Excerpt from From Gladstone to Lloyd George: Parliament in Peace and War The Englishman on whose words the world waited sat still and Silent, and aloof from what was occurring around him during the opening proceedings of the House, scanning his notes or with eyes looking far off, absorbed in thought. He had no dramatic pose. Seeing the national duty, he was there to declare it with a full sense of responsibility. No one had more plainly told what was meant by a European war. No one could have more earnestly or Sincerely laboured to pre serve peace. Yet now he saw that British interests and the obligation of honour in our friendship with France, as well as in our treaty obligations to Belgium, might require us to take up arms. His speech determined the decision of Parliament. The least pretentious, Sir Edward Grey was the most persuasive of speakers. In unadorned, frank words he so framed his indictment that it went home to reason and conscience. The feeling of the House was displayed unmistakably. Cheers, bold and defiant in some quarters and in others austere and solemn, revealed its practical unanimity. And the loudest cheers were for honour. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.