And eagle-eyed wisdom alone cannot take the lead of human action, which in its nature must for ever remain short-sighted.  The trouble of the civilised world is the want of a common conservative principle abstract enough to give the impulse, practical enough to form the rallying point of international action tending towards the restraint of particular ambitions.  Peace tribunals instituted for the greater glory of war will not replace it.  Whether such a principle exists—­who can say?  If it does not, then it ought to be invented.  A sage with a sense of humour and a heart of compassion should set about it without loss of time, and a solemn prophet full of words and fire ought to be given the task of preparing the minds.  So far there is no trace of such a principle anywhere in sight; even its plausible imitations (never very effective) have disappeared long ago before the doctrine of national aspirations. Il n’y a plus d’Europe—­there is only an armed and trading continent, the home of slowly maturing economical contests for life and death and of loudly proclaimed world-wide ambitions.  There are also other ambitions not so loud, but deeply rooted in the envious acquisitive temperament of the last corner amongst the great Powers of the Continent, whose feet are not exactly in the ocean—­not yet—­and whose head is very high up—­in Pomerania, the breeding place of such precious Grenadiers that Prince Bismarck (whom it is a pleasure to quote) would not have given the bones of one of them for the settlement of the old Eastern Question.  But times have changed, since, by way of keeping up, I suppose, some old barbaric German rite, the faithful servant of the Hohenzollerns was buried alive to celebrate the accession of a new Emperor.

Already the voice of surmises has been heard hinting tentatively at a possible re-grouping of European Powers.  The alliance of the three Empires is supposed possible.  And it may be possible.  The myth of Russia’s power is dying very hard—­hard enough for that combination to take place—­such is the fascination that a discredited show of numbers will still exercise upon the imagination of a people trained to the worship of force.  Germany may be willing to lend its support to a tottering autocracy for the sake of an undisputed first place, and of a preponderating voice in the settlement of every question in that south-east of Europe which merges into Asia.  No principle being involved in such an alliance of mere expediency, it would never be allowed to stand in the way of Germany’s other ambitions.  The fall of autocracy would bring its restraint automatically to an end.  Thus it may be believed that the support Russian despotism may get from its once humble friend and client will not be stamped by that thoroughness which is supposed to be the mark of German superiority.  Russia weakened down to the second place, or Russia eclipsed altogether during the throes of her regeneration, will answer equally well the plans of German policy—­which are many and various and often incredible, though the aim of them all is the same:  aggrandisement of territory and influence, with no regard to right and justice, either in the East or in the West.  For that and no other is the true note of your Welt-politik which desires to live.