far as, in this little corner of the world, I can read your
hearts, they answer to my own in this--that they have harboured no
hate against Germany, and indeed, even now, can hardly teach
themselves to hate.

"None the less, the German Emperor protests, calling on God for
witness, that the sword has been thrust into his hand: and, if he
honestly believes this, there must be some great confusion of mind in
this business. One party or the other must be walking under some
terrible hallucination.

"The aged Austrian Emperor calls on _his_ God to justify him.
So does the German; while we in turn call on _our_ God to justify
_us_.

"Now, there cannot be two Gods--two real Gods--president over the
actions of men. That were unthinkable. Of two claimants to that
sceptre, one must be a pretender, an Anti-Christ.

"Therefore our first duty in this dreadful business is to clear our
minds, to make sure that ours is truly the right God. Let us not
trouble--for it is too late--about any German's mind. Our business
is to clear our own vision.

"I confess to you that, however we clear it, I anticipate that what
we see in the end is likely to be damaging to what I will call
'official' Christianity. However you put it, the Churches of Europe
(established or free) have been allowing at least one _simulacrum_ of
Christ to walk the earth, claiming holiness while devising evil.
However you put it, the slaughter of man by man is horrible, and--
more than that--our Churches exist to prevent it, by persuasion
teaching peace on earth, good-will towards men.

"Disquieted, unable to sleep for this thought, I arose and dressed
early this morning, and sat for a while on the wall opposite, gazing
at this homely house of God across the roadway. It looked strange
and unreal to me, there in the dawn; and (for Heaven knows I can
never afford to slight the place it holds in my affection) I even
dared in my fondness to reckon it with great and famous temples such
as in our Westminster, in Paris, in Rheims--aye, and in Cologne--men
have reared to the glory of God. I asked myself if these, too,
looked impertinent as this day's sun took their towers, dawning so
eventfully over Europe; if these, too, suffered in men's minds such a
loss of significance by comparison with the eternal hills and the
river that rushed at my feet refreshing this valley as night-long,
day-long, it has run refreshing and sung unheeded for thousands upon
thousands of y