NEWS OF THE WEEK
THERE was another great "scare" on Wednesday. It was re- ported everywhere, and especially in the House of Commons, that Lord Derby had again resigned, that the Russians had entered Constantinople, and that war would be immediately declared. The Ministry, however, persistently denied the reports, and next morning not only was the resignation of Lord Derby denied, but it was asserted that no incident had occurred to serve as foundation for the rumour. Its origin appears to have been a private meeting of a number of Conservative Members, who wished to express special confidence in Lord Beaconsfield, and either directly or by implication to request the resig- nation of Lord Derby. This would have been met by another meeting of Conservatives called to support Lord Derby, but as the first meeting came to nothing, the second was given up. 'The " scare " has a little subsided, and although it is evident that the situation is strained to the last degree, and that any hour may produce a collision most disastrous to Europe, there is still reason to hope that the wiser heads in the Government may perceive that the true interests of Great Britain, the freedom of the Straits and the security of Egypt, can be assured without war.
