not make it any the less necessary to the future peace of the world that China should have a chance to work out her own salvation and that the Chinese liberals should be given all possible aid in making China a progressive and peaceful democracy. Japan, however, should not be lightly condemned nor should her legitimate claims to industrial and commercial expansion be ignored. The situation which confronts her is not an enviable one. A rapidly growing population on islands where arable lands are limited, coal deposits are poor, and iron ore is almost nonexistent presents a problem which may well give sober statesmen sleepless nights. Add to this the prejudice which closes against this people most of the unoccupied sections of the world and which is jealous of the one remaining open door-that to the neighboring continent—and the nation's plight becomes little short of desperate. The very life of Japan depends upon her ability to maintain free access to the raw materials and markets of China and the east of Asia. Her future is linked up inseparably with that of her huge neighbor, and it is simply common justice to see that no artificial obstacles shall be erected between her and the mainland. There are, however, two ways in which Japan's interests on the continent can be secured: political domination and peaceful commercial penetration. The first of these would lead her to continue in the road which she is now traveling. It would aim at a more or less complete control of Chinese finances, both public and private, exclusive concessions for the building of railways, the development of mines, and the erection of factories. It would be accompanied by preferential tariff rates, the control of the customs service, the predominance of Japanese "advisers," the mastery of important industrial and commercial concerns, and the direction of the army and navy. This programme is that of many Japanese, for they learned their diplomacy from the predatory policies of certain European governments in the last half of the nineteenth century. Japan's ancient feudal system prepared her for bureaucratic militarism. Japan's military class can count on the support of a large body of unintelligent but intensely chauvinistic public opinion.. This policy of ruthless domination would, however, mean sorrow for China, turmoil for the world, and ultimate disaster for Japan. It would stamp out the fine beginnings of democratic life which are even now apparent in the new Republic, and by example and necessity would force upon her a military organization. The Western world would scarcely be content to stand by and watch the absorption and exclusive exploitation of a fourth of the human race. Japan would in time have to face the bitter animosity of the Chinese and the armed opposition of much of Christendom. In that case, her one hope of avoiding utter defeat and permanent ruin would be dissensions among Occidental Powers. Japan's other hope of growth is the peaceful commercial penetration of eastern Asia. In this she has many natural advantages. Geographical proximity and kinship in culture give her an opportunity which far surpasses that of Occidental nations. Could she be sure that China would be friendly, that China would have a stable government, an expanding industry, and would be free from Western domination, she could also be sure of the lion's share of the commerce of that country and of business relations which would redound to the benefit of both peoples. This would be the ideal, for it would be based upon friendship and geographical proximity, and would release Japan from the crushing load of a big army and navy. This is the course which many of her statesmen have avowed a desire to pursue. It probably represents in the main the programme of the soberer and more peaceful elements of the nation, and it is certainly the road which the nation must follow if it is to avoid the fate of Germany. If, however, this, and not the road of force, is to be traveled, a number of things must be done, some of them by Japan, some by China, and some by the rest of the world. In the first place, the Japanese must win the confidence and friendship of the Chinese. That they have not succeeded in doing. They have so far been confronted by the almost unanimous distrust and hate of their neighbors-an attitude which augurs ill for the future. Some sort of radical change must be wrought in Japan's foreign policy, one which will carry much further the attitude of conciliation represented in the withdrawal of the fifth group of demands in 1915. A necessary preliminary step would seem to be the voluntary return of Tsingtao to China, the cancellation of part or all of the concessions wrung from her in 1915, the strict repression of Japanese purveyors of morphine and all other predatory traders, and a hearty willingness to co-operate with the Powers in any joint attempt to rehabilitate China. In the second place, China must establish as soon as possible a stable government which will insure her ability to maintain her independence against foreign aggres sion and her steady industrial and commercial progress. This many of her younger and abler leaders seem inclined to do, and if given time and wise assistance they will probably succeed. In the third place, the Powers must as rapidly as possible give up their spheres of influence and their special territorial, financial, and railway concessions. They must substitute for rivalry international co-operation