The Washington herald., 1921-12-11
Yellow Masses Crouching
To Spring, Says D'Annunzio
Poet Sees Race War As Inevitable and Jeers AZ
"Magicians at Washington" Trying to
Prevent 1t.
BY GABRIELLE D'ANNUNZIo.

ROME. Dec. 1O.-Before the great
war. in the eliminating period OF
new machines and new inventions.
the figure OF victorious man seemed
again set on a pedestal, a world
statue OF Man, dominator over cos
mic energies. II seemed TO US that
distracted humans had renewed the
sanction already dared by an
ancient who the Greeks imagined
was descended from Hercules.
Hippocrates had set in the temple
at Delphi among the divine statues
a bronze skeleton splendidly con-
structed. lie thought to place on
a sacred pedestal a model OF world
accomplished beauty formed after
logical necessity.
Thus before the war we saw
Man like the giant before the
deluge. ready to sweep creation.
War Of Divine Essence.
Heir TO all the virtues and cNpe-
riences accumulated by anterior
generations: armed with invisible
weapons snatched from nature in
order to use them against herself.
Obliged to multiply the efforts Of
his will in order TO be equal TO the
cosmic energy concentrated In him
self and which was ready 60 over
whelm and slay him; elevated
above pleasure, above woe and pain
by the pure wish to hunt new OBJ
stacles. new dangers, new aims for
his boldness: man was not any
more a creature expecting his re-
demption-a human awaiting di-
vine election-but an animal al
ready elected at birth to a vast and
most powerful life work.
In your country, in the country
of greatest accumulatOrs and man
ufacturers Of wealth and strength.
more than anywhere else, the hu-
man being is dominated from the
heights of his self-erected pedestal
But the world conflict came. And
from year 20 year. from horror to
horror. from heroism TO heroism,
from defeat TO defeat. from victory
to victory. il was seen how war is
truly OF divine essence.
Man a. Nothing.
In fact the divine quality OF Mars
was never so perfectly demon
strated as in this last great con-
fiict. The elementary and myste-
rious forces OF divinity over
whelmed man and put him from
his pedestal world.
Man was as nothing. The heroic
act of the individual appeared only
as a lamp TO light and magnify in
hnitely the divine spirit Of hero
ism.
And this sentiment was too
tardily recognized by the survivors
in the honOrS that have been PAID
TO tho unknown soldiers
Nobody knew what was simmer
ing in the pot OF the future. tn"
most perspicacious OF us knew
only that we were at the begin
ming of a new Genesis. but did not
distinguish either the road to be
followed or the milestones along
the way.
What were the leaders Of the war
WORTH
What were the Statesmen worth
Sees strong Contrast.
Even in the climax Of battle their
gestures showed their implacablc
obtuseness and at the hour Of sol
emn council their words resounded
false and vain.
Tell me in truth whether the
armed chief is as he appears. tied
TO his work as an artisan TO his
desk. tell me in truth. which has
the aspect Of creator-which
seems adult in stature and in
breadth"
Perhaps the facile manipulatori %
eNpedients and lies who has been
expected at Washington will draw
the council from its embarrassment
with a gracious conclusion.
Regard well his hands. They are
the hands Of an intriEuer. the hands
Of a plotter. the hands Of a fslsi-
fer the same hands which worked
by stealth in Paris.
It is safer to monopolize certain
oil fields than 20 forge a great des-
tiny. The fate Of the world is ac-
complished according TO the will Of
statesmen who are busy swelling
the bladder Of their lies hoping to
he taken as Illuminating fires
Pity and loathe them
Hard and Cold season.
With the end Of tho great war a
now Genesis is begun led nv a
thoughtful hope n preordinatcd do
sign which intriguing. cheating. il
lusions. procrastinations and con-
iurations will he n no value inst
as the anNieties or March are value
less against the gertrude Of spring
The worlds new phase is the I'M
Questionable fatality of season. for
history. too. has its seasons and
this one is bitterly hard and cold
Americans hsyc clear FORESIGHT
VIII they. can thcv he persuaded TO
stare destiny stra iSht in the face
Whatever their fate Is. iron can
he opposed only by iron. Iron sunk
IN the depths of tho seas has not
value. either real or ideal. r will
he necessary TO plunge deeper into