpose of supplying funds for local cele-
brations.
The government, in the meantime, has
had considerable difficulty in restraining
the people from spontaneous peace cele-
brations before the official date The
government says that it cannot have the
official celebration before the date fixed
because of the need for making extern
sive arrangements for the movement of
troops, naval vessels, aircraft and other
paraphernalia of war so that they can
be distributed throughout the United
Kingdom. The reasonableness of this is
recognized, but owing to the general holt
day spirit which pervades the nation at
the present time, 1t is difficult to hold the
people to work and in occupations until
such time as the government may beside.
There is no question that the real cele-
braton of the coming of peace came in
England with the announcement of the
armistice last November. They will never
again be that spontaneous outburst of en-
thusoasm, that feeling of relief and sol
emn JOY which came over the nation at
1 II o'clock on the morning of Novem-
| Der II.
| IN a Of Of
when it was announced that the Germans
| had agreed to sign the peace treaty, there
was another outburSt and celebration
| also unofficial and uncontrolled. All of
| these affairs have discounted to GER
| tain extent what may happen on the Of
| fetal occasion yet to come, but the holi-
| day offered will be accepted and there
, will be impressive ceremonies in prac-
| tically every city and hamlet Though
| out the United Kingdom 1t is noticeable,
. however, that the nation as whole is
not unanimous a sto the suitability of
noisy rejoicings. Those who have lost
husbands, fathers and sons by reason of
the war are in more thoughtfui and
prayerful mood than they are in one of
exultation. Thoughtful people through
out the country realize that it is time
for solemn reflection and consideration
for the state of society and the world in
general, rather than one for bonfires,
fireworks and the firing of guns.
1t has been most noticeable in the last
few months that the churches have been
more largely attended than has been Gus
tomary in England for many years.
These people are not attending the
, churches because they have become more
religious. 1t is because the atmosphere
of the church is more nearly akin to their
present attitud etowards life. The SOL
emn quiet of the religious sanctuary is
more favorable to the reflections of those
who have suffered and those who fear
for the immediate future of the country,
than it is in the noisy crowd attending
public celebrations. A great many peo-
| pie resent the expenditure of money.
either public or private, upon demonstra-
items when it is evident to the most SUI
perficial thinker that the nation has be-
fore it an enormous problem in the ques-