New York Times Current History: The European War, Vol 1, No. 1: From the Beginning to March, 1915, With IndexVarious
History
New York Times Current History: The European War, Vol 1, No. 1: From the Beginning to March, 1915, With Index
Various
World War, 1914-1918
If Mr. Bennett had stopped there the Kaiser would send him the Iron
Cross, but of course, like a true born Englishman, he goes on to deny
indignantly that England has produced a militarist literature comparable
to Germany and to affirm hotly that Mr. Asquith is an honest man whose
bad arguments are "a genuine emotional expression of his convictions and
that of the whole country," and that Sir Edward Grey is an honest man,
and that he (Mr. Bennett) "strongly resents as Englishmen of all
opinions will resent any imputation to the contrary"--just what I said
he would say and that he entirely agrees with my denunciation of secret
diplomacy and undemocratic control of foreign policy and that I am a
perverse and wayward harlequin, mischievous, unveracious, scurrilous,
monstrous, disingenuous, flippant, unjust, inexact, scandalous, and
objectionable, and that on all points to which he takes exception and a
good many more I am so magnificent, brilliant, and convincing that no
citizen could rise from perusing me without being illuminated.
That is just a little what I meant by saying that Englishmen are
muddle-headed, because they never have been forced by political
adversity to mistrust their tempers and depend on a carefully stated
case as Irishmen have been.
*Showed Germany the Way.*
I did with great pains what nobody else had done. I showed what Germany
should have done, knowing that I had no right to reproach her for doing
what she did until I was prepared to show that a better way had been
open to her.
Bennett says, in effect, that nobody but a fool could suppose that my
way was practicable and proceeds to call Germany a burglar. That does
not get us much further. In fact, to me it seems a step backward. At all
events it is now up to Mr. Bennett to show us what practical alternative
Germany had except the one I described. If he cannot do that, can he
not, at least, fight for his side? We, who are mouthpieces of many
inarticulate citizens, who are fighting at home against the general
tumult of scare and rancor and silly cinematograph heroics for a sane
facing of facts and a stable settlement, are very few. We have to bring
the whole continent of war-struck lunatics to reason if we can.
What chance is there of our succeeding if we begin by attacking one
another because we do not like one another's style or confine ourselves
to one another's pet points? I invite Mr. Bennett to pay me some more
nice compliments and to reserve his fine old Staffordshire loathing for
my intellectual nimbleness until the war is over.--G. BERNARD SHAW.
[Illustration: G.K. CHESTERTON. _See Page 108_]
[Illustration: SIR ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE. (_Photo by Arnold Genthe_) _See
Page 132_]
*Flaws in Shaw's Logic*
By Cunninghame Graham.
Letter to The Daily News of London.
_To the Editor of The Daily News:_
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account