mplete, peace has been declared before
the suffering produced had become very acute; and furthermore the
conditions of furious trade which now exist have never existed
before. Disasters would ensue, apart from the actual loss of money,
owing simply to the sudden change. In a railroad-train standing
still or moving at a uniform speed, the passengers are comfortable;
but if that same train is suddenly brought to rest when going at a
high speed, say by collision, the consequences are horrible in the
extreme, and the horror is caused _simply by the suddenness of the
change_. The same is true all through nature and human nature. Any
sudden change in the velocity of any mass has its exact counterpart
in any sudden change in the conditions of living of any man or
woman, or any sudden change in the conditions under which any
organization must carry on its business. The difficulty is not with
individuals only, or with the organizations themselves, and does
not rest solely on the personal inability of people to accommodate
themselves to the losing of certain conveniences or luxuries; but it
is an inertia which resists even the strenuous efforts of individuals
and organizations to meet new situations promptly, and to grapple
effectively with new problems.

Every organization, no matter how small, is conducted according
to some system, and that system is based upon certain more or less
permanent conditions, which, if suddenly changed, make the system
inapplicable. The larger the organization and the more complex it
is, the more will it be deranged by any change of external conditions
and the longer time will it take to adapt itself to them.

The sudden stoppage of our sea trade, including our coasting trade,
by even a partial blockade of our ports, would change practically
all the conditions under which we live. There is hardly a single
organization in the country which would not be affected by it.
And, as every organization would know that every other organization
would be affected, but to a degree which could not possibly be
determined, because there would be no precedent, it cannot be an
exaggeration to declare that the blockading of our principal ports
would, entirely apart from direct loss of money and other commodities,
produce a state of confusion, out of which order could not possibly
be evolved except by the raising of the blockade.

In addition to the confusion brought about, there would, of course,
be the direct loss