I saw them march with one step
under one flag to fight for the same cause, and I saw them worship the
same God. What has brought them together? The love of their native land,
resentment for a cruel wrong inflicted upon the weak and defenseless.
More than that, what brought them together was that instinct which comes
to humanity at critical times when the moment has arrived to cross
rivers of blood in order to rescue humanity from the grip of some
strangling despotism. [Cheers.] They have done nobly. That is what has
brought them together, but we want more, [cheers,] and I have no doubt
we will get more.

If this country had produced an army which was equal in proportion to
its population to the number of men under arms in France and in Germany
at the present moment there would be three millions and a half in this
country and 1,200,000 in the Colonies. [Cheers.] That is what I mean
when I say our resources are quite adequate to the task. It is not our
fight merely--it is the fight of humanity. [Cheers.] The allied
countries between them could raise armies of over twenty millions of
men. Our enemies can put in the field barely half that number.

Much as I should like to talk about the need for more men, that is not
the point of my special appeal today. We stand more in need of equipment
than we do of men. This is an engineers' war, [cheers,] and it will be
won or lost owing to the efforts or shortcomings of engineers. I have
something to say about that, for it involves sacrifices for all of us.
Unless we are able to equip our armies our predominance in men will
avail us nothing. We need men, but we need arms more than men, and delay
in producing them is full of peril for this country. You may say that I
am saying things that ought to be kept from the enemy. I am not a
believer in giving any information which is useful to him. You may
depend on it he knows, but I do not believe in withholding from our own
public information which they ought to possess, because unless you tell
them you cannot invite their co-operation. The nation that cannot bear
the truth is not fit for war, and may our young men be volunteers, while
the unflinching pride of those they have left behind them in their deed
of sacrifice ought to satisfy the most apprehensive that we are not a
timid race, who cannot face unpleasant facts! The last thing in the
world John Bull wants is to be mollycoddled. The people must be told
exactly what the position is,