and assistance to China until the progressive and more stable elements of that nation can get on their feet. With the enforced withdrawal of Germany and the collapse of Russia, this ought not to be the impossible task that it seemed six years ago. The proposal, made in several quarters, for an international financial group to provide and supervise the administration of such loans as China needs would seem to be very timely. This would simply be an expansion of the Knox idea of internationalizing the Manchurian railways and of the five-Power syndicate of 1912. Such an international body could supply China with what funds she needs, prevent special sinister interests and spheres of influence from developing, and provide the supervision and pressure which may be necessary to assist the better elements of the great Republic. The plan could not be realized without some friction, and it would necessitate the faithful adherence by the Powers to a self-denying ordinance. It would, moreover, be extremely distasteful to many patriotic Chinese, but it would be better than continued anarchy and possible partiti.. In the achievement of such a constructive programme the United States must take a large part. She is the best source of the capital which China needs, and she has the confidence of the Chinese and a record for unselfish dealing which is, with a few exceptions, enviable. She has stood sponsor for the open-door policy and for most of the proposals for insuring China the opportunity to work out her own salvation. Through schools, churches, and hospitals American missionaries are helping to prepare leaders and pave the way for a more wholesome democratic national life. If we are to play the part to which our past history and our present opportunities call us, however, we must be careful that there is no ground justly to suspect us of desiring what we profess the wish to keep others from doing. We must be sure that we ask for no special concessions in China and that special interests do not lead us to become simply another of the groups that are jockeying for advantage. Our merchants and investors have the right to some sort of assistance, but it should be only that which is directed to assuring for all Powers the advantages which we seek for ourselves. We must, finally, be patient and forbearing in our relations with Japan. We must appreciate to the full the situation in which that plucky nation finds herself, and, while we should countenance no acts of aggression, we must seek to understand her, to be free from the faults of which we accuse her, and by firmness, moderation, courtesy, and fair dealing help to insure conditions which will make possible the victory of her moderates and liberals. A FRIEND OF THE BOYS A a BOUT a year ago The Outlook published three true stories of boy life, written, as we said at the time, by man who really cares," one who "knows the boy mind, the boy heart, and the boy language." This man was Arthur D. Chandler, whose death took place on April 19 last. The stories were the outcome of a friendly, unconventional effort to help boys to shake off the effect of wrong surroundings and the lack of an opportunity to live a wholesome, normal life. The idea was exactly in line with Arthur Chandler's character and personality. He combined the practical and the ideal in all he did and said. There was no particle of cant in him, no trace of the professional reformer. As a young man, he was an athlete, he always loved outdoors and outdoor sport, he talked unstilted, plain English with a dash of slang, he instinctively knew how boys felt and how they could be approached. When as a result of local school board work he became a trustee of the Jamesburg Home for Boys, an opportunity ored to him to humanize the relations between the officials and the boys. Like Judge Lindsey in Denver he found that the way to improve delinquent boys was to trust them. One who knew what he accomplished says rightly that this was "work requiring great delicacy in handling, keen insight, common sense, and human sympathy.' Mr. Chandler soon became impressed with the belief that between the period of detention and the return of the boy to ordinary life there should be a "clearinghouse" for boys who were in danger because they had no homes. His farm for boys at Allaire, in New Jersey, was the outcome of this thought. The stories published under the head "Boy Culture and Agriculture" showed convincingly how easily and thoroughly the boys responded to the effort. In a letter about Arthur Chandler written by Mr. C. G. Kidder to the New York "Evening Post" since his death Mr. Kidder says: "Only the other day two of these lads just released from military service, homeless, made straight for the 'farm.' Arriving, they found the master absent, in his last illness, and the farm closed. The boys sat down upon a fence-rail and cried." Arthur Chandler had a long and useful business career; as advertising and business manager of The Outlook twenty-five years ago, in an important position with Harper & Brothers for many years, and in other work with periodicals and publishing houses he built up a high reputa tion for efficiency and integrity. But we venture to say that he took more pleasure in his attempt "to make rightness tempting and interesting" to boys, as he phrased it, and more pride in seeing them become, one after another, "self-respect ing, self-supporting, useful men and good citizens instead of dangerous