But as between the two great English-speaking nations of the world, it
is in the power of the most foolish politician or the most
irresponsible sub-editor, on either side of the Atlantic, to create an
international complication with a single spoken phrase or stroke of
the pen. And as both countries appear to be inhabited very largely by
persons who regard newspapers as Bibles and foolish politicians as
inspired prophets, it seems advisable to take steps to regulate the
matter.

This brings us to another matter--the attitude of the American Press
toward the War. A certain section thereof, which need not be
particularized further, has never ceased, probably under the combined
influences of bias and subsidy, to abuse the Allies, particularly the
British, and misrepresent their motives and ideals. This sort of
journalism "cuts no ice" in the United States. It is just "yellow
journalism." _Voilà tout!_ Why take it seriously? But the British
people do not know this; and as the British half-penny Press, when it
does quote the American Press, rarely quotes anything but the most
virulent extracts from this particular class of newspaper, one is
reduced yet again to wondering whence the blessings of a common
language are to be derived.

But taking them all round, the newspapers of America have handled the
questions of the War with conspicuous fairness and ability. They are
all fundamentally pro-Ally; and the only criticism which can be
directed at them from an Allied quarter is that in their anxiety to
give both sides a hearing, they have been a little too indulgent to
Germany's claims to moral consideration, and have been a little
over-inclined to accept the German Chancellor's pious manifestoes at
their face value. But generally speaking it may be said that the