In the House of Commons on Wednesday Mr. Balfour proposed
the grant of £100,000 to Lord Roberts in what, in our opinion, was a speech of rare eloquence and insight. Mr. Balfour has been censured for overdoing his praise of Lord Roberts by comparing his achievements to those of Wellington. Those who argue thus must be singularly ignorant of military affairs. The difficulties which a general has to overcome cannot be computed either by the number of men or by the picturesqueness and historical import- ance of the commander opposed to him. It sounds, of course, much less magnificent to beat a Cronje at Paardeberg than a Napoleon at Waterloo, but it by no means follows that the less high-sounding victory is the easier. Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman supported the grant, but Mr. Dillon opposed it with insolent bitterness, and accused Lord Roberts of inhumanity. We are glad to note that though one or two Liberal speakers spoke against the vote, Mr. Haldane and Mr. Strachey, the latter speaking as a Radical, rebuked the Irish for their accusations against Lord Roberts, and paid a warm tribute to the General's humanity of conduct. In the end Mr. Balfour was forced to move the Closure, and the grant was agreed to by a majority of 208 votes (281 to 73). We have so often expressed our opinion as to Lord Roberts's genius for war that it is unnecessary to repeat it here. No great soldier ever possessed a nobler and more humane character than his. His career proves that war does not in fact harden men's hearts or in any way deprive them of the qualities of the good citizen. To men of Lord Roberts's nature the field is a school of virtue, both in the ancient and the modern sense.
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