will after this Order, we trust, feel thoroughly ashamed of their fears. Though they have never gained the ear of the British people or shaken their confidence in Russia, they...

C HRISTMAS week, 1916 ; has been distinguished by three great events—President Wilson's Note, the Tsar's magnificent message to his soldiers in the field, and lastly, but for us...

arrived. The enemy has not yet been driven out of the provinces occupied by her. The attainment by Russia of the tasks created by the war—the regaining of Constantinople and the...

the greatest that has ever taken place in the Empire. If we cannot yet see all the results that may flow from it, we realize that the foundations of what will some day be a...

any suggestions, or ask any questions, that he may think proper. But the sting of his Note for the Allies, and especially for Great Britain and France, lay in the reasons which...

case.

Government invited the Prime Ministers of the self-governing Dominions to attend a series of special and continuous meet- ings of the War Cabinet "in order to consider urgent...

sound way of getting over the Indian difficulty. It is no good to pretend that the great Empire of India, for which the British nation is in a most real and literal sense the...

by issuing a Note to all the belligerent Powers, in which he " suggests that an early occasion be sought to call out from all the nations now at war such an avowal of their...

to- our comments in our leading columns we must say something here on one point in the Note. It is the passage in which the President tells .uts that all the Powers are " ready...

dazzled by these proposals. When, however, the wiser minds of Europe began consider the matter, they found that though the aspiration was admirable, it was impossible to carry...

reply, dated December 26th, is as- evasive as her peace proposal of a fortnight earlier. " The Imperial Government considers an immediate exchange of views the most suitable way...

of their big American brother to take steps towards ending a war in which they are suffering far more acutely than he is. Switzer- land has given expression to- her sentiments...

warn Mr. Wilson - that he is very greatly mistaken if he thinks that all the nations of the earth will be prepared to enter into such a League. No doubt they will all consider...

and in saying it he has amazed and distressed- the British. and French peoples. We may, and do, think their alarm quiteunnecessary, but we cannot because of our own feeling...

Itfr .• Wilson, though their formal answer has not yet been transmitted. On December 22nd, when his Note was published in England, the King's Speech closing the Session of...

delight, as implying American support for the peace propaganda. But on second thoughts that influential portion of the Press which is hostile to the , Chancellor dedided that...

knows all about the Holy Alliance, and that we need not be afraid of his League of Peace ending in this sinister way. Alas ! we see no reason to think • that his venture would...

boys " of the Poor Law Schools, many of whom have done well at the front, some earning distinctions, including a V.C. Indeed, " the ' Children of the State' form perhaps the...

the historic town which marks the coastal boundary of Egypt in the Sinai Peninsula ninety miles east of the Canal, had been retaken on December 21st from the Turks after some...

Kut is being effectively maintained by heavy bombardment and aeroplane raids on the Turks' advanced base at Baghela, to which they had withdrawn from Shumran. A further...

advice of the outgoing Prime Minister, were announced on Thursday Week. Lord Sandhurst and Lord Cowdray are advanced to be Viscounts, while Mr. Lewis Harcourt receives by...

the Daily Mail of Tuesday prints a strong letter from its special correspondent at Liverpool. Ships have been held up and unable to sail to schedule time through the slack work...

worse than when we wrote last week. Heavy fighting continues from the Transylvanian frontier as far as Braila, on the Danube. In Great Wallachia the Germans claim to have taken...

a matter of habit, and he suggests that the Board of Control should devise some system of beer tickets. Other suggestions which ho mentions are the prohibition of the bottle...

Poor," published in Tuesday's issue, is a reassuring as well as a deeply interesting document. Not only is the decline of pauperism remarkable in numbers—showing a decrease of...

name of the Very Rev. John Herkless, D.D., the Principal of St. Andrews University, and for many years Professor of Ecclesiastical History. Sir Samuel Evans, the learned Judge...

item of im- portance is that a considerable new sector of the line has been taken over by the British forces. That is as it should be. It proves how steadily our man-power and...

"ENGAGE THY ENEMY MORE CLOSELY ! " " UNGAGE. the enemy more closely ! " by sea and - by land, _EA under the water and in the air. That should be the nation's New Year signal....

P RESIDENT WTLSON'S Note has caused not only a great deal more hostile feeling than he expected, but very much more than it need have caused. Trained and experienced...

the fuss and finesse which is being shown in regard to the terms of peace, alike by the Germans and by the Allies. Both sides talk about them, and President Wilson calls loudly...

N O doubt theoretically, and if no other considerations came in, the best guarantee for Security in the future obtain- able would be our insistence upon the democratization of...

A LL those persons with whom stupidity is not chronic are subject to seizures of stupidity. The symptoms of the complaint differ slightly between individual and individual, but...

f T was very interesting to read not long ago of a note of tribute I paid to our Army in France by a French writer who, referring to them as " Shakespeare's men,"says : " These...

