Page images
PDF
EPUB

yesterday most of us prepared to wait with such patience as we could command for another night. And then, just as we were reconciling ourselves to the fact that the 18th of May was not to witness the realisation of the promise made by Lord Roberts, the news came and the promise was most brilliantly fulfilled. The first announcement reached Reuter's office about twenty minutes past nine, and within an hour not only all London and all England, but the whole British Empire was in possession of the glad tidings. It was extraordinary to see how in London the first desire of those who heard the news was to impart it to others. Men who happened to be in the middle of the town when the newspapers containing the fateful telegram were published forthwith chartered cabs and set off to the outlying regions of the Metropolis, proclaiming the news everywhere as they passed along. In the theatres and other places of public resort the performances were stopped, the relief of the beleaguered village announced, and demonstrations of patriotic joy indulged in. At Euston Station the passengers by a mail train from the north were surprised at being received by the porters on their arrival with ringing cheers--cheers in which, I need hardly say, they joined with all their hearts when the reason for the unusual demonstration was made known. It was in the great thoroughfares of the West End, however, that the most wonderful sight was seen. Here the streets were blocked by a shouting, cheering, singing multitude, composed of both sexes and all classes-a multitude that seemed literally to have gone mad with joy. Where the crowd came from no one could tell. It seemed to have sprung out of the ground, and as the omnibuses from the suburbs, usually deserted at that hour, arrived in quick succession the multitude grew, for apparently everybody wished to take part in the open rejoicing over the great event. Far on into the small hours of the morning the tumultuous demonstration of an unbridled delight continued. In remote South Kensington squares, in distant Clapham, and in the northern suburbs, all through the night the sleepers were aroused by the sudden outburst of cheers from passers-by, while it was not until the dawn had appeared that our central thoroughfares returned to their normal aspect. It was indeed a night the like of which none of us had seen before.

But the day which has followed this wonderful night has been even more remarkable. From an early hour in the morning London seems to have made up its mind that this was not a day for work, or for anything, indeed, but a manifestation of its joy and pride in the successful defence of Mafeking. Accordingly from sunrise until midnight the great town has been given up to a saturnalia of rejoicing. Flags have fluttered everywhere, not merely in crowded streets but in aristocratic squares. Nor have they waved from houses and public buildings only. Every vehicle in the streets and a majority

of the passers-by have borne them-it was almost dangerous, indeed, to be seen without some emblem of the national joy. Processions chiefly composed of young people have passed to and fro along the streets all through the day, accompanied by the waving of banners, the singing of patriotic songs, and the wildest and loudest cheering to which I have ever listened. At nightfall the crowds increased, so that the thoroughfares became almost impassable, the glare of illuminations dispelled the darkness, whilst the shouts of victory that issued from tens of thousands of throats blended in one mighty roar that seemed to fill the very arch of heaven. It was astounding and bewildering, this sudden abandonment to a passionate impulse of triumphant patriotism of a people commonly so staid and decorous; but it was at the same time unmistakably impressive and significant.

The prettiest sight I saw during a day which will certainly have a page of its own in the national story was about noon at St. George's Place, where Mrs. Baden-Powell, the mother of the defender of Mafeking, lives. I was passing on an omnibus when the procession of students, both men and women, from South Kensington arrived in front of Mrs. Baden-Powell's house. All were armed with branches of palm or with flags, and they bore with them a huge bust of Colonel Baden-Powell, with a lion crouching at his feet. Opposite the house of the hero's mother they paused, and raised cheer after cheer, in which the dense crowd of spectators heartily joined. 'It is a pity his mother cannot see this, sir,' said to me the conductor of my omnibus. But she does see it,' I replied, pointing to where Mrs. Baden-Powell stood on the balcony to receive this homage to her son. The omnibus conductor looked a moment, and then burst into tears, which he furtively wiped away. Nor was he by any means the only person who was thus affected by that impressive scene. Clearly the heart of the nation has been touched, and has been moved as this generation, at all events, has not known it to be moved before.

It is perhaps best to leave this simple description of a memorable episode in our history without note or comment. It must not be supposed, however, that comments are not to be heard-some of them by no means favourable to the change which seems to be coming over our national character. 'Are we ceasing to be English?' was the question I heard asked to-night. 'Is this emotional exuberance in keeping with what is best in our characteristics as a race?' It is not easy to answer this question, but at least one may consoleoneself with the reflection that if we in the streets of London have fallen short of the traditions bequeathed from bygone generations, the defenders of Mafeking, like the defenders of Ladysmith and Kimberley, have most brilliantly maintained those traditions.

It seems a far cry' from Mr. Gladstone's grave in Westminster Abbey to Mafeking, and there is at first sight something incongruous.

in the accident which has given us this upheaval of sentiment on the day that witnesses the unveiling of the old Liberal leader's statue in the Houses of Parliament. But Mr. Gladstone's followers, those who understood something of the secret of his immense influence over the mind and heart of Great Britain, will not be disturbed by a contrast which, for the moment, seems so much to the disadvantage of their old chief. He, more than any statesman now living, possessed the power of swaying the sentiments of his fellow-countrymen, and knew how to touch the springs of sympathy and emotion. Today those springs respond, not to the voice of the statesman, but to deeds accomplished in heroic warfare on distant fields. We live in different times from those with which Mr. Gladstone's fame is associated, but his followers believe that the time is coming when some at least of the lessons which he taught will bear fruit, to the profit of his country and the world.

