Alsace with a view to a future war. France has reconquered it with a view to a final peace.

I

F the restoration of Alsace to the homeland has satisfied the most eager desires and the requirements of justice, nevertheless it was bound to give rise to a certain number of difficulties. Nearly half a century had elapsed between the defeat of 1871 and the victory of 1918. The Alsatians, in order to remain what they are and to preserve themselves for France, had clung with great tenacity to their tradition, and particularly to their religious traditions. During the forty-seven years of exile the church, the chapel, and the synagogue were the most active centres of Alsatian life. But during the same period French policy had followed a different course. The principle of an undenominational State had prevailed. It has been, and still is, the cause of heated debates in Alsace.

There was, then, from the religious point of view, a contradiction between the customs and legislation of Alsace and those of France. This was a first difficulty, arising out of the very nature of things. There have been other difficulties. Shut up in their country and retiring within themselves, the Alsatians had, during the period of their separation from the mother

But they had good reason to fear lest the strong tendency to uniformity, which for more than a century had dominated French legislation and administration, should make it impossible for them to maintain their traditions and the institutions created by Germany. These traditions, even more than the institutions, were very dear to them.

The recent elections seem to have confirmed some of these apprehensions.

BUT in order thoroughly to understand

the feelings of the Alsatians, whom the French Press reproach, perhaps with too much violence, for their particularist spirit, a little more attention ought to be paid to what happened before the War,

when Alsace was governed by Germany. Neither the somewhat clumsy enticements of German methods nor the heavy fist of the rulers of the Empire had been able to overcome Alsatian particularism.

After the wild enthusiasm of the restoration to the mother country, the two had to resume the ordinary business of everyday life.

How was it possible to avoid little bickerings due to differences of method, behavior, and language? Parties were at once active in France which demanded the immediate assimilation of Alsace and Lorraine, the introduction of méthodes laïques and other political innovations, which caused a real panic among the Alsatian population, especially among the villages. Moreover, circumstances necessitated the presence of French officials in Alsace for the purpose of organizing the republican system of administration and facilitating the linking up of the services. Chance-was it really chance? ordained that the officials chosen should come from that part of France which was least able to understand Alsatian particularism and confounded Alsatian mentality with that of southern Frenchmen. These officials seemed amazed to find Alsatians who were both advanced in their ideas of social progress and intensely religious. It was then that the Alsatians began to fall back upon themselves.

country, given a great impetus to their provincial activities. Moreover, they had profited either by the progress made in German legislation, or by the freedom which, though conceded slowly and grudgingly in the political field, was amply granted in the social sphere. Thus they were enabled to establish in their country and to adapt to their customs and tastes economic mutualist institutions the equivalent of which did not yet exist in France.

France desired to reassure them at once. Solemn promises were made to Alsace at the beginning of the war. So far, these promises have been kept. The Alsatians expect them to be kept in the future also. Doubtless, there may have been, and inevitably will still be, minor blunders or slight friction in the application of the difficult measures which are to safeguard within the unity of the national life the differences in the religious and social institutions of Alsace.

Then Parisian 'pilgrims' began to explore Alsace and to discover not only

the noble qualities of its race, but also its shortcomings. They called the particularists by the name of 'autonomists,' and the latter finally adopted this name themselves. They laid stress, with an insistence which was unfortunately justified, on the intrusion of German elements which were, of course, only too happy to take advantage of the differences which seemed to have arisen.

This was the origin

of the somewhat confused situation that has been revealed by the recent elections. But with a minimum of political understanding the French Government, seconded by the most competent representatives of Alsace and a Press which the recent election results have enabled us to see more clearly, will know how to establish Alsatian affairs on a sound basis.

The Government should deal as they deserve with the queer individuals who have come from Moscow and Germany to repeat the mischief in Alsace they do else where. But it should not confound Alsace with these individuals. Instead of trying to frighten the doubtful elements of the Alsatian population, the Government should try to win them over to its side; it is not impossible, it is not even difficult. They should not be perpetually reproached with uttering an insincere cry when they shout, 'Vive la France!'

And, above all, let

signs of uneasiness and defending themselves against foreign influences that antagonize their feelings, which have suddenly become those of uncompromising imperialists. As in our Alsace, where the priests take an active part in politics, and village ministers and priests are all of the Church militant, the present public life of Americans, whose original States were founded by English Puri

THE TIMES OF LOUIS XIV

19

German origin are at present the masters of American politics.

