We were met at St. Louis station by a vast crowd of photographers,
reporters--male and female--headed by the Mayor, a grand fellow called
Henry W. Kiel. He motored me to the Hotel Statler where my rooms were
full of roses and, in spite of an iron bed, we were more than
comfortable. I am like stuff that is guaranteed not to wash, so I sat
down at once to talk to the reporters, among whom I observed one man of
supreme intelligence. Caustic and bitter, he interrupted the females and
asked to be allowed to return to us after dinner. Mr. Paul Anderson and
I had a first rate discussion, while my secretary typed and telephoned
till, with his usual consideration, he came back to send me to bed,
where I remained like a trout on a bank with piles of old _Times's_
which Mr. Anderson had brought me.
I read details, for the first time, of Mr. Montague's resignation, and
smiled over the belated theory of the joint responsibility of our
British Cabinet. When one recalls the many conflicting opinions
expressed by every minister without rebuke, culminating in the Admiralty
note upon the Geddes Report, the Prime Minister's indignation is more
than droll. I presume the Conservative wing of the Coalition wanted to
get rid of Indian Reform as interpreted by the Viceroy and Mr. Montague,
and I shall watch with interest the action that Lord Reading will take
upon the matter.
Arresting Ghandi was as unwise as stealing a cow from a temple; but from
such a distance political comment may be as belated as the theory of
cabinet responsibility; and the inspired agitator--beloved of his
people--may, for all I know, be governing India at the present moment.
St. Louis is among the most interesting cities I have visited. The
Mississippi is commanded upon both its banks by huge buildings, and
spanned by grand bridges. There is a private park as large as the Bois
de Boulogne, and an open air theatre with oak trees on either side of
the stage. The school buildings and Washington College are of perfect
architecture, and I was grateful to Mrs. Moore--a woman of sympathy and
authority--for driving me out to a lovely club house for tea, which gave
me an opportunity of seeing the environment.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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