Monday, the 21st of May.-The official confirmation of the relief of Mafeking, which arrived to-day, has set at rest the minds of many anxious people, who maintained, in spite of the strong evidence furnished by the telegrams from Pretoria, that the good news of last Friday was after all of dubious authenticity. We have still to learn the full particulars of the remarkable expedition which was despatched with so much secrecy at the beginning of the present month for the relief of Mafeking. We know, however, that it encountered opposition by the way. We know, further, that to the very last the beleaguered garrison was well able to hold its own against the besiegers, and that the attempt of the latter to rush the town resulted in a grave disaster to the Boer forces. London is calming down to-day, after the excitement in which it has indulged. But the tidings of the official confirmation of the relief and of Baden-Powell's promotion to the rank of major-general has brought about a partial revival of Saturday's enthusiasm. The signs of the imminent collapse of the Boer resistance are steadily increasing, and though there is no confirmation of the story that President Kruger has sued for peace, it is generally assumed that this event is not far off.

Tuesday, the 22nd of May.-So the trouble over the Australian Federation Bill has been dissipated, and the great measure has been accepted by all parties in the House of Commons, not merely with satisfaction but with enthusiasm. The compromise arrived at by the Colonial Secretary and the delegates from Australia is an ingenious one, and none the less ingenious that it is, after all, only a question of words. Neither party meant to quarrel, both were animated by feelings of goodwill, and thus a settlement was comparatively easy of attainment. It would have been strange, indeed, if at a time when Australia has shown how fully she shares our joy at the successes of our arms in South Africa a lawyers' quarrel were to cause any serious difference between the mother country and the great Australasian

States. For the present the sun is shining upon the British Empire as it has not shone upon it for many a weary month. The refusal of the American Government to listen to the appeal of the Boer delegates puts an end to the last hopes of our foe, whilst the steady progress of our army in the direction of Pretoria strengthens the popular confidence in the early conclusion of peace. As a matter of course, with the prospect of an early settlement of South African affairs comes another wave of speculation as to the date of the dissolution, and the quidnuncs go so far as to declare to-day that the month of August will witness the appeal to the electors.

Thursday, the 24th of May.-The triumph of the ladies in the House of Commons yesterday afternoon was much more complete than had been expected. It was, we are bluntly told this morning, due to the approach of the General Election. If so, it was only one of many Parliamentary movements affected by the same cause. Whatever may be the merits of the great woman question, the division of yesterday has caused much elation among the supporters of the female suffrage movement. They believe that their day of triumph is at hand, and, as they are convinced that men have made a ghastly mess of the attempt to rule the national destinies, they look forward with joy to the irruption of enfranchised womankind. In the present temper of the community it is rash to predict that any change in our constitution is impossible, and there may be a certain measure of truth in the view held by some advocates of the female cause in politics that no women could have made a greater muddle of the organisation of some of our public departments than men have made. Yet one still prefers to accept the old-fashioned doctrine that the work allotted to mankind includes the management of the affairs of the State. To-day, however, the British Empire is celebrating the Queen's birthday with every possible demonstration of enthusiasm, and it is difficult to ignore the moral taught by that illustrious instance of a woman who need fear the rivalry of no 'mere man' in the region of statecraft and good government. Every one rejoices to-day at the thought that Her Majesty's birthday this year brings with it the promise of an early peace.

WEMYSS REID.

The Editor of THE NINETEENTH CENTURY cannot undertake

to return unaccepted MSS.

[blocks in formation]

Anti-Semitism in France, 116-120
Arcady, The Elders of, 776-792
Army, The British, its peace training
for war,
227-243

its rifles and ammunition, 757-764
nominal strength and necessary
increase, 9-13, 15-28, 29-35

The Actual Strength of our Forces
at Home, 378-381

The Breakdown of Voluntary
Enlistment, 365–377

The Future of Mounted Infantry,
382-391

-The Insufficient Proposals of the
War Office, 554-567

The Proper Precautions for Im-
perial Safety, 541-553

The Government's Proposals for
strengthening, 587-590

Army, The General Management of
the, 174-186

Army, The French, 685-697
The Swiss, 9, 25-28, 34
Army Veterinary Department, and
wounded war-horses, 916-922
Arnold-Forster (H. O.), The Insuffi-
cient Proposals of the War Office,
554-567

Asia, The British Sphere in, 767-
775

BOE

Astronomy, Tycho Brahe's researches,
993-1004

Atmosphere, Climate and the, 94-102
Austen's (Jane) Novels, A Chat about,
811-820

Austin (Alfred), The Garden that I
Love, 974-979

Australian Federation, 1036, 1038,
1045

Autocrat of the Dinner Table, The,
624-636

Auxiliary Forces, Our, 2-35, 208–226,
368-380, 547-552, 558-566, 588,
589, 728-743, 762

BACON (Rev. John M.), Climate and
the Atmosphere, 94–102
Baillie-Grohman (W. A.), Marksman-
ship Old and New, 753-766
Balfour, Mr., and the War, 356-359,

526

Ballooning and weather observations,

94-102

Batson (Mrs. Stephen), The Vogue of
the Garden Book, 974-987

Bell (Miss Gertrude Lowthian), 330–
338

Bell (Mrs. Hugh), On some Difficul
ties incidental to Middle Age, 459-
470; On the Merits and Demerits
of Thrift, 830-838
Bettelheim (Paul), The French Army,
685-697; The Jews in France,
116-120

Birchenough (Henry), Local Begin-
nings of Imperial Defence, 728-733
Black (Charles E. D.), The British
Sphere in Asia, 767–775

Black races, their treatment by Boers
and British, 596-602, 893-898
Boers, American sympathy for the,
744-752

Boers, The, and the Native Question,
593-602

Boer Republics, The two, their resources
considered with reference to a war
indemnity, 603-608

« PreviousContinue »