crooks,' than in anything else he did in his active and energetic career. AMERICA'S FOREIGN TRADE in Paris not many weeks MEMBER of the staff of The Outlook in Paris not many weeks ago encountered by chance in a restaurant a fellow-American, a business man, representing manufacturers of farm machinery. This is the story told to this casual acquaintance. Like many other Ameriacquaintance. Like many other Americans engaged in commerce, the American business man was something of an idealist. He felt that it was America's duty to help put France upon her feet. He saw that France had been fighting America's battles for months before America took her own part, and now that the war had been won, leaving France terribly shattered and America more vigorous than ever, there was a moral obligation on the part of American business men to see France resuscitated. For his part, he wanted to see what he could do to start up French agriculture. There is a great deal of American farm machinery in France; a great deal of it is useless because parts are missing or broken. So this man undertook to bring over to France these missing parts so that the farmers could use their machinery again to start making crops. The money in it for his concern was very little. Indeed, there was no intention to make any profit on the transaction. But when this man undertook to bring these missing parts into France he encountered obstacles. He could not get an import permit. The reason given was twofold: first, the French Government was looking to the rehabilitation of French industry as well. as French agriculture, and therefore wanted agricultural machinery to be made in France; second, the French Government wanted to prevent any further increase of the so-called balance of trade against her, and therefore wished to discourage imports until France could get ready to export goods in exchange. In that incident are involved some of the most vital factors in the problem of America's foreign trade following the war. There is that factor of American idealism which is quite as powerful an incentive as desire for profit. There is, too, the factor desire for profit. There is, too, the factor of French thrift, which is not purely French by any means, and which at times is penny wise, pound foolish. There is the factor of a world finance that is out of balance. There is the factor of America's economic strength as at once a resource from which other countries can draw, and a danger to the economic independence of those same countries. And there is, finally, the ever-present and unfailing factor of the human element. The presence of these varying factors makes the problem of America's foreign trade at this time peculiarly difficult and complex; at the same time the war has made that problem one which concerns every part of America. For this reason, two great conventions, one largely, the other wholly, devoted to this problem, recently held in the Middle West, both representing interests Nation-wide in extent, are of special significance. One of these was the sixth National Foreign Trade Convention, held in Chicago April 24-26; the other was the seventh Annual Meeting of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States, held in St. Louis April 28 to May 1. The Chamber of Commerce of the United States comprises in its membership more than a thousand Chambers of Commerce and trade organizations; while the Foreign Trade Convention gathered together two thousand delegates, consisting of corporation officers, managers, experts on foreign trade, bankers, and other representatives of the great industrial and commercial concerns engaged or interested in foreign trade. The emphasis which Mr. George Ed. Smith, President of the American Manufacturers' Export Association and Chairman of the Foreign Trade sessions at the St. Louis Convention, laid upon the opportunity before American industries to heal the economic ravages of the war was characteristic of the attitude of the men considering these foreign trade problems at both Conventions. And not less characteristic was the willingness of these men to see that American industrial expansion through foreign trade must be directed consciously with a view, not merely to the interests of America, but also to the interests of other countries. "At this particular moment in world affairs," said Mr. Smith, "with the nations of the world endeavoring to repair the ravages of war and with the old landmarks of international commerce tottering, it would be the height of folly for us to develop our foreign trade without regard to the necessities of other countries. ... We have a responsibility, not only to Europe, but to the whole world.... The fact that the proper discharge of this responsibility is also good business does not alter the responsibility in any respect." Similarly, the report of the General Convention Committee of the National Foreign Trade Council which called the meeting at Chicago included this statement: "The United States has become a creditor instead of a debtor Nation. Nations which are our debtors will endeavor to curtail their purchases of finished products from us and to enlarge their sales to us. They must meet their obligations by finding a market for their products. At the same time their competition with us in neutral markets naturally will be extended. The restrictions now imposed on American imports into the markets of our European associates in the war seriously impede the free