That this may be accomplished the man at the Front is willing to go on risking life and sanity for twice four years, if need be: in the certainty that it will be accomplished, he will die without regret. We British and men of the Dominions did not always feel this way. When we entered the war we determined to remain gentlemen whatever happened. We weren’t going to be vulgar and lose our tempers; we weren’t going to be un-sportsmanly and learn to hate. Though dirty tricks were played on us, we would still play fair. Our code of honour demanded it. There should be no retaliation. Then came the Germans’ employment of gas, his flame attacks, his submarining of merchantmen, his bombing of hospitals and civilian towns. You can’t play fair with an enemy who flies the flag of truce that he may shoot you in the back. Tit for tat was the only code of honour which came within the comprehension of such a ruffian. It took three years for us to stoop to the bombing of the Rhine towns. The wisdom of the step has been proved; the children of London now sleep safely in their beds. In my opinion, at least in as far as the British armies are concerned, the success of the present offensive has just one meaning: after four years of gallant smiling our soldiers have attained a righteous anger—a determination to exact a just revenge. They no longer make lenient discriminations between Germany and her rulers. They know now that the breath of every individual German is tainted with the odour of carnage. What makes our anger more bitter is the shame that Germany should have forced us to stoop to hatred as a weapon. But there is only one safe principle upon which to act in dealing with Germany, whether in fighting her or making peace with her: With whatever measure she metes, it should be measured to her again. Brute force is the only reasoning she understands. The Imperial Chancellor has appealed for peace “in the interest of suffering humanity.” Even in his cry for mercy he speaks vaingloriously, boasting of the “incomparable heroism” of his mob of brutes who have made humanity suffer.