* * * * Lord Lloyd's booklet The British Case
has received a good deal of praise, and deservedly. Its argument is clearly and forcibly stated, and sustained on a high moral level. But if a second edition is called for, which seems likely, I hope the author may reconsider a passage or two which contain statements that are not merely controversial but actually misleading in their implications. Poland may or may not be the natural defence of Europe against " Oriental incursions," but to say that " the Bolshevik armies reached the gates of Warsaw in 192o and were broken by the Polish army; once again Germany, and Europe, was saved by Poland " is to ignore completely the very material fact that Poland was at war with Russia as the result of Polish aggres- sion, Marshal Pilsudski having, in spite of the warnings of the Allies, carried his advance as far as Kieff. What, more- over, of the statement that Fascism " threatens neither religious nor economic freedom, nor the security of other European nations "? Was Albania Asiatic? And when Lord Lloyd affirms that " the political machinery of Fascism is, indeed, built up on trade unionism " I suggest he should ask Sir Walter Citrine or Mr. Bevin which is trade unionism as they understand it, the system that Fascism destroyed or the system that Fascism created. These are not captious criticisms. Lord Lloyd's arguments will be much more effective if he can carry all his readers with him all the way.
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