ext from your national
hymn, they must listen to me. Then there is another common expression
among you which shows, as so many proverbs do, the fundamental truth.
When a story is incredible you say 'Tell that to the marines,'
signifying that only a marine would be stupid enough to believe it. Now
what is a marine? As the Anglian poet says, he is 'soldier and sailor
too,' in other words, he epitomizes the army and navy. It is the
military man who is foolish enough to believe anything and who keeps
alive the most absurd superstitions and customs. The ancient Greeks
cast a side-light on this truth, for their word for private soldier was
'idiot.' And on account of this strange stupidity of soldiers, things
that would be disgraceful in private life become glorious in war. Their
one virtue is obedience, unqualified by any of the balancing virtues,
and they wear liveries to show that they are servile. And then the
foolish things they try to do! You are familiar with the Peace
Conference--generals and admirals spending weeks in uniform with swords
at their sides to determine how to stop fighting, as if there were
anything to do but to stop! I believe they had the grace to turn the
war pictures in the conference room to the wall. But fancy sending
butchers to a conference in the interests of vegetarianism! Of course
nothing was done or could be done there. And the Emperor in his
uniform, drunk with militarism, wanted us--all our nation--wanted
_me_--to kow-tow before him as if he were a god! But he did not get
what he wanted from us. His own people may grovel before him, but we
will not. Oh, these soldiers, these soldiers! You look down on your
hangmen and butchers. We look down on our men-butchers, the soldiers,
in the same way. We have soldiers just as you have police, but it is a
low calling with us, and most people would be ashamed to have a soldier
in the family. Pardon me, my dear sirs. Perhaps I have spoken too
plainly. I mean nothing personal, but when I think of these wars, I
can not control my tongue. Good-night."

So saying, the attache gathered up his robes and went below.

"Queer chap," said Sam. "He must be crazy."

"We've treated them rather badly, tho," said Cleary. "I'm glad Taffy
hasn't had any executions, but our minister and all the rest have been
insisting on executions of their big people, and no one talks of
executing any of ours, altho they have suffered ten times as