war and the future-第4章
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background of so many good portraits； a great blue…coated figure
with a soft voice and rather tired eyes； explaining very simply
and clearly the difficulties that this vulgar imperialism of
Germany； seizing upon modern science and modern appliances； has
created for France and the spirit of mankind。
He talked chiefly of the strangeness of this confounded war。 It
was exactly like a sanitary engineer speaking of the unexpected
difficulties of some particularly nasty inundation。 He made
little stiff horizontal gestures with his hands。 First one had
to build a dam and stop the rush of it； so； then one had to
organise the push that would send it back。 He explained the
organisation of the push。 They had got an organisation now that
was working out most satisfactorily。 Had I seen a sector？ I had
seen the sector of Soissons。 Yes； but that was not now an
offensive sector。 I must see an offensive sector； see the whole
method。 Lieutenant de Tessin must see that that was arranged。。。。
Neither he nor his two colleagues spoke of the Germans with
either hostility or humanity。 Germany for them is manifestly
merely an objectionable Thing。 It is not a nation； not a people；
but a nuisance。 One has to build up this great counter…thrust
bigger and stronger until they go back。 The war must end in
Germany。 The French generals have no such delusions about German
science or foresight or capacity as dominates the smart dinner
chatter of England。 One knows so well that detestable type of
English folly； and its voice of despair： 〃They /plan/
everything。 They foresee everything。〃 This paralysing
Germanophobia is not common among the French。 The war； the
French generals said； might takewell； it certainly looked like
taking longer than the winter。 Next summer perhaps。 Probably；
if nothing unforeseen occurred； before a full year has passed the
job might be done。 Were any surprises in store？ They didn't
seem to think it was probable that the Germans had any surprises
in store。。。。 The Germans are not an inventive people； they are
merely a thorough people。 One never knew for certain。
Is any greater contrast possible than between so implacable；
patient； reasonableand above all things /capable/a being
as General Joffre and the rhetorician of Potsdam； with his talk
of German Might； of Hammer Blows and Hacking Through？ Can there
be any doubt of the ultimate issue between them？
There are stories that sound pleasantly true to me about General
Joffre's ambitions after the war。 He is tired； then he will be
very tired。 He will； he declares； spend his first free summer in
making a tour of the waterways of France in a barge。 So I hope
it may be。 One imagines him as sitting quietly on the crumpled
remains of the last and tawdriest of Imperial traditions； with a
fishing line in the placid water and a large buff umbrella
overhead； the good ordinary man who does whatever is given to him
to doas well as he can。 The power that has taken the great
effigy of German imperialism by the throat is something very
composite and complex； but if we personify it at all it is
something more like General Joffre than any other single human
figure I can think of or imagine。
If I were to set a frontispiece to a book about this War I would
make General Joffre the frontispiece。
4
As we swung back along the dusty road to Paris at a pace of fifty
miles an hour and upwards； driven by a helmeted driver with an
aquiline profile fit to go upon a coin； whose merits were a
little flawed by a childish and dangerous ambition to run over
every cat he saw upon the road； I talked to de Tessin about this
big blue…coated figure of Joffre； which is not so much a figure
as a great generalisation of certain hitherto rather obscured
French qualities； and of the impression he had made upon me。 And
from that I went on to talk about the Super Man； for this
encounter had suddenly crystallised out a set of realisations
that had been for some time latent in my mind。
How much of what follows I said to de Tessin at the time I do not
clearly remember； but this is what I had in mind。
The idea of the superman is an idea that has been developed by
various people ignorant of biology and unaccustomed to biological
ways of thinking。 It is an obvious idea that follows in the
course of half an hour or so upon one's realisation of the
significance of Darwinism。 If man has evolved from something
different； he must now be evolving onward into something sur…
human。 The species in the future will be different from the
species of the past。 So far at least our Nietzsches and Shaws
and so on went right。
But being ignorant of the elementary biological proposition that
modification of a species means really a secular change in its
average； they jumped to a conclusionto which the late Lord
Salisbury also jumped years ago at a very memorable British
Association meetingthat a species is modified by the sudden
appearance of eccentric individuals here and there in the general
mass who interbreedpreferentially。 Helped by a streak of antic
egotism in themselves； they conceived of the superman as a
posturing personage； misunderstood by the vulgar； fantastic；
wonderful。 But the antic Personage； the thing I have called the
Effigy； is not new but old； the oldest thing in history； the
departing thing。 It depends not upon the advance of the species
but upon the uncritical hero…worship of the crowd。 You may see
the monster drawn twenty times the size of common men upon the
oldest monuments of Egypt and Assyria。 The true superman comes
not as the tremendous personal entry of a star； but in the less
dramatic form of a general increase of goodwill and skill and
common sense。 A species rises not by thrusting up peaks but by
the brimming up as a flood does。 The coming of the superman
means not an epidemic of personages but the disappearance of the
Personage in the universal ascent。 That is the point overlooked
by the megalomaniac school of Nietzsche and Shaw。
And it is the peculiarity of this war； it is the most reassuring
evidence that a great increase in general ability and critical
ability has been going on throughout the last century； that no
isolated great personages have emerged。 Never has there been so
much ability； invention； inspiration； leadership； but the very
abundance of good qualities has prevented our focusing upon those
of any one individual。 We all play our part in the realisation
of God's sanity in the world； but； as the strange； dramatic end
of Lord Kitchener has served to remind us； there is no single
individual of all the allied nations whose death can materially
affect the great destinies of this war。
In the last few years I have developed a religious belief that
has become now to me as real as any commonplace fact。 I think
that mankind is still as it were collectively dreaming and hardly
more awakened to reality than a very young child。 It has these
dreams that we express by the flags of nationalities and by
strange loyalties and by irrational creeds and ceremonies； and
its dreams at times become such nightmares as this war。 But the
time draws near when mankind will awake and the dreams will fade
away； and then there will be no nationality in all the world but
humanity； and no kind； no emperor； nor leader but the one God of
mankind。 This is my faith。 I am as certain of this as I was in
1900 that men would presently fly。 To me it is as if it must be
so。
So that to me this extraordinary refusal of the allied nations
under conditions that have always hitherto produced a Great Man
to produce anything of the sort； anything that can be used as an
effigy and carried about for the crowd to follow； is a fact of
extreme significance and encouragement。 It seems to me that the
twilight of the half gods must have come； that we have reached
the end of the age when men needed a Personal Figure about which
they could rally。 The Kaiser is perhaps the last of that long
series of crowned and cloaked and semi…divine personages which
has included Caesar and Alexander and Napoleon the First
and Third。 In the light of the new time we see the emperor…god
fo