All this is one of the many aspects of that particularism which has never been better understood or managed than it was by the ministers of an absolute monarch like Louis XIV. However, the French Republic has always fulfilled its obligations to Alsace and Lorraine and, I am sure, will always do so. Whatever Government may be in office, both promises and treaties will be respected.

UT everything

BUT

has not been per

fect in the way Alsa

tian affairs were man

aged during the early days of the new rule. Alsatian conditions and modern French conditions did not harmonize, and there were difficulties due to the special circumstances.

Alsatians may be divided into three classes: those who are more than 60 years old, those who are more than 30 years old, and those who are less than 30.

The eldest men have retained, if not through themselves, at least by the immediate traditions of their homes, the French stamp of the period preceding the annexation. Those who are less than 30 years old passed into the current of our national life under the sign of victory. But we must surely face this truth: those who are more than 30 years old, i.e., two or three generations of men who are at present heads of Alsatian families, communes, and institutions, have been molded by German culture. How could it be otherwise? The intellectuals who had been influenced by the spirit of the German universities could not tune their thoughts to the rhythm of French culture. The lower classes themselves spoke German and had German manners and traditions. The Germans had made Strassburg a centre of their intellectual activity, but this centre was animated by

it not be forgotten that Alsatian particularism is perhaps one of the noblest forms of the political ideal. Is not the Scotsman, who, for his part, is also a particularist, a Briton who is devoted to Great Britain? And does not the Englishman whom we see hastening busily through the City cling to his traditions which are so essentially English? To-day the Americans themselves, whose optimism and wealth have grown as a result of the war, are showing

the province by Louis XIV

tans, is powerfully swayed by their religion. My friend André Siegfried, in his remarkable work entitled L'Amerique d'aujourd'hui, has laid stress on this situation in a striking manner. Whether we wish it or not, whether it is an error, a fault, or even a political crisis, the Alsatian ministers and priests are the masters of their Catholic and Protestant villages, just as the Puritans of English origin, the Protestants of Dutch origin, and the Lutherans of

the Alsatians themselves. And it was only after the Armistice that the Germans who had lived in Alsace made a new intellectual effort, which arose at Frankfurt, not Strassburg. It was in this great German centre that they formed the association of Alsatians in the Reich which was immediately subsidized by the 'Deutsche Notgemeinschaft.'

Since the Armistice, Frankfurt has become a real source of historical information, the chief aim of which is to prove and justify before the learned world the causes of the War. Here is a striking example of the sudden intellectual activity displayed by the Germans of Alsace since the time when they were no longer allowed to stay in that country. Before the War no important work on the cathedral of Strassburg had appeared in German. Since then four have appeared. The names of the authors are Dehio, Ficker, Hamann, Hascett. They all desired to prove that this cathedral bears the stamp of a building that separates two civilizations.

Since the restoration of Alsace to the mother country, for which many Alsatians fought, the inhabitants have been directed into channels of political and administrative life for which they were not prepared. This was bound to cause, and did cause, numerous difficulties, fortunately

ambassador, has yielded fruitful results. It was, in my opinion, a great mistake to abolish the office before its task was completed. It is certain that, while the Commissariat Général existed, there was never any question of Heimatbund or autonomism. There are Heimatbunds in Alsace, at Eupen and Malmedy, in Schleswig-Holstein, in Czechoslovakia, and in the Tyrol. What statesman does not understand what may happen in a country that has been recently reconquered?

THE GERMAN PERIOD

The claims of the Heimatbunds are linked up by the 'Deutschtum,' i.e. the defence of Germanism, among populations which the theorists of revenge, notwithstanding the treaties, declare to be German minorities temporarily separated from the Reich. If these disquieting theories of the Heimatbund were upheld by the German spirit of revenge, they would necessarily lead to war, for none of the nations aimed at would allow itself to be robbed gratuitously of any portion of territory essential to its sovereignty. The character of certain events observed in Alsace will appear at first sight as strange to Englishmen as it did to Frenchmen. However, it is common to all home defense associations. These often lean both on the most religious elements of Christian communities and on the Communist elements of the population. These elements manifest themselves especially when elections are in progress. In this respect, the Communists of Moscow show an extraordinary ability in flattering the religious passions of the Alsatians. In associations of this kind, which seem to us to be against nature, the Catholics and Protestants who allow themselves to be led astray into the company of Communists are dupes. They will soon become aware of it, and they run the risk of preparing for themselves endless regrets.

