We have no desire to stifle the views of any
section of the com- munity, and we would rather see the extreme Pacificist, since he exists though in negligible numbers, in Parliament than not. His speeches prevent the quidnuncs and pessimists from wailing. over the appalling strength and ability of the anti-war movement. Ovine ignotum pro magnifico is the truest of proverbs, but in cases like the present Ovine notum pro ludibrio is equally sound. But though fully aware of the advantages gained by Mr. Arthur Ponsonby's public: exhibition of himself and his views, we must not forget that there is another side to the picture. It is clear from the note we have quoted that in America an importance is attached to Mr. Ponsonby's sayings which has no relation to their real value. If a peace article is written by a Member of Parliament, it is held to be a most significant, nay. portentous, event. That is strange in a country like America, where the intrinsic value of the opinions of a Member of Congress is so well known, and where people trouble very little about what Walt Whitman termed " the insolence of elected persons" ; but the fact remains.
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