ally from Bohemia over South Germany, then slowly to Northern Germany and Denmark, until country after country began to take part, when the struggle became general. The war might have ended in 1630, making it a 13 years' war, but for the outrageous treatment of the Protestant States of North Germany, resulting in political disintegration, in which Germany lost half of her population and two-thirds of her wealth. Her religion and morality sank low, and the intellectual damage required generations to restore.

were as

The Roman Catholic Church, having enjoyed for centuries the unity of Christianity, naturally felt greatly wronged by the Protestants' secession. This explains the absolute enmities of the Thirty Years' War. Different parties claimed the control of the religious doctrines and worship of the people; they were fighting between themselves for this power, for which they were ready to sacrifice their lives. The Lutherans intolerant toward the Calvinists as they were towards the Catholics. The Catholic Church, convinced of the absolute truth of its doctrines, based upon thirteen centuries of growth, naturally had feelings of pride. To have some young reformers arise and challenge the divine rights of the Church could not but arouse and incense them, and especially since such reformers seized old monastic foundations with landed domains and edifices and administered them in the interest of revolution. The resistance of the Catholic hierarchy, to the last drop of blood, was a normal reaction. As so often happens, the conditions are abnormal not the human beings. Protestants as well as Catholics gladly died for their beliefs. Indeed, at one time religious enthusiasm was so intense that the Church had to forbid martyrs rushing to the stake to be burned. It was believed that they went directly to Heaven.

One of the leaders in the first part of the war was Ferdinand II, who said he would rather beg

"

or be cut to pieces than submit to heresy. When he conquered the Protestants, he considered their persons, property and opinions to be at his disposal. All his subjects must become Catholics or leave his dominions. Ferdinand was aided in this bloody work by Maximilian of Bavaria. They are accused of going so far as to entice men to remain in their dominions for the executioner's axe Maximilian, acting for Ferdinand, had promised the people that their lives at least would be spared. This promise, however, was an obstacle in carrying out their plans. As a Christian, Ferdinand must be merciful, so he resorts to the Church for counsel and comfort. But he allows the penal. ties to be executed in their full severity, he lessens their rigor in a few cases. Thus Count Schlick was to have had his right hand cut off and then to have been quartered alive. Ferdinand decides that the Count shall first be beheaded, and then have his right-hand cut off.

Had the war stopped in 1623, the Catholics would have been left with decided advantages; the ambition of Maximilian, however, prevented it. But Gustavus Adolphus appeared and by his efforts Protestantism is said to have been saved from extinction. As there was little of it left on the continent, he saw that he must either attack or eventually defend. He took the offensive; circumstances favored him, there being a rivalry among leaders of the Catholics. During thirteen of the thirty years, the lands of the Protestants had been devastated; during the next seventeen years came equalization of the exhaustion of the parties before a lasting religious peace was made. It became clear that neither Catholics nor Protestants could crush each other without both perishing.

TERRIBLE RESULTS OF THE WAR

In the Thirty Years' War, its terrible results may be summed up by saying that Germany was the carcass and the hosts which invaded the German soil were the vultures. The Protestant

invaders were Swedes, Finns, Hollanders, Frenchmen, Englishmen and Scotchmen; the Catholic intruders were Spaniards, Italians, Walloons, Poles, Cossacks, Croats, and representatives of nearly all Slavonic tribes. There was an army of 40,000, but the camp followers were 140,000, consisting of gangs of gypsies, Jewish traders, marauders and plunderers. The soldiers robbed and tortured all alike, both friend and foe.

The Thirty Years' War was said to have been so unspeakably cruel and calamitous that the like has never been known in Europe.

CAUSES OF THE LENGTH OF THF WAR Gustavus Adolphus said in a letter that the war would be long drawn out and stop from exhaustion. The original purpose of the war was the suppression of the Protestant faith, but the victories of Gustavus Adolphus had made the Catholics hopeless. Also other interests had risen up and there were other combatants; the war had passed from a German to a European question. Though there were times when peace might have been made, the side who had the best of it for the moment deemed it folly to stop when victory was in reach. The other side thought it base and cowardly not to continue, as some turn of fortune might repair the losses. Many a war has dragged on, after the purpose with which it began, was unattainable, because those who commenced it were too vain to admit that the objects of the war were impossible from its outset.

