It was all overwhelming, bewildering. This Gospel of the Germans completely revolutionised his whole intellectual outlook. The idea of living at peace with such a people was impossible. One might as well think of living at peace with a mad dog. They had no common morality to which one could appeal. One could not appeal in the Name of the Prince of Peace, because to them the Gospel of Peace was immoral.
Then the arrogance of their Creed was revolting. This man Bernhardi, and Treitschke, and Nietzsche, and the rest of them lived, and acted on one assumption. They compressed their thoughts into a syllogism:
The people with the highest civilisation and the highest culture should become dominant throughout the world.
Germany had the highest civilisation, and boasted the highest culture.
Therefore Germany had the right, and not only the right, but the duty to make war in order that Germany might be dominant. Of course she must wait for a favourable opportunity, and when that opportunity came, she must make war regardless of all the misery and bloodshed that it must cause.
"The great Elector," said Bernhardi, "laid the foundations of Prussia's power by deliberately incurred wars."
In the light of all this Bob called to mind the German Emperor's speech to his soldiers when on their way to the front.
"Remember that the German people are the chosen of God. On me, on me as the German Emperor, the Spirit of God has descended. I am His weapon, his sword, and his vizard. Woe to the disobedient! Death to the cowards and unbelievers!"
It would be laughable if it were not so terrible.
Of course the Emperor was sincere and conscientious in all this mountebankism, but he was a menace and a blighting danger all the same.