flow of our commerce; but in so far as they are the outgrowth of a policy of safeguarding home industry and conservation of financial resources depleted by the heavy load of war liabilities, adverse criticism would seem unwarranted so long as such restrictions are not discriminatory." It is a good augury for the future of our foreign trade that at the very time when America is in the position of the greatest strength, and when her opportunity for service to commerce has become enormously enlarged, the men who are in position of responsibility in business and commerce and finance in this country, and by their joint action are capable of determining our foreign trade policy, should be guided by the spirit expressed in the words we have quoted. It is something more than mere sentiment, and very far from sentimentalism, that enables the practical American men of affairs to think of our foreign trade in terms of service. It is the highest kind of wisdom. The men who conceived of business as an orderly form of highway robbery, in which every man who made a profit got it at the expense of somebody else, are no longer in positions of influence, for the simple reason that the ideas which they held would ruin any country in these days as they have ruined Germany. That the only good bargain is a bargain that is good for both sides is a principle that has got to be recognized in our foreign trade. That nation will not A the only serve the world best, but secure its own prosperity most certainly, which in its policy considers, not merely its own interests, but the interests of other nations. Fortunately, our business men, and especially the men engaged in foreign trade, cially the men engaged in foreign trade, have had and are continuing to have especially intensive training in the art of especially intensive training in the art of considering the interests of other nations. What the United States has done for the maintenance of the world's food supply is. of itself an object lesson in that direction. And now, in the period of reconstruction, we should have to see, even if we were not willing to see, in the industrial unrest of Russia and Hungary and Germany and other parts of the world the danger that threatens our own land if we do not consider the interests of other nations. In view of these facts and of the necessary exercise of self-restraint and selfdenial in the midst of expansion, American ingenuity will be subjected to new tests. As the report of the Convention Committee of the Foreign Trade Council said, "These conditions and the keener competition in other markets must stimulate American enterprise to new activity and determination to find compensating outlets." It is to the study of this task that the sessions of the Foreign Trade Convention were mainly devoted, and its recommendations are worth recounting. That Convention, under the chairmanship of Mr. James A. Farrell, President of the United States Steel Corporation, urged the earliest possible completion of the Government's shipbuilding plan, the removal of restrictions on shipbuilding, and permission for the free construction of vessels for sale to foreign interests; the necessary revision of shipping, navigation, and other laws to equalize with competitors the cost of operating American vessels in foreign trade; the speedy transfer of the operation of American shipping from the Government to private concerns; the establishment of coal and fuel oil depots on foreign trading routes to make American shipping independent of foreign-owned facilities; in short, as to shipping, "American-built ships for American foreign trade;" the development of American facilities for telegraphic communication to foreign countries; the development of commercial aeronautics; the building of public airdromes to provide for the speedy delivery of plans, specifications, blue prints, and invoices from seaports to interior; the establishment of free zones at the principal American ports where products can be assembled, manufactured, and reshipped; the enactment of a bargaining tariff without waiting for a general revision of the tariff law; the extension of international parcel post; the proper representation of the United States in its diplomatic and consular services, and the proper compensation and housing of its representatives abroad ; the expansion of the commercial, attaché, and trade commissioner service; the same measure of governmental protection to legitimate American investments abroad as is given by our Government to foreign investments in the United States; the establishment of railway freight rates to the seaboard for export lower than domestic rates. Every consideration should lead America to foster the development of American foreign trade. The welfare of the American people, the resuscitation of countries suffering from the results of their own agonized resistance to German aggression, the reconstruction of international relationships, and the just demand of labor for a more equitable distribution of the necessities and comforts of life, will all be served by the proper and wise expansion of American foreign trade. There is not an American who should be indifferent to it, and there is not an American who cannot in some measure help to promote it, and to see that the spirit which the leaders of American foreign trade have shown permeates the whole body of American opinion. WHEN THE COLORS CAME DOWN BUGLE call sounded over the de serted parade and