PROHIBITION DURING THE WAR. [To TIIE ED1TOB Or 711a " SPEC - WM."1 Sirs,—I am a constant reader of your paper, and derive both pleasure and profit from the perusal of it. I...

name or initials, or trait a pseudonym, or are marked " Communi- cated," the Editor must not necessarily be held to be in agreement with the views therein expressed or with the...

[To THE EDITOR or THE " SPECTATOR.") SIR,—I have read, and no doubt others will read, the article in the Spectator on the question of new taxes with considerable interest and...

[To nu EDITOR OF THE " SPECTATOR."] Brit,—In your number of October 28th " C. S." writes very truly of the appreciation of the English people of " the self-sacrifice of our King...

SIR,—The Spectator, I regret to see, advocates the imposition of new taxes which, upon one section of the community at least— the middle class—will be a cruel addition to the...

OF THE " SPECTATOR."] SIR,—Your headlines " Down Glasses" have appeared many times. May I suggest that a more effectual heading would have been " Food or Beer "? If we can feed...

(To THE EDITOR or THE " SPF.CTATOR."1 Sia,—It appears from the latest version of the Chancellor's speech that wo are likely to remain in ignorance of the terms Germany would be...

(To THE EDITOR OR THE " SPECTATE:m."1 SIR, In your interesting article under this heading in the issue of December 16th you suggest, among other methods of raising additional...

(To THE EDITOR or rue ErECTATOR."] Sta,—Germany, conscious at last of her immediate failure to enslave the world under the thraldom of German Kultur, is now engaged in a supreme...

(To rue EDITOR or THE " SPECTATOR."] Sus,—The letter from Mr. W. M. Meredith in your issue of December 16th is not calculated to help either the national cause or the...

(To an Emma or THE " SPECTATOR.") gia,—In the House of Lords recently Lord Crewe is reported to Have said that discharged men were to be treated, in respect of pensions, " with...

(To ma EDITOR OP THE " SPECTATOR.") Sia,—This Bill, unless altered, will knock the Volunteers to bits. It will be found that not more than one-third of those at present...

Owue to the large and continued demand for copies of the poem entitled " Christ in Flanders," which appeared in our issue of September 11th, 1915, it has now been reprinted in...

[To THE EDITOR or THE " SPECIATOR."] Sin,—I must take exception to your statement that cats are no good at catching rats and mice unless they are " half starved." Many cats have...

[To enz Erases or sax " Sercraos."] Sia,—The wisdom of Solomon is applicable to the present situa- tion, and Pacificists, high and low, might find in Proverbs xix., verse 19, a...

SURSUM CORDA. Tax Power which holds the furthest sun, And bids it shine and serve apart, Bids me not leave my task undone, Bids me lift up my heart. And heavenward hearts, as...

THE CHATEAUX OF FRANCE.* Wares the Hun prevents us from getting tho refreshment that conies from looking at beautiful things much overdue to tired eyes and brains, while we...

Tea leading article . in the Spectator on the death of Lieutenant Hankey and his article " Don't Worry " have been republished as a leaflet by Messrs. W. Speaight and Sons,...

We have received for the above Fund the sums of .G1 1s. from James B. Aitken, Esq., and of ls. from an anonymous donor, making a total of 2209 19s. Gd.

[To THE EDITOR OF THE " SPECTATOR.'] Sur,—The public eye is now searching for waste land on which may be grown food to serve our needs in the future time of scarcity which now...

MIL HOWELLS, the doyen of American " belle-lettaists "—to borrow a convenient if ugly word used by De Quincey—recently entered on his eightieth year, but there are no signs of...

The R.P.A. Annual for 1917 contains articles by several distinguished men upon the probable effect of the war upon religion—" Will Orthodox Christianity Survive the War ? " The...

A FRAGMENT of a play, in Shakespeare's own handwriting, is preserved among the Harleian MSS. in the British Museum. Such is the proposi. tion which the-ex-Director sets himself...

XINGU.* Wa confess to approaching the novels and stories of Mrs. Wharton. with mingled emotions, in which a reverent admiration for her ability, her subtlety, and her artistic...

pleasant little volume of animal poems and stories in aid of Funds for wounded horses. The book contains con- tributions by Sir Henry Newbolt and other poets and prose writers,...

6s.)—An exceedingly good detective story begin- ning in the orthodox way with a murder.—The Grey Shepherd. By J. E. Buckrose. (Hodder and Stoughton. 35. 6d.)—An idyll of country...

Humphrey Milford. Al net.) —Anappeal to women for proper recognition of their work in war and reconstruction. It is addressed primarily to the women of Canada, but can be read...

Entice in this column does not necessarily preclude subsezuent restos.) The War and Wales. By the Rev. J. Vyrnvry Morgan. (Chapman and Hall. 10s. 6d. net.)—Dr. Morgan, the...

for 1917, edited by A. G. M. Heselrige (Dean and Sons, 37s. 6d. net), makes its appearance with its accustomed regularity, and, despite the exceptional work entailed by the...