THE QUIET FORCE

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 59, Issue 4222, 11 December 1939, Page 3

THE QUIET FORCE

ULTIMATELY PREVAIL. >■ “I would remind you that physical force, armed might, though its immediate success may seem overwhelming, does not achieve lasting triumphs. It is the spirit of a nation, shown in its unity and moral strength, that ultimately prevails. History again and again has emphasized this fact. When the Spaniards held the Netherlands, it seemed as if Dutch hopes of freedom were mere foolishness. Yet, though Alva’s name remains a byword, the Netherlands have maintained their freedom for three and a half centuries. When Louis XIV ruled France, it seemed as if his centralised despotism were

I desp’sed to be an everlasting I tyranny. The French Revolution ©wept away all but its memory. Napoleon wjth his armies, so long- invincible, was but an episode. France remains al free democracy. I will not adduce other illustrations. It suffices to say that the spirit of a united people resolute to be free is, in the long run, indomitable. As a rule that spirit succeeds, not by spectacular military victories, but by •persistent determination. Tyrants tire of their tyranny. As Inge has well said: ‘The ruling race rules itself out: nothing fails like success/ We tend to forget the power of the spirit of man because it works quietly and slowly.” —The Bishop of Birmingham.