The manhood of Britain to-day has passed through the schools; they have
been lulled to sleep; they have never learned to face the awful truth
about civilisation. And I blame the coercion of the teachers. Train a
boy to obey his teacher and he will naturally obey every dirty
politician who has the faculty of rhetoric; he will naturally believe
the lies of every dirty newspaper proprietor that is playing his own
dirty game.
* * *
I have been spending the week-end with a man I used to dig with in
London. He is a great raconteur and we sat late swopping yarns.
"Did you ever hear a good yarn without a point?" he asked.