like the Liberal and the Conservative Parties themselves, has both its pacifist and its jingo extremists) is upraided and denounced (in spite of its repeated and invariable decisions resolutely to maintain the war), as being "defeatist" and pacifist. Absurd lists of notorious pacifists, conscientious objectors and persons convicted of offenses against the Defense of the Realm Act are circulated as being those of the Labor Party candidates; and these are reproduced, without investigation, by newspapers like the Morning Post. Your readers may take it that these lists are ludicrous in their inaccuracy. One half, or sometimes even three-quarters of the names given (and these the most notorious) are those of persons who are not, and have never been Labor candidates. But the denunciations and insinuations will go on for the next three months; and the whole whirlwind and tornado that Mr. Lloyd George will rouse, by his speeches, and through the newspapers backing his campaign, will have its effect on a large proportion of the twenty million electors.

The result is admittedly more unpredictable than that of any previous election. We may all concur in estimating that Ireland, as usual, will go against the government by four to one in seats. Of the six hundred seats in Great Britain, Mr. Lloyd George's Coalition Party may probably secure seven-twelfths, or 350. The balance will be divided between the followers of Mr. Asquith and those of Mr. Henderson; and no one is prepared to predict with any confidence which of these minorities will be the greater. For my own part, I should think the Labor Party will have done well if, contesting only two-thirds of the seats in Great Britain, it polls a quarter of the aggregate vote; and if its present 35 members return to the House of Commons a hundred strong. But, in spite of all Mr. Lloyd George's political strategy and press tornado, there may possibly be a landslide to the left; and unless Mr. Asquith's Liberal Party promptly makes up its mind to take up energetically at the Election the part of "His Majesty's Opposition," the landslide will carry forward not the Liberal but the Labor forces. But it is important to realize that, whatever may be the electoral outcome, the decision of the vast majority of the nation resolutely to maintain the war will be the same. Substantially, the official programmes of all three parties on this point will be identical. Mr. Lloyd George, Mr. Asquith and Mr. Henderson-differing mainly in phraseology and in the proportion allowed to particular details-will alike declare that we must fight on for the aims laid down by President Wilson; and nevertheless neglect no honest overtures from the enemy. The Labor Party may dislike the manners, and also the blunders, of the members of the present ad

ministration; it thinks it could better their policy at this point or that; on their treatment of "Reconstruction," and domestic policy generally it is profoundly at issue with them; but it has no desire to weaken the national effort in the war.

F

SIDNEY WEBB.

Janus and the Modern
World

EW things in the world are more dangerous than the possession of a conscience. It leads one into moral abysses out of which an ascent is almost impossible. So at least Leonard Clarkson has found. He is a Harvard student in his senior year, and he has specialized in moral philosophy. He is a careful and studious youth, so zealous as a taker of notes that it is not untruthfully reported among his intimates that his instructors have been in the habit of buying his reports of their lectures at the end of the year: it is so much easier than to prepare a newly edited version of what they had to say. At first Clarkson had been in the habit of taking his notes in longhand, but he soon found that this led to the missing of important phrases, so he took a course in stenography and practised all the afternoons. It was this that led to his undoing; for unconscious pride in his new achievement led him to those lectures where the instructor spoke slowly and emphatically so that his notes were a literal transcription of what was said.

It was near mid-year that the event happened which seemed destined to mark an epoch in his life. He was attending Professor Hampton's course in ethics and the lecture turned on the relation of conscience to public opinion. Professor Hampton spoke eloquently about the dangers of instinct and urged his hearers to study carefully the logical background of every argument before a conclusion was formed. "I myself," he said in that impressively sententious way that has made him famous from Yale to California, " I myself always write down the arguments for and against any political thesis before I adopt it," and he went on to give examples, notably that of prohibition, in which the student could usefully attempt his methods.