the little group about the flagstaff came to attention. The hour had arrived for the closing of camp. For weeks the gangs of workmen had been busy with the task of wrecking the barracks. For an equal number of weeks the diminished garrison had been equally busy counting and packing and shipping equipment, sorting and filing and shipping records. Now the work was at an end and the hour for departure had come. The adjutant read the order of the day officially closing the camp. The C. O. made a brief speech thanking officers and men for the devotion they had shown during the long weeks of demobilization and wishing them good slow, reverential way in which the color- play the National anthem, as in the days 66 Retreat had ever been for him the mystical, beautiful ceremony-the khaki- "And the Star-Spangled Banner in triumph shall wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave." And the lines had come as the months passed to be for him the voice of the heart of that America that was ready to dare all things to make them true. And this day as he watched "Retreat" for the last time he felt sure that, in spite of all its" war-weariness," America had not America had not forgotten those great hours and would yet lead the world toward the realization of its dream. It does not take a flag long to fall. But thoughts are swifter than falling bunting. And thoughts came thronging swiftly in those brief moments, thoughts and memories. Memories of the stirring days when those first companies came to the raw new camp, and when as raw and unfinished as the camp were the men who crowded it. College men most of them, eager for the quick service they had been promised in the driving of their "flivver" ambulances right up to the front and back again. They had had their service, and we had not been ashamed of them. If decorations count as proofs and tokens, they had probably won more glory than any other equal body of American soldiers. Their daring-so they say who know-astonished even those poilus with whom daring had often become the last and most effective weapon. There, under Those colors that were falling now had But these men who stood now at atten gone tion, who had never marched away, did they not have a share in that glory? They had not stayed here because they wanted so to do. But their staying had made possible the things those others who had had done. It called for courage to drive an ambulance under the guns. But it also called for courage to stay where your orders put you on a humdrum garrison task while fools prattled about shell-proof jobs and lovely ladies grew scornful. Some time, the Y man felt sure as he looked for the last time on those serious faces, when America had grown less hectic, more capable of dispassioned sight, it will weave laurel crowns for these without filching one leaf from the brows of those who went across. The colors have reached the ground at last. Again the bugle sounds. This time it is "Taps," not for a dead soldier, but for a dead camp. And when the last echo dies away there is a sharp word of command and we too go out of the big gate. WILLIAM E. BROOKS Camp Crane, Allentown, Pennsylvania. THE BREAK-UP OF BY GREGORY MASON STAFF CORRESPONDENT OF THE OUTLOOK OU an aren't you? "YWare an America though, then. YOU No, we do not want to look at your baggage—you are an American." This was from an Italian officer in charge of the station at Loitsch, on the frontier between Italy and the new Jugoslav state. It is the same all through Europe. "I am an American " is an open sesame everywhere, often rendering a passport superfluous. There was an American sailor with me from one of Mr. Hoover's freight steamers which had brought a load of food to Trieste for the Czechoslovaks. He was heading for a little town in Hungary where he had a Hungarian grandmother whom he had never seen. His only paper of credentials was shore leave from the skipper of his ship. But even that was unnecessary. In his American uniform he could have walked through Europe and been sure of finding everywhere a welcome and the best hospitality the inhabitants could offer. Involuntarily I stayed a day at Loitsch, which the Italians call Longatico. An Italian officer who courteously offered me his bed for the four-hour wait before the departure of my train himself fell asleep when that time came, and so I missed the train. But Longatico was worth seeing. The Italians claim the right to annex it, although it is overwhelmingly Slovenic in population. All the signs on all the stores are in Slovene, which looks a good deal like Russian spelled with the Roman alphabet. Many common words are the same in both languages, as narod (people) and vhod (entrance). I fell in with a Czechoslovak courier, and found that the few Russian words I remembered were understood by him as well as by the inhabitants of Loitsch. Indeed, the Jugoslavs and the Czechoslovaks have little difficulty in understanding one another. The Slovenes seem to be easy-going people, comfortable, and not troubled by much imagination. Most of them are farmers. They are inclined to be stockily built, and all have fine complexions. Their country looks a good deal like the more rural parts of Connecticut-rolling pasture land sprinkled with rocks and a good deal of small timber. And the Slovenes themselves in appearance and temperament suggest the Swedes who have settled in such parts of Connecticut. They are an extremely patient people. I saw a farmer who