Evening star., 1925-09-13

the most striking. If not the |
most pleasing, of contemporary
phenomena. 1t must impress even
the casual tourist, but it is brought |
home by the mere process Of con
trast vastly more significantly to the |
American who remembers European |
views and sentiments in the years be- !
tween 1917 and 1920. On the other |
hand, II would probably be an exag-
geration to say that we are as a |
people more unpopular now than in |
the years of the war during which we |
remained neutral.
Any inquiry into the causes of the !
change in the European feeling to-
ward Americans must naturally start !
with the observation that, all things |
considered, affection between different |
peoples, between nations, whether /
within or without Europe, is abnormal |
The ordinary state of mind of all |
peoples is one Of suspicion, disgust |
and at least a measure of dislike for I
foreigners. The exigencies of war and |
the accidents of alliances against "A !
common enemy may temporarily |
modify the natural and healthy dis !
like of all stra angers, 1t may enable |
people with centuries of profound dis |
trust separating them, as for example |
the British and the French, to speak |
If they were united henceforth /.
by indissoluble bonds. But the end /
OF the war sees the swift cutting OF /
the bonds and the return to the pre-
war state of mind.
Americans Never Popular.
Broadly speaking. the American has !
never been popular in Europe or out |
side his own country. lie has been |
measurably more Objectionable than |
European stranger in all countries |
save perhaps England, because his |
political and parochial circumstances |
make 1t much more difficult for him |
to appreciate, understand or merge /
with the conditions about him than |
for travellers of European countries, |
who. despite many pronounced differ !
ences. nevertheless share in the com /
mon life of single continent.
Before the war the American wa /
rather tolerated than liked on the |
continent of Europe The legend of |
America as the land of vast wealth. /
the home of millionaires, the land of |
economic and material opportunity, |
did much to elevate the land itself in /
the ina gina ton OF the mass of the |
European peoples. Emigrants from |
Europe stimula ted this legend alike |
by their fantastic reports and by their /
very solid prosperity. In a sense, the |
country was popular and the people /
unpopular. But at most. before the
war and despite the growing num-
bers OF the American tourists, Ameri-
ca remained something vague and i'll.
defined.
No Political Contact.
One circumstance which much con-
tributed to this European point OF
view was the absence of any political !
contact between the United States and !
Europe, with the possible exception |
nf Britt in a nd
cared nothing about Continental Eu- |
ropean affairs. So enormous an event !
as the congress of Berlin left us cold |
and uninterested. Beyond a definite |
insistence that politically Europe |
should let America, both Americas |
alone we did not go. And lacking |
navy and possessing an army Of
only microscopic dimensions, we were |
in no sense a force to be reckoned |
with outside our own immediate lands |
and waters.
1t is true that toward the close of |
the last century there was certain |
change in the situation. Our victory |
over Spain, which was pretty gener- |
ally unpopular on the continent, at |
last drew attention to the fact that |
we were beginning TO emerge from |
our traditional isolation. In expelling |
Spanish rule from the Western Hem |
fishing ourselves upon Spanish !
foundations in the Far East, in the |
Philippines, we became a factor in !
the great game of that era, the era Of
colonial expansion.
Even before the end of the century !
astute British craftsmanship had rec |
ognized that the American relation to |
the world was changing. and all Brit |
ish diplomacy was then and thereafter |
concentrated upon the effort TO pre- |
serve and expand friendly relations |
between the two Englsh-speaking |
countries although there was no gen |
eral appreciation of the extent to
which we were in a brief period to be- |
come not alone world power. but in
a sense the most powerful of all world
powers.
Backed by Britain.
Since we had no army and no navy
and since Europe was accustomed to
reckon strength in terms of those two
elements, the continent not only con-
tinued to regard us as negligible, but
to an extent shared the indignation of
the German Emperor that without
physical weapons we should dare to
insist upon such things as the Mon
roe doctrine and the open door. New
ertheless, Europe perceived that be-
hind us in both cases stood Britain
with the fleet which did represent
strength as Europe understood it.
But of the profound truth that war
in the future would be decided not
mainly or largely by man power, but
by the capacity for machine mobiliza-
ton plus the resource alike of mate
rial and financial wealth. and that as
a consequence the United States, with
its great population and it's enormous
machine power, would have the great
est potential weight, there was no sus-
picion anywhere in Europe. We re- ,
mained what we had been in Euro
pean eyes for a century at least-the
still immature and comparatively
harmless children OF the older conti
nent who were slowly and painfully
travelling up the slope which Europe
had long ascended. We were liked or
disliked as children are liked or dis
liked, but taken seriously by few, If
any.
With the outbreak of the World
War no combatant nation in the first
fury OF the encounter even thought OF
us. For the first terrific months. from
the first shots to the definite stale
mate which marked the close of the
first campaign in the mud and fogs of
Flanders. our relation to the tremen
douS catastrophe seemed as unimpor
tant and unreal as IL we had been in
habitants of another planet instead of
another hemisphere. 1t was only when
Europe realized that the conflict would
be long and that the strength of the
two groups Of powers was relatively
equal that eyes began to turn toward
the American shore. but even then
Bulgaria and Rumania. and naturally
much more Italy, occupied the best
minds of European foreign offices.
Supplies Helped Allies.
But the war had not long marched
in the second year before the fmpor-