Clarkson was enraptured with the idea, and he tried it, with good results, on several subjects that afternoon. He found, for instance, that it made him in favor of a fusion of Harvard and Radcliffe; for the only argument he could discover against it was the reduction it would cause in professional incomes, while in its favor there was the fact that the presence of the Radcliffe students would im

prove the Harvard dress and tone, and he knew himself how association with Barbara Beecham stimulated him to intellectual exertion. The method, then, was clearly successful. He had long wanted an opportunity to see more of Barbara, and now it was evident that reason had turned a personal sentiment into a logically held conviction.

It was that same evening that he saw the advertisement in the Boston Transcript which lured him to destruction. The Massachusetts Prohibition Association offered a prize of one hundred dollars for the best argument in favor of amending the constitution so as to prevent the nation from being drowned in drink; and the only conditions were that you should be a student in one of the universities of the state and agree to read your essay, if successful, to the annual August meeting of the Association. The prizes would be announced on July 4th so that Clarkson would have six weeks in which to write his essay. The idea stirred him at once, for though he was not a prohibitionist, the idea of temperance had always appealed to him, Barbara's father being a Methodist minister. And with one hundred dollars he could buy that motorcycle with the trailer about which Barbara had spoken only a week before. At least he would think it over and see if the essay was compatible with his work. He thought he could get it accepted as a thesis in social ethics.

The mid-year examinations almost drove the idea from his mind and it must be said, to his credit, that he only thought of it when he was with Barbara. The eleventh of February was his undoing. It was his twenty-first birthday; and some friends celebrated it quietly at the Adams House. On the wine-card he noticed a report of another essay competition, like the first limited to state college students and ending on July 4th. But this was offered by the Massachusetts Brewery Association and it wanted you to show how prohibition was an assault upon the free choice of the individual and some other things of the kind. The prize was two hundred dollars, and all that the successful candidate had to do was to read his essay to an audience of liberally-minded brewers at their annual meeting in August.

Clarkson did not think much of it at the time, though, as an instinctive examinee, he naturally put the card in his pocket. It was when he was tossing restlessly in bed that night that the great idea occurred to him. He would write both essays. It was an admirable opportunity of testing Professor Hampton's methods. Surely, after so careful a labor, backed by so inviting a stimulus, he would have a right to an opinion on prohibition. The second essay, properly entitled, and with the correct number of referenced footnotes, could be used as a

thesis in his course on constitutional law. He could not expect, of course, to win both prizes; but the chance of three hundred dollars ought not to be missed especially when it would really be work for his degree on the one hand, and, if he had any success, a certain way to Professor Hampton's favor on the other. He flushed with the joy of anticipation as he sleepily murmured the good news to the Professor and Barbara.

Morning brought no relaxation of enthusiasm, and he set to work with zest. First he brought a box and a large number of cards for references. Then he went to the Widener Library and noted down all the literature on prohibition. This took him several days; but Professor Goule, who lectured on American history, saw him at work in the library, and praised the bibliography, even asking for its loan when it was finished. Professor Goule was known to have the largest bibliographical collection in America and Clarkson not unnaturally felt a little elated. He told Barbara about it that afternoon; though, as her father had just been elected to the Prohibition Committee of the State, he thought it prudent to speak only of one essay.

For the next two months he was very busy, and the essays were completed within only two days of the closing date. He felt very proud of them when they came back from the typewriting office: they looked so neat, and there were so many footnotes that he must, at least, get one; and he felt that Professor Goule, on bibliography alone, would give him an A for the thesis in constitutional law. He does not know how he passed the time until July 4th, though now he wishes it had been three years instead of three months.

The results came on the proper day-one in the morning and one in the afternoon. He was spending the day with Barbara and her parents at Springfield when a telegram was brought to him from home. It announced that he had won the prize for the essay in favor of prohibition. You can imagine what joy there was in the Beecham household. He was wise enough to use the occasion to tell Barbara's father of his hopes in relation to her; nor were they unkindly received. The second telegram came in the middle of some tennis. He expected it to be simply congratulations and left it unopened until the end of the set. Then he took it up, Barbara peering over his shoulder. It said that the brewers had awarded him their prize and added that they were so impressed by the strength of the constitutional argument that they wished him to read the essay at their annual meeting on August 4th. Barbara happily did not read it carefully and took it to be from the Prohibitionists, adding that her father was taking the chair at the meeting and that Leonard would make it so nice

