The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1919-05-20
DEF|ED MORAL LAW
Why Kaiser and His Huns Were
Defeated.
Like Every Thing Of Evil the Seeds
Of It's Own Destruction Were
Born With Autocratic Mad
ness, Pastor Believes.

group Of men were standing
round the fireplace at the country
club after their game of golf. They
were discussing the cause of Ger
many's defeat. One laid it to the
food shortage, another to American
forces, anothes to the diplomacy or
the allied governments, which had
ranged against Germany virtually the
whole of the civilized world.
Just at that point, DR.. Edgeworth,
the pastor of local church, joined
the group, and they turned to him for
his opinion. The good doctor thought
a moment, and then he said slowly.
you men know me well enough, |
think, to feel that I am not so mar
row that every thought | have ends
in a church spire. And so you won't
think me guilty of pious platitude
when l say that l firmly believe that
the determining factor in Germany's
defeat was God.
"Do you remember" he continued.
what Victor Hugo said about Napo-
Icons defeat at Waterloo? 1t runs
this way: Was it possible for Ma
poleon to win at Waterloo? We an
swer, No. Why? Because of Wei
lington? No. Because of Blucher!
No. Because of the rain? No. Be
cause of God. 1t was time this vast
man should fall. He had been i'm
peached before the throne of the in
finite, and his fall had been decreed.
And then Victor Hugo adds, Napo-
leon bothered God
"But I don't see how Hugo can
prove it," replied one of the men.
''No, he couldn't prove that the in
tervention of God defeated Napoleon
at Waterloo" answered the Doctor
mot with mathematical precision. This
sort of evidence is the most ticklish
in the world, but l heard an officer
from overseas say that he could lay
his finger on no less than three in
stances where nothing but a miracle
saved the allies.
"There are certain historical incl
dents that get written down as bear
ING marks of the intervention OF COD.
The storm that defeated the Spanish
armada is one. and men are begin.
ming to look at the first battle of the
Marne as another Competent author-
ties tells us that the German defeat
cannot be adequately explained on
human grounds. If it is true, as Her
bert Spencer says, that we live in the
presence of a moral order, then some
thing must happen when that order
is violated. That Germany violated
that order no one doubts, and when
it did so it was fighting against the
stars in their courses.
"The text that has been running
through my head ever since Germany
crumpled is, Not by might, nor by
power, but by my spirit, saith the
Lord of hosts and l get a lot OF
comfort as l think of it. Ours is a
wonderful world. Wonderful for its
chemistry, wonderful for it's geometric
precision, wonderful for it's vital proc
esses, but most wonderful Of all for
the moral purpose streaking it like
veins of gold. The world is pitched
to good! Its movement is that way.
Every evil thing has, therefore, the
seeds of it's own destruction born with
It. Your Pharaohs, SeanacherIbs'
Neros, Attilas Mohammeds. Alvas. Ma
poleons and Kaiser Wilhelm IFS con-
ttnually arise, putting the nations in
fear and threatening to uproot civlil-
zation itself. But there is always
some rock on which their armadas
split; some Moscow in which their ar'