DINNER IN HONOR OF PROFESSOR JOHN BATES CLARK 367 
That means a unifying of thought and feeling as well as of practical 
action. A great number of changes are involved and I am not going to 
recite them, but they have much to do with the question of future war 
and peace. That question is not settled, and no one can accurately judge 
as to the outlook; but some things we can know. Since the treaty of 
Westphalia there have been intervals of peace tending, on the whole, to 
grow longer. There have been three attempts to restore the ancient system 
of great empires and the world has gathered its forces and successfully 
resisted those efforts. The modern world has never been subjected to great 
monarchies like those which gave to the ancient world nearly all the peace 
that it ever enjoyed. Within their boundaries there was a large measure 
of peace, but very little freedom, while beyond the borders, there was more 
freedom than peace. That lived only under the shadow of despotism. 
The question of the present day, aside from that of further practical 
arts, is whether the unifying of the world, which has come about by an 
sconomic evolution, will lead us to a peace that can coexist with freedom. 
[s peace consistent with the independence of states? It is so if the 
organic unity that the economic system creates can be carried over into 
the realm of international politics. An heroic effort has been made to do 
exactly that. A league of nations now exists and has the support of most 
countries though Russia is not in it and, unhappily, America is not so. I 
am as proud as I can be of my country, in almost everything that falls 
within the sphere of economies. My pride is a negative quantity when it 
comes to international politics. What I should like to see is the spirit of 
world economics in some way penetrating world polities, and I should like 
to see my country lead rather than obstruct this noble and redeeming 
movement. 
That is all the economics and politics that I shall indulge in just now; 
otherwise I should be tempted to go much farther. I repeat my expression 
of gratitude to you all, for your kind regards, for your inspiring presence, 
and for something that will give me, not merely a day of happiness, but 
what I have the audacity to hope will be a reasonably long evening of life 
and similar happiness. All this and much more I hope and earnestly 
invoke for you all. 
Guest oF HONOR 
Professor John Bates Clark 
SPEAKERS 
Dr. Nicholas Murray Butler 
Professor Frank A. Fetter 
Professor Franklin H. Giddings 
Professor Edwin R. A. Seligman 
GUESTS 
Tugene E. Agger 
Benjamin M. Anderson, Jr. 
James W. Angell 
Stephen Baker 
George R. Beach 
James C. Bonbright 
Clarence W. Bowen 
Wendell T. Bush