defiance of the Brest-Litovsk treaty, a territory whose wealth Germany coveted, sent continuously to the western front officers, men, small units; companies, battalions or batteries. They expect to receive Austro-German prisoners of war in exchange, or local police troops now being organized. If the enemy, therefore, is left free to apply this ingenious system, a number equal to about thirty divisions, if not the divisions themselves, may be transported to the western front between now and 1919. Thirty divisions represent approximately the results of American military efforts for one year. The enemy understands this fully. The opportunity thus presented for counterbalancing the American forces is too tempting to be neglected. It still remains to be seen whether, from now on, the Allies will allow Germany to play this really too simple game.

Confronted by a possible prolongation of the war, the German staff (which cannot be under the same illusions as its army) called on part of the class of 1920 in April and began organizing Ukrainian and Finnish armies in Russia, with the intention of at least more readily liberating the German forces in the east. Gradually, under German direction, a school for Ukrainian officers was opened at Bergsabern and one for Finnish officers at Fredrickshamm. The Austro-German prisoner organizations were developed to such an extent that they numbered 60 per cent of all the Bolshevik troops opposing the Czecho-Slovak or Russian detachments.

On the other hand, as far back as the first fortnight of April, the German staff realized from the force of our reaction that the morale of the Allies was in no way lessened, as had been hoped, by three months of strategic defensive. In the Berliner Tageblatt of June 18th von Ardenne himself acknowledges that the last French counter attacks were led "with passionate zeal and the spirit of sacrifice." And, evidently fearing lest the morale of the German army be affected by the excessive losses and by the poor food supply, he felt called upon to reassert that it " was neither weakened nor weary." "It was," said he, "superior strategic reasons which decided the German staff to temporarily suspend operations." This was an easy explanation which ill concealed the difficulties confronting the enemy command.

Merely the fact that the German staff postponed the attack for more than one month, in spite of the advantages which this lapse of time gave the Allies, daily reinforced by American troops, shows the straits they were in to find men.

While making every effort to complete its units, to fill its depots and to fortify its position in Russia, the German staff was preparing the plan for a new

offensive, aiming once more at an immediate termination of the war.

This preparation was followed by General Foch from day to day and the attack of July 15th was no surprise, either to the French army or to its commanders. The order of the day of General Gouraud to his army, a few days before the attack, confirms this statement.

One may question whether the powerful offensive of July 15th, which brought all the forces of the armies of the Crown Prince into play (about forty divisions were counted) represented the whole German plan. The direction chosen for the attack could only lead the Germans, even under the most favorable conditions, to the capture of Reims and the occupation of the Marne Valley, either towards Epernay or Châlons. They could not hope to bring about a decision of the war, even by capturing these objectives. If, however, the Allied command had been taken by surprise, the present offensive could greatly extend the base for a later attack on Paris.

For all the above reasons the German plan may be supposed to comprise two phases.

The first was without doubt intended to weaken the French army, which still remains a formidable adversary to Germany on account of its numerical strength, degree of preparation, moral energy and manœuvring qualities. For over four years it has never ceased to be the pivot of all combinations, whether it was a question of collaboration in the training of the Allied troops or coordination of their action in battle.

Once this result had been attained, and the French reserves were immobilized or exhausted, the German staff planned a second phase to destroy the British army, this being their first aim, or to renew the offensive on Paris from a more extended base of departure.

The future will show whether this was the plan. The Allies have already given it a severe check.

II. The Execution

The facts are already known through the calm and precise communiqués of the French staff.

On the morning of July 15th the forces of the Crown Prince, after a violent and brief artillery preparation, launched an attack along an eighty kilometer front on either side of Reims. The first objectives were Epernay and Châlons. Judging by orders found on prisoners they were to be reached within forty-eight hours!

But for some time General Foch had everything ready, not merely for resisting, but this time for a swift counter blow.

