Yet what an irony of fate that while people are so active in perpetuating peace they cannot preserve it.

Look at the recent wars in Europe, first between Italy and Turkey, and afterward in the Balkans, to say nothing of disturbances in China and other parts of the world.
It is just like warning a child not to take poison and then allowing him to swallow it and die.

Sensible men should consider this question calmly and seriously.

We all agree as to the wickedness of war and yet we war with one another; we do not like war yet we cannot help war.
There is surely some hidden defect in the way we have been brought up.
Is not the slogan of nationality, to a great extent, the root of the evil?
Every schoolboy and schoolgirl is taught the duty of devotion, or strong attachment, to his or her own country, and every statesman or public man preaches the doctrine of loyalty to one's native land; while the man who dares to render service to another country, the interests of which are opposed to the interests of his own land, is denounced a traitor.

In such cases the individual is never allowed an opinion as to the right or wrong of the dispute.