The difficulty is all the greater because the historical significance of the act must be considered, and the immediate result is not the final criterion of its justification.
War is not always the final judgment of Heaven.

There are successes which are transitory while the national life is reckoned by centuries.
The ultimate verdict can only be obtained by the survey of long epochs.[M] [Footnote M: Treitschke, "Politik," i., p 2.] 54 The man whose high and responsible lot is to steer the fortunes of a great State must be able to disregard the verdict of his contemporaries; but he must be all the clearer as to the motives of his own policy, and keep before his eyes, with the full weight of the categorical imperative, the teaching of Kant: "Act so that the maxim of thy will can at the same time hold good as a principle of universal legislation." [N] [Footnote N: Kant, "Kritik der praktischen Vernuft," p.

30.] He must have a clear conception of the nature and purpose of the State, and grasp this from the highest moral standpoint.

He can in no other way settle the rules of his policy and recognize clearly the laws of political morality.
He must also form a clear conception of the special duties to be fulfilled by the nation, the guidance of whose fortunes rests in his hands.

He must clearly and definitely formulate these duties as the fixed goal of statesmanship.