vii THE SETTLEMENT OF EUROPE 183

made an unsecured advance to a client, in whom theybelieve, at a difficult time when he would have goneunder without it, this client were then to cry off paying.To permit such a thing would be to do an injury tothe elementary principles of business honour.

The average American, I fancy, would like tosee the European nations approaching him with apathetic light in their eyes and the cash in their hands,saying, " America, we owe to you our liberty and ourlife ; here we bring what we can in grateful thanks,money not wrung by grievous taxation from thewidow and orphan, but saved, the best fruits ofvictory, out of the abolition of armaments, militarism,Empire, and internal strife, made possible by the helpyou freely gave us." And then the average Americanwould reply : "I honour you for your integrity. Itis what I expected. But I did not enter the war forprofit or to invest my money well. I have had myreward in the words you have just uttered. Theloans are forgiven. Keturn to your homes and usethe resources I release to uplift the poor and theunfortunate." And it would be an essential part ofthe little scene that his reply should come as a com-plete and overwhelming surprise.

Alas for the wickedness of the world ! It is not ininternational affairs that we can secure the sentimentalsatisfactions which we all love. For only individualsare good, and all nations are dishonourable, cruel, anddesigning. In deciding whether Italy (for example)