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Show Practicing To Kill 'What Is that noise?"' -was asked as a muftled' roar nnd the snnrp crack crack of'mifsketr filled the air. "That's' tho soldiers on the rifle rang'o' practicing," replied one of tho llttlo party out for an afternoon stroll. "They hhvp rifle practice every ev-ery day. They aro raw recruits; most of them, and don!t know how to hoot." ' "And so they spend their time practicing prac-ticing to kill people," commented tho first speaker. "It is necessary for them to become expert Is it, in tho urt of shooting dowu their brothers? Thoy must learn to shoot to kill?" Tho other laughod a bit uncomfortably. uncomfort-ably. "I don't know that It 1b exactly ex-actly that,'' ho replied. "But what is it then?" persisted tho questioner. "That is what they are doing, Isn't it? Learning to shoot straight so they may bo sura to-kill tho ono they ulm at? And spending ti lot of good money In tho bargain money thut could bo used to better purposes." "Wo don't put it Just that baldly, anyway," ho Bmlled. "Maybo it would bo better If wj did," was suggested. "Wo surround the subject with Hags and brass bands and brilliant uniforms and our gaze and thought nro fixed on the glitter Instead of on the fact that we are training a good many thousand young men to shoot straight so they may he sure to kill the persons they aim at. We are really filling their minds and hearts with the thoughts of hate and murder and revenge, though I think It can bo said to tho credit of tho boys In the army that few of .them entertain these thoughts until they get into the heat of the fight. In the main, I Imagine they merely think It great sport. Btit nevertheless, neverthe-less, when we 'choose to kill, these are the underlying thoughts." "But wo must be" prepared for war," contended the man. "Haven't wo grownup enough yet that wo do not need to use fists to settle differences? When you are boys you fight it out. But when you nre men thnt Is, really men, not grownup boys you reason It out. You know what you think of men who fight or even duel nowndays. Why can't nations put away childish things?" "Of course, It would bo much better," bet-ter," admitted tho other, "if differences differ-ences could be settled, by tribunals." "It would not only bo the better way but really the only Just way. A nation may be right but too weak to prove tho Justice of its cause by forco of arms. And so the stronger is victorious, though maybe altogether altogeth-er In tho wrong. A tribunal would, or should, glvo Its verdict for tho right. And surely .that is what the ' civilized world ought to want to triumph. 'AncLsd, arbitration would not only do away,'wlthvwnr nnd tho cost and awful1 Borrow and suffering t)f it, but It would help forward the cause 'of rlgtil'and Justice. The small nation would como into Its b"W"ancF not bo trampled upon c6nth(ually' by stronger peoples and live always under un-der tho cloud of Injustice." "It will come someday," soothed tho man. "Not while we continue to glorify that," tho speaker replied as the sound of another volley broke tho stillness. "If every ono of us would seo it for what It Is practicing to kill somo one; if every ono of these soldier boys would seo at tho desthvt atlon of his rifle ball a writhing suffering suf-fering form, no matter what color or nationality, I think It would help the war spirit to die out. It seems to mo if such views were entertained by every ono of us and that means you and mo and all of us here, as well as our neighbors we can't put the responsibility on somo ono else-It else-It would help bring about tho true understanding of what war is and strip from it tho false glory that hap, been given it. And when we got this true plcturo of war, will it not in itself help to bring about n wider spread desire for general arbitration?" arbitra-tion?" "Perhaps. Rut along with, the repulsion re-pulsion for killing pcoplo which 1 think wo all feel, must bo a genuine love to have Justice done where there are, matters at dispute." "Rut deep In our hearts, don't we all want that?" was asked. "Deep in our hearts, perhaps. But I hm afraid, we do not always look deep enough, Just as we do not always follow the rifle ball to the man' whom It wounds or kills." "No," the little group admitted. "We need the far seeing vision In many things to get at the real truths of life. But since truth brings so much beauty and good, why not strive to see It?" Barbara Boyd. |