Pacifist Enemies of Peace

Hokitika Guardian, 11 August 1921, Page 1

Pacifist Enemies of Peace

LONDON, June 16 The Dean of St Paul’s, speaking at the Guildhall celebration of the centenary of Peace Society, said : “The principle of the Peace Society is that the ethics of the New Testament were meant to be acted upon, and that they can lie acted upon. Practical men have always said this is absurd. Well, these practical men have had their innings, and what have they done? The war was made, as we believe, by monarchists and militarists in Central Europe and in Russia. Those monarchists and militarists have committed suicide by going to war. The war .was started by Imperialists; now no nation, wants new territory except for tho purpose of keeping one of her Allies out of it. The war was approved,by the propertied classes, and those classes have been ruined by it, We were told in 1914 that if we did not intervene we should hi*- left without a single friend in the world. Perhaps that was so. But I have lieen told lately by two well-informed persons that at present there is only one country in the world in which we are not cordially disliked. That country is Germany. It was whispered by some that although ve were not fighting for trade yet still Germ,any was a troublesome competitor. So she was, and so she will he. But when your severest competitor and your l>ost customer happen to have same head it- is not a good policy to cut that head off- H* was predicted that the war would he a splendid moral tome, and would bring all the people' together. In spite of that T fear our verdict must he ‘The wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. The war has not brought the conn ry ,00-ether. One doctrine alone has stood tho test —that we ought to be more afraid of wronging than of being wronwed. The colossal stupidity ol a policy directed by men who were certainly not at all stupid should make us think earnestly about how this strange thing can ho. There are no worse enemies”of peace than those pacifists who have not the love of peace m then hearts, and who only went to put an end to international war in order o clear the ground for another, and even more terrible kind of war.’ j