Freedom regained

We always have thoroughly detested the mentality of those scientific periodicals which deemed it proper to introduce politics into their columns. During the war we have repeatedly been offended by the unworthy attitude of the editorial staffs of certain botanical journals of “Greater Germany” who admitted — or possibly even deliberately furthered — perorations stating not only the marvellous achievements of nazi-methods and their amazing usefulness towards the particular field of science covered by the periodical in question, but the faith and the devotion of their persons towards the sacred cause of the nazi-system. We have, as I say, not exactly admired this mentality in a scientific paper and we will not follow the example. However, too much has happened in the five long and hard years of bloody oppression by ruthless and barbarian enemies, both in Holland and in Indonesia, that this crucial moment in our national history could be passed without any comment even by a stolid and, allegedly, unemotional Hollander. For never more distinctly than in the past five years have we been enabled to state — or state again, as the case may be — how utterly different the Germans are from us, how fundamentally their mentality and their ideals differ from ours.