The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1922-01-13
WHAT PROLONGED PEACE WOULD
MEAN TO THE WORLD

III MS last article on the conference
lor the lInitation of ornaments now
IN session in Washington MIR. H. G..
"0i1s' the tAmous English correspond
oii'' uie" psry vivid and most allur
ms picture Oh what universal and pro-
'o"eou peace Nould mean to the world
iiioiieS spent for the prepare
'ioA u wars Io* the building of vast
'''' 'o'' ioi tue III lintenance and equip
'''o"' u H'0'Nuihs armies; if the money
on 'ne wages of war were
spent for the advansS4 - soiaroo
and education; for oons+ruction
of good roads; for thu foo;,;ta+ion of
transportation and the k,i,ding nm If
commerce; for the extA sion of rail.
roads over the earth; f&tba unifca.
ton and creating of batter under
standing among the nation what a
great and glorious world ours would
grow to be.
The letter is very lengthy one md
uON VIC "lSH IL COUiu NC lcdu Dy all
of our readers because it points in
so many ways how the world would BE-
blessed and beautified if it could be
rid of wars and the fear of wars
The part we quote only gives
glimpse of the picture he draws:
He says in part:
Il have to remind myself that | am
in what is now the greatest, richest
most powerful country in the world
But with this country now as with
every country, army, navy, conten
tions, service, war debt charges and
the rest of the legacy of past wars
consume the national revenue. Amer.
lea is not spending a 1.-THE of what
she ought to be spending upon schools,
upon the maintenance of housing
standard and upon roads and trans
port. She improves in all these things,
but at no great pace, because of the
disunion of the world and the threat
of war England and France which
were. once ahead of her in these re
spects of housing. transport and pOpu-
lar education, are now on the whole
declining, through the excessive fiscal
burthens they are under to pay for
the late war and prepare for fresh
ones. But | ask you to think what
would happen to world from which
that burthen of preparedness was lift
ed. The first result of that relief
would be a diversion of the huge
allowance of the war
God to just these starved and neglect
ed things
Stanch that waste throughout the
earth, and the saved wealth and ener-
gy will begin at once to flow in the
direction of better houses, towards a
increase in the order and
graciOusness of our unkempt and
sloveuly countFysides, to making bet
ter roads throughout the globe, until
the globe is accessible, and To a huge
enrichment and invigoEation of edu-
cation
How fair and lovely such coun-
tries as France and Germany and
Italy might be today if the dark threat
of war that keeps them so gaunt and
povertystruck could be lifted from
them Think ct the abundant and
various loneliness of France and the
wit and charm of it's varied people,
now turned sour by the toll and
the femrs and bitter suspici-
ons, the threat of further war holds
over them. Tank of France, fear
less and at last showing the world
what France can do and be- And
Italy at last italy, and Japan Think
of tire green hifls of Virginia, covered
with stately homes and cheerful
houses Think of world in which
travel is once more free and in which
every country in absolute security
has been able to resume its own peace
time development OF its architecture.
its music and all its arts in its own
atmosphere upon the foundations of
its own past Because world unity
does not mean uniformity; it means
security to be different 1t is war that
forces all men into the same khaki
and iron-clad moulds.
But all this recovery of the visible
idiOsyncrasies of nations, all this CON
tident activity and progressive, EN-
richment which will inevitably ensue
upon the diversion of human attention
from war and death and conflict and
mutual thwarting to peace and de
velopment, will be but the outer indi
cation of much profounder changes
Relieved of our war burthens, it viii
be possible to take hold of education
as educationists have been longing
to do for many years.
They tell us now that everyone
could be educated up to sixteen OF
seventeen and that most people may