s that of _Kultur_ (i. e., of Germany)
against civilization." And pushing this outrageous boast of pride to the
point of madness, he defines civilization as Reason (_Vernunft,
Aufklaerung_), Gentleness (_Sittigung, Saenftigung_), Spirit (_Geist,
Aufloesung_), and Kultur as "a spiritual _organization_ of the world"
which does not exclude "bloody savagery." Kultur is "the sublimation of
the demoniacal" (_die Sublimierung des Daemonischen_). It is "above
morality, above reason, and above science." While Ostwald and Haeckel
see in militarism merely an arm or instrument of which Kultur makes use
to secure victory, Thomas Mann affirms that Kultur and Militarism are
brothers--their ideal is the same, their aim the same, their principle
the same. Their enemy is peace, is spirit ("_Ja, der Geist ist zivil,
ist buergerlich_"). He finally dares to inscribe on his own and his
country's banner the words, "Law is the friend of the weak; it would
reduce the world to a level. War brings out strength."

_Das Gesetz ist der Freund des Schwachen,_
_Moechte gern die Welt verflachen_
_Aber der Krieg laesst die Kraft erscheinen...._

In this criminal glorification of violence, Thomas Mann himself has been
surpassed. Ostwald preached the victory of Kultur, if necessary by
Force; Mann proved that Kultur is Force. Some one was needed to cast
aside the last veil of reserve and say "Force alone. All else be
silent." We have read extracts from the cynical article in which
Maximilian Harden, treating the desperate efforts of his Government to
excuse the violation of Belgian neutrality as feeble lies, dared to
write:

"_Why on earth all this fuss? Might creates our Right. Did a powerful
man ever submit himself to the crazy pretensions or to the judgment of a
band of weaklings?_"

What a testimony to the madness into which German intelligence has been
precipitated by pride and struggle, and to the moral anarchy of this
Empire, whose _organization_ is imposing only to the eyes of those who
do not see farther than the facade! Who cannot see the weakness of a
Government which gags its socialist press and yet tolerates such an
insulting contradiction as this? Who does not see that such words
defame Germany before the whole world for centuries to come? These
miserable intellectuals imagine that with their display of infuriated
Nietzcheism and Bismarckism they are acting heroically and impressing
the world. They merely disgust it. They wis