"Civilization is in jeopardy," declared the orator, and, therefore, the Liberals and Conservatives must unite.
"If you go to the agricultural areas," said Lloyd George, "I agree that you have the old party divisions as strong as ever; they are far removed from the danger. It does not walk in their lanes. But when they see it they will be as strong as some of these industrial constituencies now are. Four-fifths of this country is industrial and commercial; hardly one-fifth is agricultural. It is one of the things I have constantly in my mind when I think of the dangers of the future here. In France the population is agricultural, and you have a solid body of opinion which does not move very rapidly, and which is not easily excited by revolutionary movements. That is not the case here. This country is more top-heavy than any country in the world, and if it begins to rock, the crash here, for that reason, will be greater than in any other land."
The reader sees from this that Mr. Lloyd George is not only a very clever man, but that he has learned much from the Marxists. It would not be committing a sin for us to learn something from Mr. Lloyd George.
It is interesting to note the following questions put after Mr. Lloyd George's speech:—Mr. Wallace: "I should like to ask what the Prime Minister considers the effect might be in industrial constituencies upon the industrial workers, so many of whom are Liberals at the present time and from whom we get so much support. Would not a possible result be to cause an immediate overwhelming accession of strength to the Labor party from men who, at the present time, are our cordial supporters"? The Prime Minister: "I take a totally different view. The fact that Liberals are fighting among themselves undoubtedly drives a very considerable number of Liberals in despair to the Labor Party, where you get a considerable body of Liberals, very able men, whose business it is to discredit the Government. The result is undoubtedly to bring a good accession of the public sentiment to the Labor Party. It does not go to the Liberals who are outside, it goes to the Labor Party, the by-elections show that."
By way of remark this discussion specially shows how the
