be
followed by transports of disciplined troops. In the seventeenth
century England, France, Spain and Holland could hold colonies in North
America and be reasonably out of each other's way. In the twentieth
century, this is no longer possible.

The increased cost of war adds to the opposition of these democratic
groups. No longer is war a mere isolated venture of a single nation,
but a conflict between alliances on a scale utterly unthought-of in
former generations. No conceivable gain derived from any colonial
venture of the last fifty years could compensate for the mere economic
losses involved in the present war, to say nothing of the loss of life,
the maiming and crippling of young men and the disruption of
international bonds. And if war costs much so also does the
preparation for war. Until some mutual accommodation can be secured,
even the most pacific nation must bear the burden of increasing
armaments.

There is a still deeper antagonism to these imperialistic ventures.
From the beginning, the dominant classes in societies which are
developing towards democracy have used foreign adventure to allay
domestic discontent and to oppose democratic progress. When war is
begun or even threatened it is too late to speak of uninteresting and
seemingly petty internal reforms. Between industrial and political
democracy on the one hand and a policy of foreign adventures on the
other, there is an inevitable opposition.

It is not that the political and industrial interests of the dominant
classes favour war, but rather a policy involving the constant fear of
war. This fear itself is worth millions. It means a huge vested
interest in the creation {138} of munitions and armaments. It means
political quiescence and domination by a financial-military group. But
for the fear of war and the imperialistic policies which kept this fear
alive, the militaristic _Junker_ class of Germany could not have
maintained its domination.[10] To disband the German army would cost
these landed proprietors more than would a Russian invasion. And a
similar if lesser conflict in class interest is found in France,
England, Austria and to a certain extent in the United States. In all
countries, the imperialistic policy, even when it redounds ultimately
to the nation's advantage, is a class policy used to further class
purposes.

In Europe, however, it is difficult for democratic leaders to make
headway against imperialism. For t