France of the past, raises the flag which is torn by shot and shell, but which is yet held aloft by the valiant hand of her soldiers.

And, a few minutes ago, in that touching ceremony, touching as all those earnest and solemn ceremonies in which soldiers speak in plain and laconic language, but a language which comes from the depth of their hearts, when, in the name of the Fifth Regiment of St. Louis, one of your officers handed to Marshal Joffre the flag which he at once returned with a few earnest words, it seemed to me that I was witnessing a spectacle comparable to that which I witnessed on the soil of France. How often have we seen our generals hand over flags to our children? How often have we seen our children leave for the hell of the fighting line, their heads erect, their hearts full of a virile joy, for they knew that they were defending their fatherland. All of them, they kept their eyes fixed on the flag, on the flag which is the symbol of liberty and justice.

And, just as we were able to preserve the flag from any stain, just as our children would rather die where they stood than permit that sacred flag to fall to the ground, just as we realized that it was the soul of the fatherland that was being carried forward in the folds of the tricolor flag, in the same way because all people are one in that it is the soul of the American fatherland which shines radiant through the stars of the American flag, and Mr. Mayor was right when he said that already it is bringing us the promise of final victory. To-morrow that flag will be waved on the battle fields.

To-morrow it also will know the glory of conflict. Oh, it was never meant to sleep in peace in a hall, to be placed over a monument and to feel only the gentle breath of a pacific mind. Because it was the symbol of a free fatherland, it was meant to face the risks of the battle fields, and to return in glory, so that you may keep it in a temple high enough and sacred enough to pay back the homage which is due to it.

Au revoir, then, soldiers of the Fifth Regiment, sons of the American fatherland, you who to-morrow, clothed in warlike uniform, will bring on the battle field all the courage which you have shown for 140 years. Au revoir, soldiers of the American fatherland. Perhaps you will meet over there, across the Atlantic Ocean, the sons of the French fatherland, the sons of the Allies. All together you will march to the fight. And why will you march to the fight? Is it in order to rend others, is it to conquer territory, is it to wrench away robber hands, a province or a city? No, no. It is not thus we wage war; we wage war for justice, for universal democracy, for right, that autocracy may perish, that at last free men may draw free breath in the full enjoyment of peace and in the pursuit of their labors.

AMERICA OFFERS HER TROOPS

JOHN J. PERSHING

[General John Joseph Pershing (1860- ) was educated at West Point and has spent his life as an officer in the United States Army. He served in various Indian campaigns, in the Spanish-American War, and during the insurrection in the Philippines. In 1916 he commanded the expedition into Mexico against Villa, and was sent to France as head of the American Expeditionary Force in May, 1917. The following offer was made at the height of the German offensive which began in March, 1918, and marked the fusion of all the Allied armies into one command under the Supreme War Council and General Foch.]

PARIS, March 30, 1918. General Pershing visited General Foch, the new supreme commander of the allied forces, yesterday and placed all the men and resources of the United States at his disposal in the following words:

I come to say to you that the American people would hold it a great honor for our troops were they engaged in the present battle. I ask it of you, in my name and in that of the American people.

There is at this moment no other question than that of fighting. Infantry, artillery, aviation—all that we have are yours to dispose of them as you will. Others are coming which are as numerous as will be necessary. I have come to say to you that the American people would be proud to be engaged in the greatest battle in history.

in

THE DECISION TO MAKE WAR1

FRIEDRICH VON BERNHARDI

[General Friedrich von Bernhardi began to publish military books in 1889, when his "Cavalry in the Next War" appeared. In 1896 he published his most famous book, "Germany and the Next War," which went through several editions in the original and was translated into English 1911, in which year it had been revised by the author. The ideas which Bernhardi presents are largely taken from Treitschke, but the vigor and frankness of the disciple is even greater than that of the master. The present selection is part of Chapter II, entitled "The Duty to Make War," and in the light of subsequent events in Germany when war was actually determined upon displays the mental processes of the ruling class and the military leaders.]

Prince Bismarck repeatedly declared before the German Reichstag that no one should ever take upon himself the immense responsibility of intentionally bringing about a war. It could not, he said, be foreseen what unexpected events might occur, which altered the whole situation, and made a war, with its attendant dangers and horrors, superfluous. In his "Thoughts and Reminiscences" he expresses himself to this effect: "Even victorious wars can only be justified when they are forced upon a nation, and we cannot see the cards held by Providence so closely as to anticipate the historical development by personal calculation.” 2

We need not discuss whether Prince Bismarck wished this dictum to be regarded as a universally applicable principle, or whether he uttered it as a supplementary explanation of the peace policy which he carried out for so long. It is

1 From "Germany and the Next War," translated by Allen H. Powles. Authorized American Edition. Copyright, Longmans, Green & Co. Reprinted by permission.

2 "Gedanken und Erinnerungen," vol. ii., p. 93. [Author's note.]

difficult to gauge its true import. The notion of forcing a war upon a nation bears various interpretations. We must not think merely of external foes who compel us to fight. A war may seem to be forced upon a statesman by the state of home affairs, or by the pressure of the whole political situation.

Prince Bismarck did not, however, always act according to the strict letter of that speech; it is his special claim to greatness that at the decisive moment he did not lack the boldness to begin a war on his own initiative. The thought which he expresses in his later utterances cannot, in my opinion, be shown to be a universally applicable principle of political conduct. If we wish to regard it as such, we shall not only run counter to the ideas of our greatest German Prince, but we exclude from politics that independence of action which is the true motive force.

The greatness of true statesmanship consists in a knowledge of the natural trend of affairs, and in a just appreciation of the value of the controlling forces, which it uses and guides in its own interest. It does not shrink from the conflicts, which under the given conditions are unavoidable, but decides them resolutely by war when a favorable position affords prospect of a successful issue. In this way statescraft becomes the tool of Providence, which employs the human will to attain its ends. "Men make history," 1 as Bismarck's actions clearly show.

It may be, then, assumed as obvious that the great practical politician Bismarck did not wish that his words on the political application of war should be interpreted in the sense which has nowadays so frequently been attributed to them, in order to lend the authority of the great man to a weak cause. Only those conditions which can be ascertained and estimated should determine political action.

1 Treitschke, "Deutsche Geschichte," i, p. 28. [Author's note.]