-On Tuesday Parliament adjourned till Thursday, April 18th, on - which day
the Budget is to be introduced. Before adjourning the House of Commons had to listen to a thoroughly well- intentioned; and also' thoroughly futile, speech from Mr. Shaw on the conduct of the campaign. He thinks we have been exceptionally harsh and cruel, and protests accordingly, but in reality what Mr. Shaw objects to is war altogether. He clearly has a horror of all war, no matter what the object. just as many people have an instinctive hatred of surgery, even when the motive is most benign. Thus, though Captain Lee had no difficulty in pointing out that we were much less harsh than the Germans or the Americans, and quoted the excellent American official proposition, "the more vigorously war is prosecuted, the better for humanity,- we may feel sure that Mr. Shaw was quite unmoved. Mr. Brodrick wound up the debate in a very sensible speech, and wisely did not take the matter too tragically. There is really no sort of reason why those who desire that this war should be prosecuted with vigour, and no ridiculous surrender be made to the Boers in order to avoid the disagreeable last tug that comes in every great action, should get into a fuss over the criticism of the supporters of the Boer view of the war. The country is perfectly calm and clear on the whole matter. It does not mean to lose its head over necessary acts of war, or to deprive our generals of the power of effectively carrying on hostilities, and it has not • the remotest notion of allowing Sir Alfred Milner to be recalled. Even if the Government wanted to perpetrate such an act of folly as that, which, of course, they do not, the country would not allow it. The country wants more, not less, vigour.
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