THE SPIRIT OF CONQUEST. 519 



colossal error must be fought not in the name of a vague and in- 

 tangible fraternity, but by appealing to the egoistic interest of every 

 one. There will always be wars, because man will never be abso- 

 lutely sound-minded. At times passion and folly will prevail over 

 reason. But the idea that conquest is the quickest means of in- 

 creasing prosperity will not be everlasting, because it is utterly false. 



Man acts conformably to what seems to be his interest. The 

 idea he has of this depends on his judgment, which varies every day, 

 as do also his desires. There is only one efficacious method of effect- 

 ing social changes: it is, to modify the desires of men, to bring them 

 to seek new objects, different from the old ones. 



A great many Germans are saying now, " We would give up 

 the last drop of our blood rather than surrender Alsace-Lorraine." 

 Why do they say that? Because the possession of the provinces 

 annexed in 1871 procures them some sort of real or imaginary satis- 

 faction. But if, on the other hand, this annexation caused them ex- 

 treme sufferings, the Germans would say, " We would give up the 

 last drop of our blood to get rid of Alsace-Lorraine." Now, if the 

 Germans (or any other people) could comprehend how largely the 

 spirit of conquest diminishes the sum of their enjoyment, they would 

 certainly express themselves in language of the latter sort. The 

 apostles of perpetual peace have therefore taken the wrong road. 

 Their efforts should bear upon the single object of showing that the 

 appropriation of a neighbor's territories in no way increases the 

 welfare of men. The pessimists answer us that it will take many 

 years for the uselessness of conquests to be accepted. Well, then, 

 man shall have to continue many years in suffering; that is all there 

 is of it. 



When will the day come that we shall find out that it is no longer 

 advantageous to seize a neighbor's territory? We do not know. The 

 only thing we can affirm with absolute certainty is, that when it 

 arrives our prosperity will be increased five or ten fold.* 



This ctesohedonic error (lust for possession) has produced con- 

 sequences of which we proceed to speak. Just as individuals fancy 

 that they will be better off with larger possessions, so peoples imagine 

 that their prosperity and happiness will be in direct proportion to 

 the territorial extent of their country. Hence one of the silliest 

 aberrations of the human mind — the fatuous idolatry of square mile*. 

 A great many Germans still figure it out that they will have a larger 



* The pessimists are further mistaken. The idea that conquest is disastrous, even to 

 the conqueror, is much more widespread in modern societies than is generally thought. 

 But social reflexes urge the masses to obey their chief blindly. It requires only a Gothic 

 spirit — like Bismarck, for example — to set a whole army in motion, and make it do things 

 which every officer and every soldier would condemn as a personal act. 