From Le Kire, Paris

not serious, with which it was impossible to cope at once. They have arisen from day to day, and it is only from day to day that they can be solved. Doubtless the echo of these events would not have passed beyond the walls of our towns and villages, had not interests opposed to all social peace in Europe, Asia, India, and wherever disorder can bear fruit, made use of them in order to transform a passing indisposition into a deadly disease.

in Alsace and Lorraine a 'Commissariat Général.' It was the duty of the High Commissioner, assisted by provisional representative assemblies, to prepare the way for combining with the whole body of French institutions those features of Alsatian institutions that had to be and could be preserved. The work done by the Commissariat Général, which was presided over in succession by M. Alexandre Millerand, afterwards President of the Republic, and M. Alapetite,

Wherever there is a political or social disturbance in the world, or even the mere threat of a disturbance, wherever there appears a chink in public or private institutions, Bolshevism appears at once on the scene. Sometimes, unfortunately, it aggravates the trouble, it widens the chink, and even among the masses that are most devoted to order, it sometimes succeeds in sowing stealthily the seeds of the universal Revolution. In Alsace, as elsewhere, Bolshevism mingled its poison with feverish manifestations which, without this infection, would have been insignificant.

WE

TE owe it to King Louis XIII that Alsace passed into the current of our national life. His minister, Cardinal Richelieu, was one of the most powerful creators of French unity. When the next king had to organize his father's conquest, did he propose to bring Alsace within the rigid framework of the institutions and laws of his kingdom? No! Louis XIV knew that unity must be compatible with diversity, and his first utterance, the golden rule that he laid down for his ministers, was this: 'Leave Alsatian affairs alone!' This rule did not remain an empty phrase. At the very moment when he allowed the detestable revocation of the Edict of Nantes to be wrung from him, Louis XIV guaranteed to the Alsatian Protestants complete and unrestricted liberty of worship.

religious fanaticism, was the mainspring of their civic activity during half a century of exile. While the German soldiers occupied the squares and streets of the conquered towns and cities, the Alsatians sought refuge in their churches, chapels, and synagogues. Thence issued the 'protesters' to unite in courageous deeds and, if necessary, in making sacrifices.

21

Alsace, which resembles the Alsace of all time.

While terror reigned during the war, the German military chiefs distributed iron crosses lavishly, as if to make fighting France believe that her Alsatian sons were the most determined of her enemies. But within an hour of news of the Armistice, the town halls, churches, private houses, from the humblest to the most beautiful, were decorated with the tricolored flags of France, the display of which under the German dominion had, of course, been rigidly and completely banned, for obvious political reasons.

THE FRENCH PERIOD

And it is on account of this royal protection that the equestrian statue of Louis stands before the entrance to the cathedral of Strassburg.

matter what loyalty their hearts may render

The Protestant Preis was imprisoned, together with the Catholic priest, Wetterlé.

These circumstances explain the zeal ONE cannot imagine that such mem

with which Alsatian believers of every denomination unite in claiming from the Republic what Louis XIV conceded to their fathers: the maintenance of their religious rights.

This consciousness of independence, which has nothing in common with

ories will be blotted out in a few years. Alsatian sentiment is preserved, so to speak, from decomposition by the salt of mother-wit. Their heroes are good tempered heroes. Hansi, the brilliant artist and writer, is one of the liant artist and writer, is one of the characteristic figures of contemporary

The Alsatian women had torn up their bed-sheets and had dyed them secretly so that on the day of victory their French brothers, entering to the sound of the bugles, should find on the threshold of their dwellings the immortal symbol of their country and of the devotion to it in which Alsace, through all her years of trial during the German domination, had never faltered.

At Strassburg, when the allied troops marched amid cheers past Kléber's statue, two men who, I do not know for what reason, were not supposed to be very fond of each other, Poincaré and Clemenceau, embraced most affectionately. Alsace was France's reconciliation with herself.

