ble to stand up
high enough to see over the rim of things. In the light of what has
happened, our little grabbing ways, our insane desires to grow rich and
stop work, have some way lost their glamour. Belgium has set a pace
for us, has shown us a glimpse of heroic sacrifice which makes us feel
very humble and very small, and we have suddenly stumbled on the great
truth that it is not all of life to live, that is, draw your breath or
even draw your salary; that to get money and dress your family up like
Christmas trees, and own three cars, may not be adding a very heavy
contribution to human welfare; that houses and lands and stocks and
shares may be very poor things to tie up to after all.

An Englishman who visited Western Canada a few years ago, when
everybody had money, wrote letters to one of the London papers about
us. Commenting on our worldliness, he said: "The people of Western
Canada have only one idea of hell, and that is buying the wrong lots!"

But already there has come a change in the complexion of our mind. The
last eight months have taught us many things. We, too, have had our
share in the sacrifice, as the casualty lists in every paper show. We
have seen our brave lads go out from us in health and hope, amid music
and cheers, and already we know that some of them will not come back.
"Killed in action," "died of wounds," "missing," say the brief
despatches, which tell us that we have made our investment of blood.
The investment thus made has paid a dividend already, in an altered
thought, a chastened spirit, a recast of our table of values. "Without
the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sin" always seemed a
harsh and terrible utterance, but we know now its truth; and already we
know the part of our sin of worldliness has been remitted, for we have
turned away from it. We acknowledge in sorrow that we have followed
strange gods, and worshiped at the worldly altar of wealth and
cleverness, and believed that these things were success in life. Now
we have had before our eyes the spectacle of clever men using their
cleverness to kill, maim and destroy innocent women and children; we
have seen the wealth of one nation poured out like water to bring
poverty and starvation to another nation, and so, through our tears, we
have learned the lesson that it is not wealth or cleverness or skill or
power which makes a nation or an individual great. It is goodness,
gentleness, kindliness, the sense