It was peace on this lay fifteen years ago. A period had been put to over four years of insensate carnage, four years of tremendous sacrifice, of enormous human cour-of fortitude and all qualities which disaster demands from mankind and so readily obtains. And the people of the world rested from killing each other and expressed the devout hope that the war to end all wars had been fought. In that hope seven million lives had been laid down on the field of battle. How many millions more died as the direct result of the appalling catastrophe which August, 1914, ushered in, it is of life the price which the world Impossible to. say, but in terms pald to regain. its sanity re-resents a formidable total, And it was with the knowledge of the huge bill which had been met by suffering humanity, and the realisation that stil) much Payment had to be made, that the world looked forward so to arranging its affairs that no such occurrence should ever happen again. It was with high hopes that the statesmen of the world sought manent, pavilion of peace, They knew the objective before them. They had to settle once and for all all those outstanding questions in which were the latent for further breaches of universal understanding.
4 superhuman task. Indeed most of the problems emerging since the outbreak of the war, the end of which is being commemorated to-day, such dil Most of them have not yet been resolved. Attempts have been made and solutions found which have withstood the test of time but for a very short period, and they have proved to be either no lution at all' or but a very small contribution towards the ultimate answer. If there were a time when the world seemed internationally minded, it must have been during the frst few years after hostilities came. to an end, But since then it has been fighting a rearguard action against war rather than preparing a direct offensive for the capture of a permanent peace. Economic conditions have arisen which have forced ations. to protect themselves rather than combine in a general organisation of universal well-being. To old quarrels have been added new reasons for enmity and it is becoming increasing vicar as each day passes that humanity may yet have to learn many more tragically severe lessons before it becomes spiritually fitted to enter upon that millennium on which its eves are 80 despairingly fixed, It is on days such as these that time can be set aside to take stock of all that has been attained—or lost. On this Armistice Day, when the souls of the dead live again in the memories of those that love them, it is possible to see that all for which they made their gallant sacrifice, all for which the clear-eyed youth of the nations so. willingly offered themselves, has not yet been achieved and is still a long way from fulfilment. If substantial progress had been made at any time during these last fifteen years, it can be said, without too great an indulging' in pessimiss, that much of it has now been lost. The very instruments of peace are turning valueless in the hands of their creators. Understandings which were aimed to provide a breathing space, during which solider foundations for lasting amity might be laid, are fast running towards their conclusion without much prospect of their being renewed. The world is talking glibly of armament and naval races, horrific stories are being told of the skies filled with battalions of aeroplanes fighting their grim fights in a world of three dimensions and hurtling terrible, widespread death upon helpless populations below; and yet, with all the anticipatory dread which humanity feels at the prospects 80 envisaged, it is apparently unable to devise' means to avert the \wful things which threaten. It indeed, a black outlook that mankind can only think of peace in terms of preparedness for war.
"God, give us Peace! not such as lulls to sleep, Bur ord" Oh thigh and brow And let Our'Ship of State to for ports. al up, her battle And her flashed thunders gathering for their leap."
'That was the prayer of olden time. And. though the world has gained in knowledge it seems to have made so little progress in wisdom that in its desperation it is fast woing back to old formule. Yet it would be unwise to say' that there is no hope for the future. It is a dreadful thing when leaders of melt can already prophesy when the whole world, or at least substanial portions of it, will be again the throes, of enmity and the of War's great organ will!
ain' shake the skies. But simultaneously with this growth of the certainty of war there is arising an ever greater determination on the part of those with clearer vision to do everything possible to avert the threatened disaster. Tt is not unreasonable to believe, and most certainly not contrary to the facts, that throughout the world there is an overwhelming desire to avoid what seems be so inevitable. There is not a country in the world which would not desire peace if it thought it could be maintained. Tt is the fear that, it cannot which is giving rise to the suspicions of the present day, and it is that fear which is con: tributing so largely to the instability of political _conditions. "The distrust which has been created by the methods by which the several nations have sought to avert the consequences of the present economic depression has largely been responsible for the alarm so apparent in the world to-day It_may be that, as the world progresses further out of the slough of despond in which it is so badly mired to-d better outlook upon intern: affairs may be secured. It is to be hoped that this may prove correct, for, if it is not, then another sacrifice of unavailing Hantry, another proud. display of all that fs fine in. humanity may be called for in order that mankind may again be crucified on a stricken field. It the thought of the dread ties of the future that the world to-day is thinking of those glorious dead from whose failing hands the torch fell into the custody of this present generation. Thus, with no thought of victory or defeat, comrades of the Great War will think of those who were taken away from them in that immense struggle, will for a brief period during the sacrament of memory pay a silent tribute to those who passed on and reaffirm their determination that nothing shall be left undone to prevent a recurrence of those long years of suffering which came to an end this day so short a while ago.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.