LORD BIRKENHEAD AND IDEALISM

Evening Post, Volume CVI, Issue 116, 13 November 1923, Page 8

LORD BIRKENHEAD AND IDEALISM

TO TBI EDITOS.

Sir, —In support of your leader of Saturday under this heading, may I suggest that the only truth in Lord Birkenhead's statement that "from the dawn of time man has been a combative animal" is that for all time man has desired to enjoy the good things of life; and has been prepared to fight for them. It is, however, obvious that if men were always fighting there would be none of the good things of lifo for anyone. Thus the only practical question that arises is, "When is it advisable for men to fight?" The"obyious answer is, when they can get more of the good things of life ,by fighting than they can by other means.

To-day a substantial, part of humanity seems to have realised what the Gospels teach—that human combination for the development of life gives a better and more permanent return in good things than fighting. It is trying to secure agreement among all nations to join in developing life on this basis, and the League of Nations has been set up for this purpose. Lord Birkenhead contends that men will not respect the League because it has no fighting power, and it is, of course, true that it cannot be fully productive until the general body of the peoples who belong to it are so convinced of the value of combination in international enterprise that they can rely upon one another to fight for it.

Lord Birkenhead's main error, however; is the common one that a movement such as tho League i 3 "idealistic." He suggests that the teaching of tho Go6pel Record is impracticable idealism, whereas the plain purpose of that teaching, in its literal and obvious meaning, is to tell us what life (i.e., Nature) is in reality, and how it is governed, leaving us free to choose as our ideal either, war upon life or harmonious combination in its development, and tako the consequences of our choice. Tho Gospejs teach that the good things of life are only built up by harmonious combination, and they insist just as strongly upon the need for the destruction by force of the enemies of constructive enterprise in life as upon forbearance with those who are or can be made useful in its development, ijord Birkenhead has mistakenly applied the advicel to "turn th© other cheek" to one s treatment of the enemies of productive enterprise, whereas it plainly applies on'y «> one's attitude to its friends. ■the function of the League is to bring nations into mutual forbearance in the development of life so that all may have a wider enjoyment, and if it makes any advancement at all in its purpose it will add to th© constructive power of the world. As you say, however, "To shape its course aright it needs just as much common-sense and' practical judgment as any business concern," and its permanent success needs also that it must have behind it the power of destroying its enemies by force that both experience and the Gospol record tell us is exercised by the Ruler of Life i» His control of the Kingdom of Nature.—l am, etc.,

F. G. DALZIELL.