of Canada to the demand for both troops and
supplies appeared to have touched Her Majesty. She spoke at length
about the troops, the distance they had come, the fine appearance the
men made, and their popularity with the crowds when they paraded on
the streets of London. I had already noticed this. A Canadian regiment
was sure to elicit cheers at any time, although London, generally
speaking, has ceased any but silent demonstration over the soldiers.

"Have you seen any of the English hospitals on the Continent?" the
Queen asked.

"I have seen a number, Your Majesty,"

"Do they seem well supplied?"

I replied that they appeared to be thoroughly equipped, but that the
amount of supplies required w&s terrifying and that at one time some
of the hospitals had experienced difficulty in securing what they
needed.

"One hospital in Calais," I said, "received twelve thousand pairs of
bed socks in one week last autumn, and could not get a bandage."

"Those things happened early in the war. We are doing much better now.
England had not expected war. We were totally unprepared."

And in the great analysis that is to come, that speech of the Queen of
England is the answer to many questions. England had not expected war.
Every roll of the drum as the men of the new army march along the
streets, every readjustment necessary to a peaceful people suddenly
thrust into war, every month added to the length of time it has taken
to put England in force into the field, shifts the responsibility to
where it belongs. Back of all fine questions of diplomatic negotiation
stands this one undeniable fact. To deny it is absurd; to accept it is
final.

"What is your impression of the French and Belgian hospitals?" Her
Majesty inquired.

I replied that none were so good as the English, that France had
always depended on her nuns in such emergencies, and, there being no
nuns in France now, her hospital situation was still not good.

"The priests of Belgium are doing wonderful work," I said. "They have
suffered terribly during the war."

"It is very terrible," said Her Majesty. "Both priests and nuns have
suffered, as England has reason to know."

The Queen spoke of the ladies connected with the Guild.

"They are really much overworked," she said. "They are giving all
their time day after day. They are splendid. And many of them, of
course, are in great anxiety."

Already, by her tact and her simplicity of manner, she had put me at
m