AUTOCRACY is fast disintegrating; thrones are falling, and their passing heralds the approaching reign of Principle. The dethronement of those who were mighty as human masters, shows, as nothing in the world has done better, that the autocratic ruler does not exist who is good enough to dominate for selfish purposes even the body of his lowliest vassel, much less have dominion over his spiritual nature.
In twenty-one months the largest republic—the United States of America—sent more than two million of its young men overseas to the rescue of a struggling world. For four years the allies—led by those other great democracies, England and France— had been fighting the Central Empires for the right to exist as free and independent nations. The added sledge hammer blows of the young Americans on the western front brought to the proud invaders the realization that democracy is an ideal worth fighting for and that a nation with this ideal, typified by its banner and enshrined in the hearts of its people, is invincible. Now while these young Americans—the flower of the country, the hope of the nation— have fulfilled their part in ending the brave struggle for a greater freedom, it is fitting that as a people we should consider the welfare of the homeland to which they are returning.
Isaiah's challenge, "Watchman, what of the night?" is a question of heavy import. Is all well with the nation? Have those at home kept the gates of freedom in the absence of these young crusaders? What cherished rights have been invaded or endangered? All at home have been required to surrender much to the demands of war. Individual freedom has been restricted. But in addition to this the home has been invaded. Religious worship has been curtailed. Business has been restricted or limited. In three of these the American people are particularly interested. The fourth—business—will take care of itself because men awake quickly when their money or their property is endangered; but the other three, the fundamentals of real living, are of far greater importance than mere dollars.
