The Progress of the World. 



597 



a great stimulus towards new lite. The 

 alliance with Russia, binding a rich modern 

 democracy to a crumbling and impoverished 

 autocracv, could not be expected to re-create 

 national spirit ; a close friendship with free 

 Britain could not fail to do so. The last 

 Morocco incident, with its demonstration 

 of the realness of the Anglo-French friend- 

 ship, set the seal on the making of the New 

 France. On all sides there is joyous and 

 running-over patriotism and determination 

 to excel. Our old battles are forgotten and 

 new victories of peace to be won together 

 replace them. This was well shown by an 

 mcident in the schoolchildren's visit to 

 Paris. On seeing the Arc de Triomphe, 

 with its glorious array of French victories 

 engravetl on its columns, an urchin cried 

 out that he saw no name of Waterloo 

 amongst them. Qiiick as thought came 

 the reply, "That was wiped out by the 

 entente cordiale." 



It was a fine piece of state- 

 Children (-r^j,. ^^,^ ti^j, p^rt of. the 



" Entente Cordialers."M"nicipaHty of Paris to 

 invite British boys and girls 

 to take part in the Whitsuntide Musical 

 Competition. Some 800 schoolchildren 

 from London, Lancashire, Yorkshire, the 

 Midlands and Wales spent four days of 

 delirious bliss in the French ca|)ital. Five 

 hundred came from Lontlon schools, and 

 had a special steamer chartered to take 

 them across the Channel. Several prizes 

 fell to our little singers, but the importance 

 of the visit was more internati(jnal than 

 musical. 'I'hese 800, to the last boy and 

 girl of thciu, will be enthusiastic friends ol' 

 the I'Vench. A generation ago school- 

 children played at fighting the French ; 

 now they j)ay real visits to the French ; 

 and m> one can doubt which is the more 

 delightful experience. So gradually jjcace 



becomes more, attractive than war — even to 



boys ! So is sown a fine crop of future 



pacifists. The idea is too good not to be 



repeated. After French children have paid 



a return call to England, why should the 



London County Council not straightway 



invite 1,000 German children to spend next 



W'hitsuntide here? There is a strange 



suggestion of an ancient Galilean idyll in 



this picture of " the child in the midst" of 



the disputing nations, the motlel and pioneer 



of peace. Following close upon the visit of 



the Prince of Wales, this French trip of the 



children is a further reminder that both 



France and Britain have their eyes on the 



future — a future intended to be one of even 



closer amity. "And a little child shall lead 



them ! " 



Had any other proof been 



Increase vvanted as to the effect of 



in ... 



German Army, the new spirit in f ranee, 



we could find it in the 

 new German army vote, and in the debates 

 in the Reichstag. Large increases in the 

 perxonnel, considerable open antl still more 

 remarkable changes and additions in the 

 artillery — all these may be laid primarily to 

 a consciousness that the I'Vench army is a 

 much more formidable force than it was 

 a little time ago. And so up goes the 

 military expenditure, and further votes are 

 secured to the Social Democrats at future 

 elections. There is undoubtedly another 

 reason for the German military expansion, 

 and that is the way in which the military 

 correspondent. of the VVwr.v showeil up the 

 deficiencies of the (krman army in his 

 articles on last year's mananivres. We do 

 not say that he opened the eyes of the 

 German military authorities, but he did un- 

 doubtedly give a shock to the mass of 

 (icrmans, who had been living in a happy 

 belief in the supreme excellence ot I heir 



