When that has been said, however, it must be admitted
that Sir Henry Wilson's pen turned too easily from invective to panegyric. The incident is a lesson in the correct manner of reading diaries. Diaries must be read in the context of the author's temperament. If that is not known to the reader it ought, if possible, to be ascertained. Sir Henry Wilson was a brilliant, explosive, but affectionate man, who dashed down his thoughts as quickly as they leaped into his brain. His contempt for politicians was inconsistent, as he had a *good deal of the politician in his own composition. If the editor of the diaries had known of these letters to Mr. Lloyd George he would certainly have published them ; but even now that they are published they do not take us very much further. The judicious reader of the diaries will bear in mind that various answers are possible to most of the questions which Sir Henry Wilson raises with his inimitable liveliness.
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