STRAIGHT FROM THE SHOULDER

Evening Post, Volume XCI, Issue 5, 7 January 1916, Page 6

STRAIGHT FROM THE SHOULDER

"In making these remarks, I speak as a soldier with •* single eye to the successful conduct of the war," is part of Lord Kitchener's comment on the Conscription Bill. The Field-Marshal is 'more concerned with phases of the war. than with phrases. To him the safety of the State is the supreme law, and he thinks that a policy of State preservation is more important, in a crisis, than a scheme of mere word-preservation. If "voluntaryism" does not provide sufficient soldiers, then stronger arguments than morai suasion and patriotic appeals have to be used, .according to Lord Kitchener. His purpose is' not io win elections—not to win votes —but to win the war; he does not try to save this or that political party, but to save the State. A grim humour may be perceived in these words : "I speak as a soldier .with a single eye to the successful conduct of the war." This is a gentle .reminder to all manner .of dogmatic laymen that the speaker knows the \vork of war, and that he has not-one eye. on the war theatre and • the other on a .prospective polling booth, lord Kitchener has also reminded a few forgetful folk that the important thing to do is to win the war. Some seem to imagine that it is more important to split the country on the edges of words, but the persons with a passion for.academics are not useful for leading the public to victory in these times. The need of the whole Empire is strong and sane leadership by men' who grudge a minimum of time to wordiness. Probably the British neople everywhere have a weariness of verbosity, • which is still common this eighteenth month cf the