The most sublime of human epics record, not the furious clash of contending armies, but the silent struggle for mastery of rival institutions; the most profound of human dramas depict, not the onward march of conquering legions, but the upward surge of new ideas. Although the modern battlefield, served by the twin sciences of physics and chemistry, may bring bodily mutilation and death to millions, the competition of social systems may determine the spiritual destinies of whole nations and establish the mental pattern for a succession of generations. Indeed, such a competition may hold in the balance the inner lives of men and even the very gods they worship.

That the revolutionary movement which overthrew the rule of the tsars may be thus affecting the numerous and heterogeneous populations inhabiting the Soviet Union is already entirely obvious to the most casual observer; but that it may ultimately leave a deep impress on the other peoples of the earth is rarely considered as a serious pos-