CAUSES OF THE WAR

The great length of the war gradually revealed its hopelessness and uselessness, creating a general desire for rest and peace, transforming and weakening the religious movements, out of which the war arose. The principle of private judgment, coming from the reformation, had had time to develop and undermine the ideas of temporal rights and duties, common to both parties, and many ideas impressed by the Reformation, but suppressed at the time, had at last been reached

through the long continued turbulations and had commenced to grow.

THE FUNDAMENTAL CAUSE OF THE WAR

The fundamental cause that brought the Thirty Years' War to a close was Mental Insight into the uselessness and hopelessness of further struggle, caused by the feeling of exhaustion, due to the long continuance of the war. The reason why this war put an end to all religious wars was that this intellectual insight became general in Europe, inculcating more liberal religious views. This psychological attitude, with increasing indifference to religion and resultant scepticism, caused religious questions to be regarded less seriously, making further wars for such purposes impossible. The basal reason, therefore, was the intellectual realisation of the foolishness of bloodshed on account of difference of religious convictions; that is, lack of knowledge of this fact in the past; in short, Ignorance was at the bottom of it all, as of most evils in the world.

SUGGESTIONS FROM THE THIRTY YEARS' WAR

In order to learn what suggestions from the Thirty Years' War may be of use around the peace table at Versailles, it will be well to mention the general similarities and differences between this war and the present European war. The similarities are as follows:

1. The Thirty Years' War began with the throwing out of a window (defenestration) detested persons; the European war started from an assassination.

2. The Thirty Years' War had been expected for some time; a general European war had been predicted for many years.

3. The Thirty Years' War began with a local incident and spread from country to country, just like the European war did.

4. The Thirty Years' War was exceedingly brutal for its generation, just as the European war has been for its time,

5. The Thirty Years' War was a very long one for its generation; the European war has been a relatively long one for recent times.

As to differences between the two wars, it may be said that:

1. In the Thirty Years' War both belligerents finally proved to be nearly equal in strength. In the European war one of the belligerents, though meeting with reversals at first, in the end completely overcame the other.

2. The Thirty Years' War ended in the exhaustion of both belligerents; the European war closed with the exhaustion of only one belligerent.

3. The Thirty Years' War was waged for religious convictions, rather than for gain; the European war was not so ideal in its purposes.

Taking a general view of the similarities and differences between the two wars, the one great question arises: Is the experience of the present European war strong enough for the victors and vanquished to be willing to yield sufficient of their natural rights and sovereignty, to submit all questions of war to some superior international court, from which there is no appeal ?

In the Thirty Years' War nothing further was necessary; the exhaustion of both belligerents was sufficient to end religious wars.

As the victorious party in war is much less inclined (if inclined at all) than the conquered foe to yield anything, will the Allies, without the experience of defeat and exhaustion, be willing to yield enough of their sovereignty to make the future peace of the world permanent? Will they be magnanimous and give up some national advantages of the present for future international benefits to all mankind ? In short, are they unselfish enough to so temper their justice with mercy as to establish a world peace, the greatest boon to humanity ever known?

Here is a supreme opportunity. Will the victorious Allies arise to the occasion and make future wars improbable, if not impossible?

We say "impossible," because if a nation is recalcitrant it can be punished by a general boy. cott, leading towards its economic ruin. As selfishness is the most powerful influence in nations as well as individuals, it is a moral cer tainty that no nation could or would submit very long to such punishment.

Just after a war is ended, and the belligerents feel more keenly its effects, than later on, they are much more disposed to make mutual concessions. Will the victors of the European war strike at once, while the iron is hot, and insist at the outset on the one great paramount issue, the absolute prohibition of all wars? Such a decision would radiate through all further proceedings of the Conference and facilitate greatly its work. By thus making a certainty of the most important question of all history, no matter how difficult and delicate matters of greater or less importance may be, the Peace Conference of Versailles will have assured its success in advance as the greatest and most beneficent that the world has ever had, just as the Peace of Westphalia was in its generation.

