Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-02-20
BY WILLIS j. BALLTNGER.

| NM Gus as an ancient plague of
frogs and fieas, an inter.
national crisis in Nicara.
qua. open threats throughout South
! and Central America against an octo.
pus of the North, a growing move
ment in Spain for the recovery of her
colonies in this hemisphere, spread.
! ing lava flow of radicalism from a
| still erupting volcano of social discon-
tent in Moscow throughout the world,
a militant India, a disturbed Near
and Far East, a Europe overrun with
| dictators busily exchanging yelled
| threats. a world still bearing a pro-
| digious burden of armament--a proDh-
! ecv of the doom of war might seem
| to be silly except for the fact that
such prediction comes from a
| thinker who is practically an insti-
| tuition of thought in the civilized
| world-James Harvey, Robinson-the
celebrated historian.
while there may be plenty of local
troubles in the future" said DR.. Rob
tnson. as I chatted with him in his
study. II am willing to hazard the
prediction that civilization has seen
the last Of great wars. Wars such as
we have Just been through will not
be repeated, in my judgment"
DR. Robinson is Of slight build, with
an emotionless way of looking at one
sort Of Indian trick of not betraying
his thoughts with the slightest ex-
pression-and a very exact way of
talking-a kind of intellectual car
penter who measures his words care
fully. planes his thoughts down to a
fine degree of accuracy and impresses
you as knowing thoroughly what he
Is building when he speaks.
Before we had been chatting long
DR.. Robinson said:
you know. I don't care very much
about history. I mean," he continued,
that I don't care much for what
-->sses for history so often-mere reci-
tation Of events and dates. I am in
terested in the study of the mind Of
man-its growth, its PHILOSOPHERS, its
ethics"
DR.. Robinson then showed me con-
cealed in a cabinet a powerful micro
scope with which he whiles away
many hours during the week investi-
eating into the secrets of life as told
in a leaf, frogs leg, protozoa. vege-
table or human life.
That Is why DR.. Robinson is so re-
spected as a thinker---he thinks philo'
sophically about what history shows
about man. He is interested In
causes, consequences, explanations
about the nature of man. And the
products Of his curiosity have been
two monumental contributions to mod
ern neutrality-suspicious. in the Making
and "The Ordeal of Civilization"
"Then. despite all the wars and
rumors Of wars abroad In the world
today, you don't think we are ever
going to have another great war like
the one we just went through?
asked.
Eyes: that is what I think. Of
course, as / have said, we may have
a few local wars, but great wars are
over. If they are not over. they are
most certainly numbered. Mankind
NAV require another terrible lesson,
but I am inclined to think that there
are forces so powerful in opposition to
the repetition of such a catastrophe
as we had in 1914 that I don't think
that civilization will have another
great or worldwide war"
what forces do you refer tor I
queried.
ut is a long story" replied DR..
Robinson, land we shall have to pro-
coed slowly. The extinction of great
wars will be due to the effect Of a
number Of social forces now In opera
ton. AS I look at their combined eff
feet, both now and in the future.
can clearly foresee the doom Of war"
Yes, but, DIR. Robinson" I said,
war has been with the human race