SCENES IN THE GREAT WAR
THE ALIEN PERIL
But out of this failure of logic on the part of
"deep-thinking Germany" a danger came to us
from nearer home than the battlefield. One
of the most vivid flashes as of lightning whereby
we have seen the drama of the past 365 days
was that which, immediately after the sinking
of the Lusitania, showed us the full depths of
the "alien peril." Before the war we had had
fifty thousand German-born persons living in
our midst. They had enjoyed the whole freedom
of our commerce, the whole justice of our law
courts, and the whole protection of our police.
Many of them had married our British women,
who had borne them British children. Most of
them had learned to speak our language, and
some of us had learned to understand their own.
A few had become British subjects, and many
had been honoured by our King. Our music,
literature, and art had become theirs. Shakespeare
had, in effect, become a German poet, and
Wagner a British composer. The barriers between
our races had seemed to break down, and even
such of us as had small hope of a golden age of
universal brotherhood had begun to believe
that marriage, mutual interest, education, and
environment were making us one with these
strangers within our gates.
Then came a startling awakening. We realized
