The Blood of the Nation 



in the gathering of " all facts that can 

 possibly bear on the question." When 

 such a book is written, we shall know 

 for the first time the real significance of 

 war. 



If any war is good, civil war must be 

 best. The virtues of victory and the 

 lessons of defeat would be kept within 

 the nation. This would protect the na- 

 tion from the temptation to fight for 

 gold or trade. Civil war under proper 

 limitations could remedy this. A time 

 limit could be adopted, as in football, 

 and every device known to the arena 

 could be used to get the good of war 

 and to escape its evils. 



For example, of all our States, New 

 York and Illinois have doubtless suf- 

 fered most from the evils of peace, if 

 peace has evils which disappear with 

 war. They could be pitted against each 

 other, while the other States looked on. 

 The "dark and bloody ground" of 



80 



