There, the people are now firmly convinced that the war was forced on them, thanks to the casuistry of their leaders; they honestly believe, if professorial writings have any sincerity in them, that the invasion of Belgium was justified by their need, and that scraps of paper are only scraps of paper where they, the chosen nation for the spread of culture, are concerned; they believe that Britain’s blockade is barbarous and unjust, that France is an effete nation, that Russia is peopled by a horde of savages, that the starvation of their civilian prisoners instead of exchanging them is a just measure on their part--and many other things which sane reasoning shows to be false. They have, apparently, an endless credulity. If one would question the cause for this, the answer lies in one word--“Pan-Germanism,” that disease which has sapped away the moral fibre of a nation and implanted colossal conceit in its place. No statement is more true than that Germany is devoid of a sense of humour, for this sense is in its essence that of proportion, and not only in her methods of war and her dealings with the rest of the world has Germany lost all sense of proportion, but also in her estimate of herself and her place in the scheme of things. A proper sense of proportion is incompatible with Pan-Germanism. E. CHARLES VIVIAN [Illustration: ATROCITIES THE LECTURER: “From a comparison of the two subjects, gentlemen, you will perceive that there is very little difference between Germany and the Allies.”] “Is it You, Mother?” Since the opening of hostilities in the present war the Scottish regiments have given repeated proofs of a valour which adds new lustre to the great traditions of Scottish soldiership. Through all the early operations--on the retreat from Mons and at the battles of the Marne and the Aisne--the Royal Scots Guards, the Scots Greys, the Gordon, the Seaforth and the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, the King’s Own Scottish Borderers gained many fresh laurels by their heroism and undaunted spirit. The London Scottish Territorials, too, have shown a prowess as signal as that of the Scots of the Regular Army; while the mettle of men of Scottish descent has made glorious contribution in France and elsewhere to the fine records of the Overseas armies.