The Collected Fiction of William Hope Hodgson: The Dream Of X & Other Fantastic Visions Read Online Free Page B

it. War is still with us. So long as nations remain separate, having separate and conflicting interests, so long will the profession of human-butcher remain a hideous fact, until the time when we are agreed to form a World-Nation, policed, instead of butchered, into order.
    “A World-Nation is the cure for the causeless slaughter which obtains at the present date; yet it is a cure that lies in the future, and our aim at present is to make the best of that which we cannot escape. To this end I have two propositions to make; though they might both come under one head, and that is Economy.
    “The first would deal with expenditure. It will be remembered that up to the summer of ’51 the ‘gay’ uniform was not entirely discarded among the home regiments. On that date, however, it was finally abandoned, and universal brown became the accepted covering. Yet, in many ways this uniform is needlessly expensive, and I would suggest in place thereof the usual butcher’s blue overalls. This only by the way. I would dismiss all officers, and appoint in place thereof, to each hundred men, a head butcher. This will be sufficient for the present. I will explain later other ways in which the expenditure might be still further cut down.
    “The second portion of my proposals for economy deals with an innovation—Receipts! Yes, I would have receipts.
    “Given the fact that there is, and seems likely yet awhile to be, a need for human butchering; then, in the name of any small fragment of common sense we may possess, let us put the thing on a saner, more business-like footing—And Save the Meat! (Loud cheers.) Aye, save the meat, economize; treat it as the business it is—and a nasty, dirty business at that. Like reasonable people, go to the best, the most direct way to get it done and over as quickly and efficiently as possible. We could, in the event of my suggestion being adopted, point out to the victims that they were, at least, not dying quite in vain.”
    Mr. Russell then went on to make suggestions:—
    “War would, of course, have to be conducted on somewhat different lines than has been the case hitherto. Also, we should have to make International agreements that all nations should conform to the new methods of doing our killing. But no doubt it could be arranged. The item of economy would prove a mighty argument in its favour.
    “As to the actual scheme, there are several which I have in my mind, any one of which would do. To take one. We will suppose that there is a matter in dispute between two nations, and we are one of them. Well, we would, according to my idea, have a committee to study its importance, size, risks, desirabilities, etc.—everything, in fact, except the morality of it; then we would refer to statistics of various ‘kills’ in former butcheries, and so—taking all the points into consideration—strike an average, and form an estimate of the number to be killed to make a sure thing of it. The other side would do the same, and neither would know the number of men the other had voted to the settling of the business. This would supply a splendid element of chance, well calculated to give opportunities for developing all the necessary heroic qualities which any man could hope to have.
    “The next part of the work would be to pick the men. They would be chosen by lot; so many from each station— a method well calculated to improve their nerve, hardihood, manhood, stoicism, fortitude, and many other good qualities. As the last stand of those who uphold war has been its beneficial effect on the manhood of the nation, it will be seen that my proposition must meet with their approval; for, before a blow has been struck, a large proportion of the training has been accomplished.
    “Having now picked our butchers (or victims), their numbers as per estimate of the Meat Office—I mean the War Office—we would turn them into a big pen along with the chosen number which the opposing nation had voted as being