The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1915-10-27
is A PEOPLES WAR
FOR THE ENGLISH


ion not of a single class or faction,
but of the entire English people which
forced vacillating government to
declare war against Germany. Since
then not a single week has passed
that we have not seen signs which
plainly indicate that this war is the
peoples war.
All the voices we hear from tn.
trenches. in Flanders and the Gallipoji
peninsula clamor for continuation
of the war until German militarisn
has been crushed.
1t is for this purpose that hosts oe
volunteers have rushed to the colors
from all parts of England as we'll As
from the colonies.
The British race all over the world
demands the absolute annihilation of
German militia, ism. 1t wants forever
to free the civilized world from the
insane competition in Sarmaments
which has sapped the strength of Eu-
rope for decades.
But there are those here now who
are beginning to fear that the govern
ment is weakening and may be ready
to conclude some makeshift peace
with Germany as soon as it dares do
SO.
The people who fear this point tc
the difference between Premier As
quith's utterances during the early
part of the war and his latest ones,
and they demand that the govern
ment should, if necessary, be forced
to live up to the promise Mr.. Asquith
gave when he said: eve shall never
sheath the sword until the military
domination of Prussia is wholly and
finally destroyed"
. I have talked to men of all classes
here time and again and have yet
failed to meet single person willing
to admit that anybody is entitled TO
think of peace yet, except on the
ba5 of unconditional surrender on
the part of Germany. "Let them
plead guilty and ask for mercy and
we might listen to them, but we re-
fuse to parley with murderers", is
the opinion you hear voiced every
where.
Should the government, influenced
by loquacious peace cranks, show any
inclination towards patched up
peace its days would be over and
there would be revolution in this
country.
A certain member of parliament
here, who is rather inclined towards
sensationalism, recently publicly de-
clared that the government is endeav-
oring to prepare public opinion for a
compromise with Germany and as a
proof of this he points to the fact
that even Lloyd George, the most Wig
>orous personality in the present cabi-
net, in an interview with a Paris
journalist showed that government
has hacked down by his statement
that $50 long as a single German SOL
der remains on French or Belgian
soil, no Englishman will dream of
peace.
These words are quite different
from those of the prime minister quo
ted above and it is pointed out that
Germany financially and economical
! ly exhausted as she is, ard robbed Of
her Efe-blood through her Russian
campaign, would be only too ready
to retire Immediately from France
and Belgium, if she could get peace
on such conditions.
Although King George has not
found time to go hunting this year,
the splendidly stocked forest around
Balmoral are being regularly shot
over by gamekeepers above military
age. The bags invariably go straight
to the military hospitals, where game
is to be found almost daily on the
menues for the wounded and conval-
lescent soldiers. Some splendid stays
shot by young Prince Albert, who has
tried his skill with the gun for the
first time this, year, were sent to a
large military hospital in Scotland.
The number of English society wo-
men regularly engaged in making am
munition runs into many scores, but
none of them probably takes her work
more seriously than Lady Scott, wi
low of the South Pole explorer, who
is the only woman worker in the cleo
trical department of Vickers at Erith
pn the Thames and who works the
I. L