A GREAT MAN

Manawatu Standard, Volume L, Issue 115, 11 April 1930, Page 11

A GREAT MAN

MASARYK as a pacifist. Masaryk, the president of Czechoslovakia, whose 80th birthday was on March 7, has been professor of philosophy at the Czech University, Prague, since 1882 (writes “Czech” in the Sydney Morning Herald). He showed his love of peace by his activities as teacher, writer and politician. By speech and by writing Professor Masaryk took his stand against pessimism in ethics, against materialism, against suicidal unbelief, against superstition and empty worship of God. Politics to him is a science and an art. Democracy is not only a political system to him, but also a moral one, and a moral one above all things. Over and over again he appeals to Havlicek’s “reasonable and honest” policy, which requires the improvement of head and heart; this is, evolution and by no means revolution. Nevertheless, in certain circumstances it is necessary to defend oneself with irorf 3Tnd blood. “We have got over the material evolution and the heroic period of wars—salvation is promised to us solely by the idea which our more remote forefathers have compassed by the reformation, and which our very awakeners have set up by their humanitarian ideal. Our policy will never be successful unless it is founded upon this Czech ideal, and consistently conveyed through it.” (Charles Havlicek.) Though Masaryk was an adversary of Marx’s historical materialism and his idea of class war, yet he respected his energetic endeavours on behalf of the weak. The social question is to Masaryk neither a mere question of the Labour Party nor a question of a single class ancl caste, but .a question of all: “The social question is a question of morality—immorality is a question of violence and active humanity. / In Austria Masaryk worked for the .agreement and the co-operation of nations and social classes; he worked for the international temperance movement; he worked for the emancipation of men and women, and insisted in the

Austrian Parliament on the introduction of education for peace (peace-day) into schools. After the outbreak of war Masaryk saw a great struggle in process. It was against German imperialism. It was German world supremacy at grips with modern democracy, which arrived to create a world organisation of independent nations. Regardless of success or failure, only because he defended the right, Masaryk, and with him the Czechoslovak nation, took his stand on the side of the Allied Powers. He proclaimed throughout the whole world that it was necessary to shatter Austria. She was the main support o'f Prussian militarism and the oppressor of the Slav nations. Independent States were to be established upon the ruins of Austria according to the principles of modern freedom and progress. And thus Masaryk carried a moral 1 maxim into the world war, and worked for liis small nation, worked for the realisation of universal, human interests. And he did not waver. He was himself an anti-militarist, jind in politics a disciple of Komenskv. He combined in his noble being the Hussite warrior Zizka and the Czech humanitarian Chelcicky. He declared at the Huss celebration in Geneva on July 6, 1915: “Our reformation is based upon the ideal of humanity, but defence is not violence: Therefore we shall defend ourselves against violence with iron arms in case of need.” As an old man of nearly 70 years, hut of heroic mind, lie made a sacrifice of his personal and domestic happiness to his opinion. Whilst his f amily wms persecuted by the Austrian authorities, he* himself for four years wandered from one nation to another, and carried on Komensky’s interrupted efforts. By his _ personality he brought over the Allied Powers, even President Woodrow Wilson, to the side of the independent Czecho-slovak-State. Finally, after 300 years of serfdom, by dint of the renowned corps of legionaries, lie restored “the Government of Affairs” into the hands of the Czech nation. On December 21, 1918, he returned, with a triumph never seen before to Prague as the deliverer, the chief of the young State, regenerated from the Sumava to the Tatra. His ideal was made real, and the Czechoslovak democracy helped to reconstruct Europe and to reorganise the wdiole world.