Roosevelt And His America

tllS A. 3VC E R. I A. PREFACE THE world seems to be enjoying an era of bad feeling. Europe misunderstands the United States, not so much because it knows nothing of America, but because it has a too dry and intellectual know-ledge of America and has ceased seeing it as a living unit. It has heard so much about American standardization, American prosperity, American methods, that it has forgotten America itself. For most Europeans America is a big factory, where everybody is busily engaged in following the rules elaborated by a few famous engineers, such as Messrs. Ford, Edison and Hoover, and by Owen D. Young. America appears as the incarnation and sum ming up of the industrial civilization of to-day, and as such it is condemned and denounced. Nobody seems to remember that America is a nation which has already gone through several stages and kinds of civilizations and whose real greatness has been to forge ahead and de velop from generation to generation constantly new forms of social life and human culture. My first aim and hope in writing this book was to remind Europeans that America is a force, not a formula. It would have been easier to praise America, but it would have led nowhere. I should have enjoyed writing an Apology for the United States, or a Eulogium of the new World. vi PREFACE But it would have been useless. I might have put asleep a few people I should not have reached their minds or their hearts. But President Roosevelt gave an opportunity to study American energy and initiative and its freedom from all formulas and methods. During the eventful months of 1933 the President and the people of the United States have proved that they were able to discard the past entirelyeverything, even the most valuable and cherished tradition to keep life and activity in the country, to keep the nation alive, working and going ahead. In contrast with eight years of blind prosperity these eight months of lucid sacrifice are one of the most en lightening sights that the modern world has seen, and one of the most hopeful. To make it understandable to the European reader, I had to begin by taking his point of view, which may sometimes surprise the American reader and to give an accurate picture, I had to be somewhat outspoken and crude. Politicians all over the world have the habit of clothing their acts and methods with such elegant words and philosophic formulas that, when they are translated into precise English, the whole thing looks surprising. This is particularly true of the years 1920-1930, during which the whole world lived in a fools paradise and fed itself upon the most childish optimism. A study of France, of England, of Germany, and of practically each of the great countries of the world would show very much the same kind of things going on there as in America during that period. As a matter of fact, the whole world was then imitating America, and follow PREFACE vii ing her as closely as possible. That is why in these pages I have not tried to praise or to blame America. I do not feel that anybody has a right to do it, but I thought that for the sake of the world and of America it was better to speak plainly. The United States is a great nation, probably the strongest nation of to-day, and their influence on the evolution of the century cannot but be dominating. Their actions and decisions will have fateful results throughout the world and for the ages. Eventhough they are not anxious to assert this world-leadership and to exploit this imperial supremacy, they will sooner or later have to recognize this situation. This book, which is less a picture of what happened in the United States than a picture of the United States as they acted and as the world saw them while they were acting, may help to bring and prepare this hour. I should be very glad if it did...