ho openly said that ambition was his
curse, that he was undermining Mr. Asquith who had been his greatest
political friend, and that all his discontent was directed toward an
ultimate dramatic stroke which would make him Prime Minister. Many of
the Liberals who used almost to worship him made no secret of the fact
that he had lost their allegiance, while the extreme Socialists
denounced him as a traitor to the working classes, inasmuch as he was
tyrannizing over them by his war measures. Moreover, many of his
opponents in the Cabinet must have regarded him with some feeling of
distrust. He said no word in defense of Mr. Asquith, whom the
Northcliffe press persistently and violently assailed. The conclusion
is inevitable that Lloyd George shared some of the opinions then
expressed. Taking Lloyd George's nature into account, the situation
may be imagined, and it was not hard to see that a climax must come
sooner or later.

It was approaching swiftly. Meanwhile the transformation of Britain in
which Lloyd George had had so large a hand was proceeding. No longer
could it be said that the old country was lethargic. In all directions
was the elementary strength of this stolid people manifesting itself.
Classes were uniting in the determination that there should be
limitless spending of energy, of blood, and of treasure, that the
harder grew the fight the stronger should be the will, the livelier the
action, till the great danger was trodden finally underfoot. For
months past it could have been said:

All the youth of England are on fire
And silken dalliance in the wardrobe lies.

Now most of the people had reached the decision that nothing but
extermination should lead to their defeat.

And leave your England as dead midnight still,
Guarded with grandsires, babies, and old women,
Either past or not arrived to pith and puissance,
For who is he whose chin is but enrich'd
With one appearing hair that will not follow
Those cull'd and choice-drawn cavaliers to France?

It was really a very-much-alive England, though strangely changed,
which the amateur fighters had left behind them on their departure for
the field of war. Tens of thousands of women unaccustomed to hard
labor were tiring their bodies from early morning till night so that
there would be more men for the fighting-line. The state had virtual
possession of the great industries, of engineering, of railway
transportation, and of shi