East of Reims, the French army of General Gouraud held its line of resistance energetically, without weakening, while southwest of Reims, the repeated efforts of the enemy resulted, at certain points, in an advance of four miles at the most. An immediate counter attack of the American and French troops on this side recaptured part of the lost ground and imperiled the enemy's situation, as the bridges it had thrown across the Marne were destroyed by French artillery. The losses were enormous. By the evening of the first day the impression was that the attack was a complete failure.

The impression was confirmed on the 16th and 17th of July, when all the enemy's attacks were shattered, his losses increasing constantly. The Germans, however, would not abandon their project and the battle raged fiercely.

III. The Counter Attack of the Allies

During the morning of the 18th, the fourth day of the great German offensive, the results gained by the enemy were practically nil. In Champagne, Gouraud's army had broken all German attacks and retained all its positions intact. Southwest of Reims, the enemy was everywhere held or even pushed back in his endeavors to advance by the two banks of the Marne.

Then suddenly the American and French troops went on the offensive.

Foch's counter attack was first launched along a thirty-five kilometer front, between the Aisne and the Marne, eastward. For the first time in an important attack one-third of the attacking troops were Americans. They were led by a commander whose energy is proverbial, General Mangin. The direction chosen, from the west eastward, was a total surprise to the enemy, threatened his lines of communication in the Château-Thierry salient, and reached the outskirts of Soissons, cutting off the only railroad which supplied the advance units on the Marne.

On the 20th this counter offensive extended to the Valley of the Marne, which the French troops crossed between Fossoy and Charteves and to the heights between Marne and Reims, where the English, French and Italians advanced.

The results were instantaneous.

To the left an important advance, which carried the French and Americans up the heights southwest of Reims, from which points they could sweep the enemy's lines of communications. The capture of numerous villages, 25,000 prisoners, 500 guns, all attest the rout of the enemy. The Germans fought desperately south of Soissons, in order to protect the retreat of the advanced troops on the Marne, but the Allies broke all their counter attacks.

At the same time, under pressure of the double

offensive from the west and the south, the enemy recrossed the Marne which the French and Americans passed by main force, reoccupying ChâteauThierry.

The exploitation of this splendid victory is not yet completed while these lines are being written. The enemy will no doubt be compelled to continue his retreating movement north of the Marne. On the other hand, the new divisions which are being sent to support the armies of the Crown Prince -over 42 divisions counted in the Reims-Soissons salient-may lead to a similar reinforcement of the Allied forces and develop the extent of the battle to an unforeseen degree. But, without attempting to foretell the future, let it suffice for us to call attention to the new character which victorious counter offensive has given the battle.

Instead of submitting to the enemy's will, General Foch impressed his will on them. The Germans were counter attacked from the second day and at the end of three days' unsuccessful and despairing efforts they were forced to the defensive and to yield along the entire front.

We have seen the magnitude of the German preparation. Never has such a powerfully organized offensive been so completely shattered. This fact should be borne in mind. Waged on the Marne and in the north this battle assumes a symbolic character. Some of its phases remind one of the form Foch gave the battle on his army front September 9th, 1914. It is the offensive-defensive battle as he had conceived it, when circumstances beyond his control obliged him to await the attack. One sees here the rapid and unexpected manœuvre which reaches the flanks and rear of the enemy compromised by his own advance. Till now the Commander-in-Chief of the Allied forces faced with this crushing responsibility in the midst of battle could only stem the tide of the enemy's advance after several days. He was hampered by the situation confronting him, by the great numerical superiority of the adversary, by the added one hundred kilometers of front which the French army was forced to maintain.

Today one feels that he was the master of the situation. Following his principles he prepared the counter blow. The means with which to effect it were found in the cooperation of the Allied forces and especially that of the American and French troops which was wonderfully effective, thanks to the superb military effort put forth in the United States. The close collaboration of the American and French staffs, the perfect accord with General Pershing, a commander whose mind and heart are equal to the greatest events, make any combinations possible and give the maximum amount of efficiency in the minimum amount of time.