ra.

"So the German has kept love in a practical state--for him--by
associating it so prominently with his procreative capacities. It is
a case of Mars and Venus producing fighting men."

"If the German is not governed by love as an ideal," put in Gard,
"how is it then that he is so sentimental? People always assure us
that Fritz must be really at bottom as affectionate, tender,
emotional, as anyone because he is so sentimental."

"Yes, that's the old conundrum that the enthusiasts over everything
German confuse one with. The German's fondness--gobbling-down
fondness--for food does not prove that he is a gourmet. The Teuton
sentimentality is like mush. It's principally for children. As Fritz
keeps a good deal of his childishness about him as he grows up, he
keeps this taste for mush. It takes the place of _sentiment_ which
is of the proper mental pabulum for enlightened adults. You can't
write poetry about mush. So the Germans have little poetry worth
talking about. Where their emotional side ought to be, they are
slightly developed beyond the youthful stage of sentiment_alism_.
Their abortive conception of love, their treatment of their women
and children--other things--all account for this naturally enough.
One is rather forced, in spite of himself, to take the Germans at
either of two extremes in order to understand them
candidly--mushiness or iron."

CHAPTER XXII

MAKING FOR WAR

Anderson did not care for the Buchers and only came two or three
times to Villa Elsa. So Gard did the calling. The elder would
invariably bring out from his table drawer his "bachelor's bride" in
the form of a box of clear Havanas, and the "lecture" would begin
again before, what he said, was the most select audience in
Deutschland.

"Have you heard anything from your spy?" he queried one day.

"No. You don't seriously mean that Rudolph--you assume it's
Rudolph--is watching me?" returned Kirtley, a little disturbed over
the recurrence to this subject. "What am I guilty of? I'm as
innocent as an unborn lamb."

"Certainly you are. But, my dear boy, what's innocence in Germany?
The Secret Police can make an alien like you a lot of trouble about
nothing. You wouldn't believe how systematic they are, and serious
as stuffed owls. Take my advice and don't do things at too loose
ends as we are apt to over home. But if you do get into trouble,
come to me and I will tell you what to say.

"Sometimes they even have one spy spyin