was driving a yoke of oxen wait for half an hour at a railway crossing while a little switching engine shunted cars up and down. He never lost his patience; his oxen chewed their cuds and he chewed his. The adoration of all things American is as high among the Slovenes as anywhere in Europe. The new Jugoslav state, which is composed of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, has taken for its colors red, white, and blue. A photograph of President Wilson was in every other shop window, and supposedly American drinks and forms of nourishment are eagerly advertised even by the little hotels in such rustic towns as this one. The Slovenes are good farmers, and they seem to be comparatively well off for food. At Loitsch for breakfast I got two boiled eggs, two cups of coffee, and plenty of bread and white butter, for five crowns (the crown is worth less than a quarter of its pre-war value, which was about 20 cents). For lunch I got a good thick soup, roast pork, potatoes, sauerkraut, red beans, preserved berries, and real coffee, for nineteen crowns. Of course these prices are high compared to the prewar standard, but they are cheap compared to prices in Austria or in Germany. The Czechoslovak courier was on the way to Vienna with a train-load of Austrian seamen, naval officers, and their wives and children from Pola, and he offered me a lift. These people and all their household effects were packed into freight cars of the small European type. In some cars there were as many as twenty men, women, and children, in addition to a great deal of baggage in the shape of boxes and barrels. One of this party was an admiral and a naval architect, who had been building ships for Austria for thirtyfive years. In fact, he claimed to be the first naval architect Austria ever had. The Czechoslovak courier had also been an Austrian naval architect, with the rank of captain. A few weeks before he had been taking orders from the admiral as the latter's subordinate and countryman. Now he was an official of one of the triumphant Allied nations and the admiral was traveling in a freight car like a hobo, a mere refugee in the other's protection. But the two were good friends. I was stepping aboard this train when a voice said, peremptorily, "Where are you from-New York, Chicago, San Francisco, or Bridgeport?" The voice belonged to a rather disrepu table-looking Italian private. He had lived in America, which accounted for his blunt method of accosting me. Four or five other privates came along who had also lived in America, and they exhibited the same delightful directness of conversational manner. "Where are you going?" "What is your business?" "Been long away from the States?" and such questions they fired at me. In the khaki camouflage of a war correspondent, to their undiscriminating eyes, I was an officer, but their manner toward their own officers was almost equally blunt and devoid of the polite deference shown by the ordinary run of Italian soldiers. America, how great is thy democracy! Once tasted, it is never forgotten. These men wanted to know what I thought about the League of Nations. Every one about this station or on this train seemed to be talking about the League of Nations, and particularly about its bearing on boundary questions affecting the Austrians, Jugoslavs, and Italians. The Jugoslavs and the Austrians all seem to be believers in the League, but a few of the Italians were skeptics. They were hotly attacked by a man who held quite a high position in the administration of the Italian railways. This man was born in Trieste of Slavic parents, but he refused to admit his Slav blood, calling himself "a Triestina." The Italians who were not born in Trieste noticeably make a point of declaring that they are not "Triestinas" if you ask them about their lineage. The hills began rolling into bigger hills after we left Loitsch. When we reached the first town in Jugoslavia, we found the station decorated with evergreens and the red, white, and blue flags of the new nations. Promptly the Jugoslavs with us decorated our train with the same color scheme. The country was getting better and better, the mountains growing and the valleys widening. Later, however, the mountains fell back and we rolled down a broad plain into Laibach, a big city populated mainly by Slovenes. Jugoslav officers filled the town, in uniforms like the Serbian. There is a distinct Oriental touch about Laibach -as much of it as there is about some towns in western Russia. There was enough food in the town apparently, but nothing to spare. As my journey progressed to the northeast food was becoming scarcer and scarcer. I got a dinner of calves' brains, spinach, rice, apple sauce, two slices of bread, and a glass of beer for twentythree crowns. According to the pre-war value of the crown, that would mean about four dollars and a half, but at the price at which I had purchased crowns it meant little more than a dollar. Austrian money is in use in Jugoslavia, but it is not accepted unless it has been stamped by the Jugoslav Government. On the other hand, money which has been so stamped will not pass in Austria. I got aboard the train for Vienna about midnight, sharing a compartment with a Jugoslav officer. He began at length to tell me why he admired America above all other countries; "so rich, so generous, so unselfish, so brave, especially so honest!" 