Australia, therefore, joined in a trade treaty with Eastern Asia, but Western Europe refused.
It considered that the flooding of its markets with cheap-made Asiatic goods would mean serious opposition to home factories, which were being run under high wages.
Belgium alone stood for freedom of trade exchange with Asia. This single nation in Western Europe that had stood against Socialism was now a nation of great manufacturing capacity, a country of wealthy people, a haven for the thoughtful and the ambitious who were forced out of Humanist nations. Belgium was the centre of European invention.
It could foresee trouble in restricting Asiatic desires for trade exchange, and pleaded with the nations of Western Europe to open their ports. It was pointed out, that out of 300 of the wars in the history of the world, 272 were due to trade causes and only 28 were due to religious or other causes.
It was pointed out that freedom of trade between German States had made Germany so strong, that in 1914 it could fight a fifteen months war with the greatest nations of the world.
But the Humanist nations, being non-militant, turned a deaf ear.
It came like a trumpet blast in the ear of a sleeping man, and it found Western Europe unprepared--with its energy wasted under the rule of Socialism, and with its armies and navies almost deteriorated out of existence.
I remember it was the afternoon of Christmas Day, 1916.
Madame had come across to our little home at Dinant for a few days' rest.
She had almost worked herself to sickness in her active campaign of organising in preparation for the war-storm that threatened Europe.
We were sitting on the verandah, overlooking the river, when we noticed far down the zig-zag track that led to the house, a black-cloaked figure. It was coming towards us and walked with the aid of a stick. As it approached, it brought to my memory a similar figure I had met on the Coblenz road; and I told Madame the story of my meeting with Wilbrid.
"If that is Wilbrid," she exclaimed, "he is spying. He must not see me here."
I explained that it could not be the Great Humanist, as, eighteen months before, he had changed his clerical garb for that of a civilian; and this figure was old and bent, whereas Wilbrid was tall and erect.