Their instinct should guide them to recognize unfailingly the very
rare conditions under which publication is desirable. A man who has not this instinct is not really a statesman, and never can be. Our readers may remember that we strongly protested—many of them thought our words very perverse, wanton, and harmful—againat some of Mr. Lloyd George's actions during the war. In looking back we cannot help recog- nizing that unhappily we were only too right in declaring that Mr. Lloyd George was a statesman of the restless, irresponsible, and therefore dangerous type. However, when Mr. Lloyd George succeeded Mr. Asquith, we said that it was very possible for him to drown his past in a future of consistent good conduct. What'ean we say now but the same thing in effect ? Mr. Lloyd George has just been returned to power by an overwhelming majority of the nation. We live in the earnest hope that he will use his tremendous power wisely, for we do not dispute that power ; but no one could be an honest critic, or even a respon- sible onlooker, who did not bear in mind the warnings of the past.
Previous page
