The author, having set forth in the preceding pages of this narrative, by many incidents of the war, some of the cruelties which war imposes upon people of a nation involved in it, will now proceed to narrate some of the consequences of war, which he has seen and experienced. It is hoped that the suggestions in the following pages may be seeds from which will spring good and lasting results in regard to the mode of adjusting disputes between nations and people, and thereby prevent cruel and destructive wars.

War is cruel at its best, and a calamity to any nation engaged in it. It is as General Sherman termed it, “Hell.”

War should be avoided whenever it can be by honorable means, but when good and noble principles, peaceful and honest people, are assailed and are in jeopardy, there being no hope of adjusting trouble by peaceable means, then the aggressor should be crushed as speedily as possible by the employment of all proper methods and enginery that can be secured. All the noble principles that “Old Glory” represents should be sustained at all hazards. Every citizen should rally in some manner for the purpose of defending those principles.

War is often a destroyer of beautiful and prosperous countries. It takes from their homes men of robust constitutions, ruins their health, and many are maimed for life; also many die and never return.

War takes men from their business, and many from their families, who are often neglected and suffer on account of not having the necessaries of life. It demoralizes the finances of a government, which in turn destroys industries and business in general. Many million dollars of war debts accumulate, which is often a very heavy burden upon a people and requires many years to extinguish it. It has been estimated that less than one-third of the amount expended by the United States Government for the purpose of crushing the great rebellion from 1861 to 1865 would have been sufficient to pay for the macadamizing of all the public country roads in the United States. The statement of the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States of the amount of money expended for all purposes necessarily growing out of the War of the Rebellion, from 1861 to 1865, brought down to Jan. 1, 1880, amounts to the enormous sum of $6,189,929,908, an amount almost beyond belief; but yet it should not be discredited, as it was computed from a copy of an itemized statement of the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States. In addition to the $6,189,929,908, about $3,000,000,000, paid to soldiers as pensions from 1880 to 1909, brings the entire cost of the war up to the immense sum of $9,189,929,908.

The following figures give the number of lives lost in the Union armies of the United States during the war from 1861 to 1865:

War is expensive, and should be avoided whenever it can be without relinquishing noble principles. The country traversed by large armies, both friend and foe, in time of war, is a great sufferer on account of the destruction of property, not maliciously, but as a natural consequence of war. When an army has been defeated by another it will retreat and destroy everything in its rear that would be of any use to the enemy pursuing it. Roads and railroads are destroyed for the purpose of delaying the pursuing enemy. Stock, provisions and anything needed to supply an army are generally appropriated for its use, if regular supplies can not be furnished by transportation. Fences are used for fuel by the soldiers when on the march and at the close of a day’s journey ordered to go into camp by the roadside. Fuel must be secured from some quarter, and generally fences are the only supply, and as a consequence large tracts of country are laid waste.

Citizens of a country where war is in progress are generally in a perilous situation as can be learned by the following pages. A country frequented by opposing armies is generally infested by scouting parties from both armies, who are continually passing over the country, and frequently meet unexpectedly in close proximity to a dwelling in which people reside, and firing begins, which occasionally results in the passing of a stray rifle ball or cannon shot through the house. Of such incidents the author of this narrative was an eyewitness on several occasions.

Enough has been said in former pages of this narrative, in regard to the cruelties of war and their consequences, so that people who are willing to inform themselves on this subject, and are not prejudiced, may readily comprehend the enormous blessings that would be bestowed upon humanity if nations would come to an agreement, abolish war from the earth, and establish a new era of affairs. The question now confronting us is how can war be abolished by the nations of the earth, and this new era be brought about? Like other great reforms a beginning would be necessary on a sound basis, and perhaps also on a small basis, which would probably grow and become a large international arbitration court, by which many cruel and destructive wars could be prevented. We suggest for a beginning of an international organization, that Uncle Sam issue a call to each civilized nation and urge each to furnish and send two representatives, including two from the United States, to some point where they would convene and organize a temporary international court, in addition to that already formed, for the purpose of organizing a permanent international arbitration court, which would be endowed with power to adjust and settle difficulties between nations represented by such court. The international arbitration court mentioned would of course be only in its infancy for some time after its organization, as it would require much time and labor to complete and make it capable for its task, after which great good could be accomplished by it by way of arbitration, and enlightening people of the different nations in regard to the ballot box, its importance in many ways, its sacredness, and the important duty of every person to honestly abide by its decisions.

The ballot box should be considered to be the ark of our national covenant and safety. It is certainly the ark of safety when its decisions are obeyed, and they always should be. The great War of the Rebellion from 1861 to 1865 was caused by the disobedience of a portion of the people of the United States to the decision of the ballot box in 1860, which elected Mr. Lincoln to the presidency of the United States. Some decisions by ballot may not agree with our views, but nevertheless we should obey them, as it is an evident fact that it is dangerous to disobey them.

Many people will undoubtedly hoot at the idea of abolishing war from the nations. They will argue that there always have been wars between nations and of course there always will be. But arguments do not prove that war cannot be abolished. Difficulties between nations have been satisfactorily adjusted in recent years, by arbitration and the giving of good advice, which proves beyond doubt that disputes can be settled without war. Perhaps a settlement of difficulties between nations by arbitration would not be entirely satisfactory in every case, but it would be a great blessing to humanity in general, and more satisfactory than a settlement by war. Considerable time would be required in arbitrating difficult cases, but on that account much good could result, as during the period of delay the anger of the disputants would undoubtedly abate, and with the addition of good advice from the arbitration court, pointing out the errors of the disputants, a satisfactory settlement would probably be the consequence. We imagine that some people will call the foregoing foolish and silly talk. It may appear to some people as such. Perhaps the pessimist will say that there is no use in trying to reform the people of the nations, because everything is growing worse, and he has no faith in progress. We have great faith in the work of reforming the nations of the earth in regard to warfare. Some people may say that nations cannot succeed without war, but we say they could prosper much better without it. We have faith in reformation, we being to some extent optimistic, believing in progress and advancing toward better things. We have confidence in the work of trying to abolish wars from the nations, which has already begun, and will as we think succeed, because people are rapidly becoming educated to new ideas, and in many lands becoming more Christianized by missionary work. Men and women in their moral characters are the real world powers. A few years ago Turkey, a powerful nation, declared war against Greece, a nation much inferior in strength, had entered Greece with a powerful army, and was ready to crush the little army of Grecians, when just in the nick of time several nations combined, forming a substitute for an arbitration court, and requested Turkey to stop. The request was obeyed, and the beautiful little country of Greece was rescued, the difficulty adjusted, and peace again smiled upon the once combatants. In this instance, with only several governments combined to interfere, a nation was saved from ruin.

Other instances could be cited where in the past very great good has been accomplished by arbitration. It is sincerely hoped that the good work will progress rapidly.