KITCHENER'S WORK.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XI, Issue 198, 15 August 1921, Page 5

KITCHENER'S WORK.

DEFENDED BY SIR GEORGE ARTHURSTINGING REPLY TO LORD ESHER. London, Aug. 12. Sir George Arthur, in a press interview, protests that Lord Esher has set out to pull down from the pinnacle of fame a man whoso candid friend Lord ' Esher professes to be. Against Lord Esher’s views re Kitchener’s alleged failure in the war ought to bo arrayed i Marshal Foch’s and M. Poincare’s judg- j ments. Marshal Foch, at the London ; peace procession, said they missed one great figure—Kitchener, the organiser! of tho victory. M. Poincare said that ■ but for Kitchener’s visit to Paris Anglo-French co-operation would probably have been lost and tho British would not have participated in the battle of the Marne. Sir George Arthur combats the suggestion- that Kitchener wanted to divert the forces Eastwards. On the contrary Kitchener’s policy was the maintenance of supreme strength on the Western front and not to withdraw troops to be safe in the East. In January, 1915, Kitchener strongly opposed Mr- Lloyd George’s proposal to withdraw troops from France and send them to Salonika, refusing to denude tho West by a single man. Writing in the “Daily Telegraph,” Sir George Arthur says: “Lord Esher proposes to bequeath to posterity his further rudeness on Kitchener. It might not be amiss that concurrently with Lord Esher’s verdict on Kitchener should run Kitchener’s estimate of Lord Esher as expressed to me.”—(A. and N.Z.)