THE TRAITOROUS CLERKS
SIR,—I am sorry that Sir Alfred Zimmern should have so misconceived my suggestion that "the final verdict of history may well be far 'less
severe on the democratic leaders who failed to stand up against the prevalent illusions of their day than on the intellectuals who fostered those illusions." My criticism was directed, not against all intellectuals,
but against those—and they were many and influential—who by their books, articles and speeches fostered the illusion that the League of Nations had superseded our individual responsibility as 0a nation for our security and had, in fact, made war impossible and patriotism superfluous. Sir Alfred asks me to be more specific and not attack "an anonymous and defenceless section of our community." No one need feel the need for defence against a generic charge which he does not regard as applicable to himself. Nor are " intellectuals " more defenceless than dead statesmen.
To turn to Lord Pethick Lawrence's earlier letter arguing that the Socialist Party would never have agreed to enter a coalition under Lord Halifax because of his association with the policy of appeasement. I can only say that my information at the time was different, and that the only person they were not prepared to serve under was Mr.
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