A hush of preparedness is descending upon this island, yet
from the hedgerows still come some chirps of appease- ment. I received this morning a letter dated from the Langham Hotel and signed " Mother of a Wykehamist." In this letter I was informed that it was all my fault in any case, since I had negotiated the Treaty of Versailles, and that my atti- tude towards Herr Hitler was that of " an arrogant bully." I do not fully recognise myself in either of these roles. It is true, however, that I believe that the only hope of pre- serving peace is to convince Herr Hitler that this country is determined, at any cost, to prevent a German hegemony in Europe. Lord Halifax's splendid speech at the Chatham House dinner, fortified as it was by the Prime Minister's short sharp sentence on Sunday evening, may well have induced Herr Hider to observe that the green light has turned to amber. He will not see the red light glowing so long as, in the inner keep of Downing Street, the bridge to surrender is guarded with Horatian tenacity. If we desire to convince either Germany or Russia it is essential that, within the next few days, this dangerous aperture should be closed by the inclusion within the Cabinet of men pledged to resistance, and by transferring to the Foreign Secretary and his expert advisers the conduct of our Foreign Affairs.
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