The preface ends with the following words :—
"If we are not allowed to equip our factories and workshops with adequate labour to supply our armies, because we must not transgress regulations applicable to normal conditions ; if practices are maintained which restrict the output of essential war material; if the nation hesitates, when the need is clear, to take the neces- sary steps to call forth its manhood to defend honour and existence; if vital decisions are postponed until too late ; if we neglect to make ready for all probable eventualities ; if, in fact, we give ground for the accusation that we are slouching into disaster as if we were walking along the ordinary paths of peace without an enemy in sight—then I can sea no hope ; but if we sacrifice all we own and all we like for our native land ; if our preparations are characterized by grip, resolution, and a prompt readiness in every sphere, then victory is assured."
We conclude that the words " if the nation hesitates, when the need is clear, to take the necessary steps to call forth its manhood to defend honour and existence" can only refer to
National Service. We see no other meaning in them. On Tuesday the Daily Chronicle stated explicitly that Mr. Lloyd George had become a supporter of compulsion. When the Pall Mall Gazette asked if this were true, Mr. Lloyd George's answer was that he could make no announcement before a decision had been reached by the Cabinet.
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