World-Wide Peace

World-Wide Peace'

BY BEN YOUNG, OF THE WEBER STAKE

From the dawn of history man's progress has been marred by wars and contentions, between which there have been short periods of peace, when the growth of man has been very rapid. Between the tribal wars and the fall of Greece, came the age of Greek philosophy, architecture, and sculpture, at which the world today still marvels. Following the crusades came the renaissance with its revival of r— learning, with its paintings that have never since been equaled, with establishment of schools and universities, the invention of thousands of useful articles, the discovery of printing, steam, and electricity, and the marvel- ous works that have been ob- tained from these energies. To- day we are living in an age of war, and in viewing the present and past conditions, what will the future bring? In the early conflicts the tribes fought merely to test their strength, and as these tribes developed into nations the same brute ideal led them into con- quests not only of men but of land. At the close of this period Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, a trio that has never since been equaled for philosophy and learning, enriched the world with their reasoning and teach- ings. With the fall of the Roman empire, a second and a greater period of wars was ushered in. A new era of thought preceded this period, the greatest charac- ter, in history,the Prince of Peace, BEN YOUNG. the Christ, had just finished his life's mission, and following it came the great religious wars, prom- inent among which were the crusades. Men voluntarily offered their services, and underwent the hardships of long and perilous journeys to the Holy Land tg- "battle for their religious beliefs. In these wars,

*This speech won first place in the M. I. A., Church-wide, public speaking contest, June, 1916.

884 IMPROVEMENT ERA the conquered was forced to belong- to the. religion of the conqueror. Toward the close of this period gunpowder was invented, and with its invention the mode of war was changed. No longer did the soldiers fight hand to hand conflicts with sword and spear, but even more fierce and deadly battles were fought with the aid of this new invention. Gradually the idea of religious tolerance was accepted by the nations, and the religious wars came to a close, bringing the renaissance. During this period the great painters Leonardo da Vinci, Michael Angelo, and Raphael, whose works are still the most valuable in the world; the musicians, Mendelssohn, Paganini, and Wagner, at whose music the world still marvels; and the authors, Shakespeare. Goethe, and Dickens, whose literature has enriched the world and has never since been equaled, supplied humanity with art and litera- ture. The third period was characterized by the great political wars, such as the American revolution, the French revolution, England's wars with France, the wars between Prussia and France, our great Civil war, and greatest of all, the present war of the nations. As a result of the achievement of civilization, war has become more and more terrible. Modern inventions, such as machine-guns, dum-dum bullets, aeroplanes, submarines, and numerous other de- vices, have made war an intricate art. Science, too, has played an important part, for the poisonous gases used today are far more deadly than the modern bullet. Today the giant, War, holds all Europe in his iron grasp, terroriz-j ing the inhabitants as he breathes hate into the armies, a hate that makes them delight to kill their fellowmen. A fiendish grin lights his countenance as he numbers the dead. He laughs as he sees the rivers run red with blood; he glories in the devastation that is crush- ing the nations; and thus the_ third great period is drawing to a close. The question now before us is, shall we usher in a greater age of war or an era of world-wide peace? Individual man, today, loathes the horrors of war. Only a few years ago, conferences, consisting of delegates from all nations of the world, were called to discuss the peace movement. It was agreed that universal peace would be the greatest event that could ever hap- pen in the history of the world. So with this end in view, the dele- gates drew up a set of international laws agreeing to settle all dis- putes, wherever possible, by arbitration. But at that time the under- taking was too great and although the plan was not a marked failure, it met with no great success.

The two preceding, periods came to a close with great wars and this war marks the close of the third era. Shall it be the last? This question is left for the United States to solve, and no nation is better fitted to decide such a question than is this great republic that has always stood for liberty, equality, and democracy, and whose people are from all nations of the world. The bringing about of world-wide peace is not left entirely with the president, congressmen, and states- men. It is only through the hearty support of every citizen in the nation that world-wide peace can be established. The plan of our republic is that the officials shall enforce the will of the people. If peace is the desire of the majority then we shall have peace. But what shall we do to bring about this condition? We must be particular in the election of those men in whom we place the authority to declare war. Our president must be a man of firm convictions, in whose heart reposes an appreciation for his fellow men and a love of peace When Mexico insulted our flag the cry of the public press was redress by war," "to arms," came the echo from the greedy

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political and financial bosses, but a wise man held the key to the situation. He resented the insult to Old Glory, but he counted the cost of war, the sacrifice of human life, the widows, the orphans, the aged fathers and mothers, who would be left to mourn, and the thou- sands of soldiers who would return crippled, disabled, and dependent! Did not these outweigh the disrespectful conduct of a semi-civilized band of outlaws? Our congressmen, too, proved that they belonged to the new patriotic band, the soldiers of peace, by confirming the President's action. At present one of the best means of keeping peace is to strengthen our defenses so that we shall have a strong arm behind our doctrine that "right is might." The United States should support an army and navy of adequate strength, so that the world will see in her one who is sufficiently strong, morally, intellectually, economically, and physic- ally, to back her stand for honor and peace. Then when the nations have spent each other's strength, when they are sickened by the car- nage of war, then will be the time to act. Then our nation will be in a position to offer her peace-plan, providing that all nations shall abandon their militaristic desires, disband their armies and navies, and agree to settle all disputes by arbitration. If the United States, which will then be the strongest nation in the world, presents this plan, shows by her attitude that she is in favor of it, and if she proves that she is not begging for peace because she is too weak to fight, the weaker nations will follow her example and thereby world-wide ^peace will be established. But behind it all, a lofty public sentiment is the big essential to- ward the development of the plan. Into the hearts of the people we must instil a love of peace. Any sane person would prefer a land of peace and plenty to one of strife and famine, for what a contrast the two scenes present! In the peaceful little city of Ravenna, situated in the north- eastern part of Italy, is a large cathedral. One calm day, last March, as the inhabitants passed by this wonderful piece of architecture, they little dreamed that tomorrow they would witness a new sight. That night a hostile air craft flew over the town and, with the touch of a lever, sent down a bomb that was true to its mark. The next day the cathedral of Ravenna was a mass of ruins. To the enemy, who is mad with the war spirit, this was a decisive gain, but what did it mean to the civilized world? The pressing of that lever meant that fourteen centuries of concentrated effort had been destroyed. It meant that ancient sculpture work among which was a bust of Innocent X, by Bernini, had been demolished. It meant that a collection of Etruscan, Greek, and Roman coins and inscriptions, had been ruined. And it meant that world-famous paintings, among which were The Good Shepherd, and St. Michael the Archangel, were lost forever. This is the carnage of war. This is the destruction that is daily falling over war-stricken Europe, and robbing civilization of some of its greatest achievements. Shall it be war or peace? The prayer of the fathers, the mothers, and the children, is peace. May good grant them that prayer.