“Not every man—”
“‘To seek the means of warding off the calamities that are threatening the whole world is the supreme duty that is to-day imposed on all states.’”
“Yes, if only the rulers of states thought so!”
“Well, read for yourself—and rejoice!”
He handed me the paper—and what did I see? That was no article from socialistic or peace circles—it was an official document, addressed in the name of one of the highest war lords to all governments, with an invitation to meet in a conference which should have to deal with this “serious question”—a conference which—I cite the actual words—“would unite in one powerful combination the efforts of all states which are sincerely seeking to make the great idea of universal peace triumphant.”
Was not that like a dream, like a fairy tale?
I recollect that hour which, after receiving these tidings,—truly “Good Tidings,” as the chapter heading of Schach der Qual expressed it,—My Own and I spent together discussing the marvelous event from all sides; it was one of the loveliest hours of our lives. It was actually like counting over the amount of an unexpected windfall.
In the September number of my periodical I expressed my views regarding this event in the following words:
The news that stands at the head of this number, the Tsar’s rescript, is the greatest event which, up to the present time, the peace movement has had to show. It has filled us all with jubilation, for the colossal, and at the same time the unexpected, overpowers. The tidings filled the rest of the world with astonishment, and indeed many (especially the friends of war) with apprehension.
Deep feeling is expressed in the young monarch’s words. The conventionality of ordinary diplomatic phrases, which say nothing, is abandoned once for all. So the peace movement—and we have lived to see the day—has passed over into the sphere of accomplishment.