CHAPTER IV

eirownfashiontheycareddeeplyaboutpolitics,thoughnotaspoliticianswouldhaveuscaretheydesiredthatpubliclifeshouldmirrorwhateverisgoodinthelifewithin.Temperance,tolerance,andsexualequalitywereintelligiblecriestothemwhereastheydidnotfollowourForwardPolicyinTibetwiththekeenattentionthatitmerits,andwouldattimesdismissthewholeBritishEmpirewithapuzzled,ifreverent,sigh.Notoutofthemaretheshowsofhistoryerected:theworldwouldbeagrey,bloodlessplacewereitcomposedentirelyofMissSchlegels.Buttheworldbeingwhatitis,perhapstheyshineoutinitlikestars. Awordontheirorigin.Theywerenot“Englishtotheback-bone,”astheiraunthadpiouslyasserted.But,ontheotherhand,theywerenot“Germansofthedreadfulsort.”TheirfatherhadbelongedtoatypethatwasmoreprominentinGermanyfiftyyearsagothannow.HewasnottheaggressiveGerman,sodeartotheEnglishjournalist,northedomesticGerman,sodeartotheEnglishwit.IfoneclassedhimatallitwouldbeasthecountrymanofHegelandKant,astheidealist,inclinedtobedreamy,whoseImperialismwastheImperialismoftheair.Notthathislifehadbeeninactive.HehadfoughtlikeblazesagainstDenmark,Austria,France.Buthehadfoughtwithoutvisualisingtheresultsofvictory.AhintofthetruthbrokeonhimafterSedan,whenhesawthedyedmoustachesofNapoleongoinggreyanotherwhenheenteredParis,andsawthesmashedwindowsoftheTuileries.Peacecame—itwasallveryimmense,onehadturnedintoanEmpire—butheknewthatsomequalityhadvanishedforwhichnotallAlsace-Lorrainecouldcompensatehim.GermanyacommercialPower,GermanyanavalPower,GermanywithcolonieshereandaForwardPolicythere,andlegitimateaspirationsintheotherplace,mightappealtoothers,andbefitlyservedbythemforhisownpart,heabstainedfromthefruitsofvictory,andnaturalisedhimselfinEngland.Themoreearnestmembersofhisfamilyneverforgavehim,andknewthathischildren,thoughscarcelyEnglishofthedreadfulsort,wouldneverbeGermantotheback-bone.Hehadobtainedworkinoneofourprovincialuniversities,andtheremarriedPoorEmily(orDieEnglanderin,asthecasemaybe),andasshehadmoney,theyproceededtoLondon,andcametoknowagoodmanypeople.Buthisgazewasalwaysfixedbeyondthesea.ItwashishopethatthecloudsofmaterialismobscuringtheFatherlandwouldpartintime,andthemildintellectuallightre-emerge.“DoyouimplythatweGermansarestupid,UncleErnst?”exclaimedahaughtyandmagnificentnephew.UncleErnstreplied,“Tomymind.Youusetheintellect,butyounolongercareaboutit.ThatIcallstupidity.”Asthehaughtynephewdidnotfollow,hecontinued,“Youonlycareaboutthethingsthatyoucanuse,andthereforearrangetheminthefollowingorder:Money,supremelyusefulintellect,ratherusefulimagination,ofnouseatall.No”—fortheotherhadprotested—“yourPan-GermanismisnomoreimaginativethanisourImperialismoverhere.Itisthev