more and more constantly such an opinion as this:  “You see, when the war is over, you Americans will have much the largest merchant fleet.  You will have much the largest share of money, and England and France and all the rest of the world will owe you money.  You will have a large share of essential raw materials.  You will have the machinery for marine insurance and for foreign banking.  You will have much the largest volume of productive labour.  And you will know the world as you have never known it before.  What then is going to become of British trade?”

The best answer I can give is:  “Adopt American methods of manufacture, and the devil take the hindmost.  There will be for a long time plenty for everybody to do; and let us make sure that we both play the game fairly:  that’s the chief matter to look out for.”  That’s what I most fear in the decades following the end of the war—­trade clashes.

The Englishman’s pride will be hurt.  I recall a speech made to me by the friendliest of the British—­Mr. Balfour himself:  “I confess that as an Englishman it hurts my pride to have to borrow so much even from you.  But I will say that I’d rather be in your debt than in anybody else’s.”

     To Edward M. House

     May 27, 1918.

     MY DEAR HOUSE: 

...  I can write in the same spirit of the Labour Group which left for home last week.  Nobody has been here from our side who had a better influence than they.  They emphatically stuck by their instructions and took pleasure, against the blandishments of certain British Socialists, in declaring against any meeting with anybody from the enemy countries to discuss “peace-by-negotiation” or anything else till the enemy is whipped.  They made admirable speeches and proved admirable representatives of the bone and sinew of American manhood.  They had dead-earnestness and good-humour and hard horse-sense.

This sort of visit is all to the good.  Great good they do, too, in the present English curiosity to see and hear the right sort of frank, candid Americans.  Nobody who hasn’t been here lately can form an idea of the eagerness of all classes to hear and learn about the United States.  There never was, and maybe never will be again, such a chance to inform the British and—­to help them toward a rights understanding of the United States and our people.  We are not half using the opportunity.  There seems to be a feeling on your side the ocean that we oughtn’t to send men here to “lecture” the British.  No typical, earnest, sound American who has been here has “lectured” the British.  They have all simply told facts and instructed them and won their gratitude and removed misconceptions.  For instance, I have twenty inquiries a week about Dr. Buttrick.  He went about quietly during his visit here and talked to university audiences and to working-men’s meetings and he captured