. . .Blessed is the man who does not sit in the seat of the scornful” (Ps. i. 1). I own it is not right to scoff at one’s superiors, but I do not do it in malice,[61] and I hope those who are remarked upon will not be offended. Life is a very leaden business, and if any one can lighten it, so much the better. Because I criticise Baring, Egerton, and the Foreign Office, it is not that I think I am their superior, but because I would like them to see how others, outside themselves, view things. Because I may differ with them it is no reason why they may not be right, and acting uprightly, and I may be utterly wrong. I am sure the “Siren” Malet is conscientiously sure all he did in Egypt was right; if visited in Brussels one will see, at a glance, he is plainly content.

One of the most amusing things which struck me in Palestine, exemplifying how little worth the world’s praise is, was an article in the Times describing the making of a D. . . Read More