rning she is quickly
destroyed by the world. The philosophy of _Voila tout_ soon possesses
her. I always remember the end of Octave Feuillet's "_Histoire d'une
jeune Parisienne_"--

Dans l'ordre moral, il ne nait point de monstres: Dieu n'en fait pas;
mais les hommes en font beaucoup. C'est ce que les meres ne doivent
pas oublier.

In France's plan for Europe there is both the idealistic romantic and
the cynical materialistic. If England really understood the spirit of
France she would strengthen the former. And France might really take
England into her confidence. England, and indeed most other nations,
see in France a selfish, narrow, matter-of-fact power, and in seeing
these things they help to make France so.

If France took Britain into her confidence she would possibly explain
her policy in this way--"The great war which has just passed was first
and foremost a war between Germany and France. The Germans do not
understand us; they loathe and despise our civilization. They have
been entirely wrong, but they had the big battalions on their side.
Once they beat us in the field and they took away and subjugated two of
our provinces, almost killing the French spirit there and Germanizing
to the utmost of their ability. A second war has taken place and we,
thanks to the help of allies, have won. We have gained an overwhelming
victory. The Germans have made a complete surrender. President Wilson
deceived them into thinking that they might arrange an easy peace, and
they surrendered their weapons. France was glad to see her vain enemy
fooled and despoiled of her means of continuing the strife. France,
however, never accepted Wilsonian idealism. Why should she? America
has never bled as France has bled. She has never lived in the danger
in which France has lived. She does not understand Europe. But France
owed America a great deal of money and could not afford to offend her.
She had the mortifying and difficult role to play second to Wilson at
the peace-table though first in sacrifice and first in danger.
France's object has been and is to place Germany completely _hors de
combat_. Her mortal enemy is in her power. France's first desire is
not money or territory, but just security. France does not fear
Germany in her present spiritless, unarmed state. France does not fear
Germany at all. But the fruit of victory which she desires is that she
should put it entirely out of the power of Germany to