When the British troops passed beside ours, the same shout united in the same outburst of affection the two great nations which, after fighting each other for centuries, were joined together by the pride they felt in their common victory over the Germans.

Thus did Alsace become, in addition to other and exalted privileges she enjoys, the symbol of the everlasting friendship that now at last happily unites the English and the French.

AV

MONG the armies of Europe today none is such an unknown quantity as the Italian and yet none so important and interesting to evaluate, because of the rebirth of the nation of which it is the instrument. For Italy is clearly determined to be not merely in name but in reality one of the Great Powers, and to demand the respect so due.

The desire for this respect in the comity of nations is, indeed, at present a much clearer source of her care for the armed forces than any of the ambitious designs for conquest with which she is often credited abroad. It was characteristic of Fascism that at the very outset it threw its own protective mantle over the army and insisted on respect being shown to officers of the fighting forces, who for several years had been targets of mob insult, hardly daring to be seen in uniform. The logical sequel was to ensure that this respect was merited in the eyes both of Italian citizens and of the world outside Italy.

How far has the Fascist Government succeeded in this aim? My desire to ascertain this prompted a glad acceptance of an invitation to visit the training centres of the Italian army. To the courtesy, cordiality, and unrestrained facilities offered me I cannot pay high enough tribute. And the fittest return I can make is to show equal candor in my comments, for only a healthy organism can bear the strong rays of criticism - a bad one is better passed over in silence.

No better sign of health, indeed, could be afforded than the open way my investigations were permitted. Both in the army and the air force I was given carte blanche to visit whatever places I wished, even experimental centres, and when there encountered no vestige of 'shepherding.' If indicative of courtesy, this was still more a sign of a commonsense rare among officials in any country. our own not excluded. It is the characteristic of ignorance to label everything 'secret and confidential' with the result that by reducing the practice to absurdity real secrets are disclosed. In contrast, the present Italian authorities

clearly appreciate that no one can penetrate the intricacies of a technical design from a casual view and the more he sees the less likely. For the true art of secrecy is to be so open about ninety-nine per cent of a subject that the really secret one per cent is the more easily

Repaying frankness by frankness, I would say that the regeneration of the army is beyond doubt, but that this progress is most marked as yet in the moral and physical spheres, less so in the mental, and least of all in the material - like the varying levels of a moving platform.

There is an unmistakable new spirit throughout the army, and an experienced throughout the army, and an experienced observer has only to watch the troops on the march and at work to feel the existence of a real pride of service, which is the foundation of morale. This probably owes much to an improvement in the class of officer and the new relations between officers and men. With the recollection of stories I had heard of the former gulf, exemplified after Caporetto, it was a pleasant surprise, yet a common experience, to find officers saying that whatever their men were called on to do they must share, to give a lead. This was no empty gesture, for in the arduous physical exercises officers up to and in

cluding the rank of captain take part daily with the men.

And these are no ordinary trials, for the physical training and development of the new Italian army is not only its most impressive feature, but far superior to anything I have ever seen. They are

training up an army of human cats, and breeding them, too, for the gospel and practice of physical culture are being spread throughout the nation, beginning with the boys who are not yet of military age.

This aim scores doubly. On the one hand, it promises to produce a higher standard of physique and health in the nation, accentuated in the next generation, and, on the other, it is most shrewdly adapted to Italy's military problem. For all Italy's European frontiers and most of her possible theatres of war are mountainous. In such terrain agility and hardiness are immense assets; indeed, it is the only type of country where physical qualities are still, under modern conditions, preponderant over matériel. A further value, also, is that the lack and difficulty of communications make supply a serious problem in the mountains, which enhances the value of troops who can march and fight on a minimum of food as Napoleon proved in his early Italian campaigns. Certainly the marching endurance of the Italian troops is as astonishing as their slender scale of rations, and it was most impressive to see the fine fettle in which they marched back after a hard day's training despite their short service and a pace faster than our own. An indirect testimony both to physique and morale was that nowhere have I seen hospitals and guard-rooms so empty.

In the intellectual training of the officers the watchword is plus pratique. In view of the Italian traditional temperament there is special value in a rigorous mental discipline, which is in keeping with the new national tendencies. Yet even this worthy purpose can be carried to excess, and in a military class particularly may limit vision, which is all the more essential now when the methods