Mr. Lloyd George, while celebrating his fiftieth anniversary as a member of Parliament made a veiled reference to the suggestion that he should take office again if it were offered him, and he has left the impression in his reply that he would do so. It is doubtful whether such an invitation will ever be extended to him. He leads no great section in the House of Commons, and created an unfortunate impression by his speeches at the beginning of the war. That during the last war he captured the imagination of the British, and provided probably the finest fighting head of a fighting nation cannot be disputed. History, however, has rushed past him, and for many years he has been living in a sort of anti-climax which has served to remove much of the esteem in which he was held at the end of the last war. It is indeed doubtful when ther he would now command the confidence of the British as he did then, or that he is any better fitted for the task of leading the country to victory than are other men already in office. The caution of Mr. Neville Chamberlain, and the downrightness of Mr. Winston Churchill are better suited to the temperament of the British than is the volat: y of Mr. Lloyd George, while his recent utterances leave the uncomfortable impression that he would end this war in an endeavour to bring about what he considers a just peace. That would be a negotiated one which would undoubtedly permit Germany to make preparations for another attempt to secure domination in Europe, with all the possibilities of another generation having to face another war. That the Allied Governments are determined to stop once and for all, and there is in their ranks no room for men who cannot accept the view that all further fear of German aggression must be removed from the realm of practical politics, and that Europe shall be given ihe longest period possible in which to recover from the grievous hurt which has already been inflicted upon it. The conclusion has sadly to be reached that Mr. Lloyd George is not the man either to lead the Empire in war, or to be entrusted with the task of obtaining peace for it. The issues between the Allies and the Nazis is so cleanly cut, the determination of the people to put an end to all possibility of further aggression so firm, that it would be a hideous mistake to offer office to a man who might not devote all his energies to the fulfilment of that decision.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.