by the world as a whole and which would not
demand of America the blood of one of her children. It would demand some
enthusiasm, some moral courage, some sustained effort, faith, patience,
and persistence. It would establish new standards in, and let us hope a
new kind of, international rivalry.

One word as to a starting point and a possible line of progress. The
first move toward the ending of this present war may come from America.
The President of the United States will probably act as mediator. The
terms of peace will probably be settled in Washington. Part of the terms
of peace to be exacted by the Allies will probably be, as I have already
hinted, some sort of assurance against future danger from German
militarist aggression.

The German, rightly or wrongly, does not believe that he has been the
aggressor--it is not a question at all of whether he is right or wrong;
it is a question of what he believes. And he believes quite honestly and
sincerely that he is merely defending himself. So what he will be mainly
concerned about in the future is his security from the victorious
Allies.

Around this point much of the discussion at the conclusion of this
present war will range. If it is to be a real peace and not a truce an
attempt will have to be made to give to each party security from the
other, and the question will then arise whether America will come into
that combination or not. I have already indicated that I think she
should not come in, certainly I do not think she will come in, with the
offer of military aid. But if she stays out of it altogether she will
have withdrawn from this world congress that must sit at the end of the
war a mediating influence which may go far to render it nugatory.

And when, after it may be somewhat weary preliminaries, an international
council of conciliation is established to frame the general basis of
the new alliance between the civilized powers for mutual protection
along the lines indicated, America, if she is to play her part in
securing the peace of the world, must be ready to throw at least her
moral and economic weight into the common stock, the common moral and
economic forces which will act against the common enemy, whoever he may
happen to be.

That does not involve taking sides, as I showed in my last article. The
policeman does not decide which of two quarrelers is right; he merely
decides that the stronger shall not use his power against the weaker. He
goes to