In the Peace Treaty of Westphalia were these words: "The hostilities that have taken place from the beginning of the late disturbances, in any place of whatsoever kind, by one side or the other, shall be forgotten and forgiven, so that neither party shall cherish enmity or hatred against, nor molest nor injure the other for any cause whatsoever."

Will the Peace Treaty of Versailles contain as generous and noble words, and stop all political wars for ever, just as the Peace of Westphalia put an end to all religious wars?

Will the 20th century Christianity, with its supposed greater liberality and enlightenment, be as far-seeing, unselfish and effective as the Christianity of the 17th century

Let the Conference at Versailles answer Yes,

NGLAND was long ago characterised as a nation of shopkeepers and though she has since given signal proofs of her military spirit on land and sea and her sons have unflinchingly responded to the call of duty in most trying circumstances, the taunt still remains. In fact this applies to practically the whole of Europe. A truly commercial spirit seems to pervade the treaties of most of the western nations. Commerce is the watchword of Europe and the foundation stone, as it were, of the present Western civilisation.

If one were to characterise India in the same way it would be enough to substitute the word Religion for Commerce. India might in the same sense and with perfect truth be called the land of saints and friars, aye, inspite of her transformation under powerful foreign influences. Every act private or public, national or individual will, when closely scrutinised, be found to have a religious basis. Even the most ordinary duties have to be referred to religion. Even sanitation and hygiene had, till recently, hardly any significance for the vast majority of people-not because they did not know these principles and understand their value, but because the same ground was covered quite as efficiently by that all comprehensive word-Religion. To publish in such a country, therefore, a series like the one published

*THE SAINTS OF INDIA SERIES

This is a new Series of short sketches dealing with the lives of the most eminent Saints that have risen in India with copious extracts from their poems and utterances. Each of the following volumes published in the Series has a fine frontispiece :

1. Dnyaneshwar; 2. Namdev; 3. Ekanath; 4. Ramdas; 5. Tukaram; 6. Tulsidas; 7. Nammalwar; 8. Appar; 9. Nanda; 10. Kabir; 11. Chaitanya; 12. Vivekananda; 13. Vallabhacharya; 14. Nanak; 15. Guru Govind; 16. Dayananda; 17. Ramakrishna; 18. Ram Tirath. Price Four Annas each.

G. A. Natesan & Co., Publishers, G. T. Madras.

by the enterprising firm of Messrs. Natesan & Co., the Routledge of Modern India, is to fulfil a real want. By so doing they have administered to the needs of a large number of people who hardly have any leisure to read more voluminous books.

Probably the series is not yet closed, but if the present collection may be taken to indicate the lines on which it is to be perfected, several important omissions, I think may be pointed out. First of all we have to decide the important questionWhat do we mean by a Saint? To say that a man who leads a saintly life is besides repeating a trifling commonplace, mere begging the question. What are the essential characteristics of a Saint? The learned might be in doubt but the people have no two opinions on the point. A Saint may belong to any religion. He might be a Hindu or Mahomedan, a Shaiva or a Vaishnava. In fact creeds and denominations have no meaning for him. You can't label him; you can't confine him into a water-tight compartment. He is not of this or that. He is of humanity at large. He does not need to be told the transient character of all sub-lunary relations and sentiments and therefore constantly thinks of the One, the Immutable and the Eternal. But his master passion is love. Intense love for God has been the distinguishing feature of all Saints. They have not sought to unravel the mystery of existence or discuss the nature of Brahm with the aid of logic but to realise the essential unity of their own existence with God, even to the extent of affirming in some cases contrary to established and formal religion-So aham (I am He or That), Tat Twam Asi (That thou art) or Hama Ost. (All this is He.) All of them without exception have been followers of the Bhakti Marga or the Path of Love. And these remarks, let it be noted, apply to Bullha and Farid as much as to Namdev and Kabir,