THE HORROR OF IT

Readers of Time magazine were profoundly shocked a few weeks ago by a photograph of a man whose upper jaw, nose, and cheeks were missing; the photograph was from a little book called "The Horror of It," published by a group of pacifists to show the real, unheroic, revolting side of war. Pictures and scraps of poetry gleaned from the work of soldiers compose the book. It comes up to the standard of ghoulish horror which Time's picture promised, and it is admittedly not pleasant; it might even be condemned as morbid if there were not a saving grace in the purpose for which it was printed.

"The Horror of It" is the most powerful piece of propaganda printed since the war. It is peace propaganda, and unlike the work of those whose business it was fifteen years ago to raise hatred to its worst pitch, this book has every moral sanction in its favor. Everything in it is true, everything is from the pens of those who saw war, or from the cameras which recorded the ghastliness of conflict for the official files of the belligerent powers. As a record of how revolting and how gruesome fighting can be the book has tremendous power to prevent future disasters.

However unpleasant these photographs may be, every informed man and woman should get a good grip on his digestive system and look carefully through the pages. If it is to have the effect which the men who compiled the book hoped it would have, it should be printed in the cheapest possible editions, and be broadcast throughout every literate nation. If it is widely enough seen it cannot fail of that effect. "The Horror of It" is an example of militant pacifism, in contrast to the pacifism which sits back and whines because it does not like fighting. Such pacifism shows the proper way to attack war. Reducing armaments without destroying the poisonous spirit which makes wars possible is futile. By making people hate and fear the very idea of war, peace may be firmly established, even in the face of national jealousies.