o joined the ranks did so for a few years only, after which
they were in a condition of thorough military training, and were at
liberty to go back to civil life as reserves. In this capacity they
were paid a certain sum per diem for a limited number of years, and were
liable during that time to be called back to don the queen's uniform and
carry a rifle should their country have need of their services. It was
an experiment, and one for which England will never have cause to blame
herself.

The revival of the Boer trouble, the memory of Amajuba and Laing's Nek,
together with the fact that this present war was forced upon us against
our wishes, sent a thrill of patriotic fervour through the length and
breadth of the land.

Almost 100 per cent of the Reserves answered the call, and the few
absentees were for the most part at sea in merchant vessels. Nor was
this all. When England found herself face to face with a gigantic
struggle, that generosity for which all her people have been noted was
shown on every hand. If the manhood of the country could respond so
nobly to the call to arms, then they should be rewarded for it, and
those who were left behind would make it their duty to care for the
helpless wife and child.

Everywhere employers showed their patriotic spirit by declaring that
those of their servants who left for the war should find their places
waiting for them when they returned. And not only that, a large
proportion at once arranged to pay half wages to the wife or dependants
of the reservist, thus lifting a load of anxious care from the brave
fellows' minds.

Thousands of pounds were subscribed for the maintenance of the homeless
refugees from Johannesburg and other places, and later on large funds
were raised, so that the widows and orphans of all the gallant men of
the army or navy who gave their lives for their country might never know
what it was to want. Money privately subscribed provided hospital ships
and beds, and in this manner our American cousins showed their
friendship, for they equipped and despatched _The Maine_ for the
treatment of our wounded.

To even mention each and every one of the incidents which showed the
fervid patriotism of the people, and their intense loyalty to and love
for their beloved queen, would be impossible.

But no description of our preparations for this war is complete without
a reference to the splendid patriotism of our colonies and of our home
volunteers.