66 That is it" especially so honest." It is finding that feeling about America all through Europe which makes an American tremble lest his country cannot live up to the almost superhuman reputation that she has now among these people. And it is finding this feeling, that we are so generous, so unselfish," that must make an American living abroad gnash his teeth when he reads of the efforts a backward-looking little group of Senators are making to have us live aloof, for ourselves alone. But "especially so honest." That is the fact which President Wilson called, in Boston," the most wonderful fact in history "that "there is no nation in Europe that suspects the motive of the United States." (And, thanks mainly to President Wilson for that fact, say I, if I may be permitted this personal digression as an American who has lived all over the world except in America during the past two years, and who is disgusted with the petty criticism of President Wilson at home at a time when he is acclaimed throughout the rest of the world as the greatest statesman of this age.) The Jugoslav captain wound up his laudation of my country with the remark that "America has become very great because she won the war." 66 Every one out of the train with his baggage for inspection," shouted a train official in German, sticking his head into our compartment. The Jugoslav officer went out with his musette. I did not move. The official came back again and shouted at me, "Every one must get out for the customs examination." I looked at him severely and said, attempting a tone like a judge pronouncing sentence: "Oh, all right," answered the official in a softer voice. "Stay right where you are, sir. Your baggage is exempt from examination." "I He lingered to converse with me. have a brother who is living in Chicago,' said he. "He says Chicago is greater as Berlin or Vienna. Your country is very rich. We hope you will send us bread. Your President is a wonderful man. He is bigger as any European statesman. I worked in London once. I learned English there. The English are fine people. Germany was crazy to risk a war with England and America. My brother voted against Wilson at the last election. He must have been a fool." I fell asleep and dreamed a silly dream. I dreamed I saw Uncle Sam sitting on a mountain of white bread shaped like Fujiyama (not a comfortable seat). Around the base of the mountain were people of all the nationalities in Europe. Some were begging Uncle Sam to throw down boulders of bread, others were surreptitiously hacking at the foot of the mountain with pickaxes and bread-knives. When I awoke, it was nine o'clock. The Jugoslav had gone, and there were four women in the compartment. There was something harsh in their voices and features, something dowdy in their appearance, often characteristic of Teutonic women. One of them, as soon as she saw I was awake, addressed me thus: "Excuse me sir, but I see you are an American. When is America going to send us food? Our people are dying by the thousand. And are you going to let these Jugoslavs steal land from us as they please? We have always thought you Americans were a just people, but it is not justice to let these Jugoslavs and Czechoslovaks trample on us now that we are down." "You had your turn trampling on them, didn't you?" "That is not so. Of course our old Imperial Government made some mistakes, but we Austrian people had nothing to do with that." "You didn't do much to stop it, or to stop your old Government from bullying any small nation it chose to bully." "We didn't want to bully any one. But if all Americans think like afraid there will be another war. you, "Haven't you had enough war?" 66 I'm Oh, I don't mean a war against America. We have nothing against America. I mean a war against these horrible Jugoslavs. If you let them take our land, land in which our Austrian and German people are living, we will fight them to the last man-yes, to the last woman." O America, must you referee all the world's squabbles? The world seems to expect that; and if your decisions be not made with the wisdom of Solomon, this great popularity you have to-day will fade like the color in autumn leaves. The feeling between the Jugoslavs and the Austrians is very bitter on both sides. With their six million Serbs, five million Croats, and one and a half million Slovenes, the Jugoslavs now outnumber the German Austrians. Of the latter there are only about ten million in all, and the Austrians say that only about six and a half million of these will be within autonomous Austria if the present boundaries of Czechoslovakia and Jugoslavia are. allowed to stand. To the Austrians the loss of their trade with the Jugoslavs is hard to bear. "What will be the future of Vienna?" I wondered, as our train ran down the plain toward the Danube, where the snow was going, and where the melting of agriculture into industry showed that we were approaching a great city. Vienna has had its day. Any Austrian will tell you that. A city of more than two million inhabitants it cannot hope to remain. As the capital of the German Austrians alone it would deserve no more than about half a million residents. The Austrians are trying to preserve as much of its former glory as they can by urging that it be made the second capital in the new nation to be composed of all the Teutons. But as the second capital of the Teutons on their eastern frontier it can never hope for the splendor it knew as the center of the vast Austro-Hungarian Empire. Vienna is doomed. Who will |