hinner and less seasoned. But the trade had been established,
and business continued brisk. There was no competition (unfortunately),
and our newspaper kept assuring us with unnecessary gush that horseflesh
was excluded from the Kitchen, and that accidents were impossible. The
meat used was strictly orthodox. The Press dilated speciously on the
economy practised under the system and on its general advantageousness.
Universal confidence was reposed in the Soup Directorate.

But, alas and alack! one fatal day an evil-minded fellow got a lump of
something solid in his jug, and instead of holding his peace he held a
_post-mortem_ examination and essayed to prove by some Darwinian process
of reasoning that the opaque thing was more apish than orthodox! Prior
to the date of this inquest, however, people had grown so habituated to
the soup that they could not give it up if they would. They went on
dutifully consuming it--just as everybody still does his beer, the
recent poisoning revelations notwithstanding. They ate all they could
get of it; it was in truth an indispensable necessity. The Kitchen was a
blessing--in disguise, the wits said--and the most aesthetic, though not
without misgivings, in the end gave the broth the benefit of the doubt.
Only a small band of martyrs elected to bleed at the shrine of
principle; they declined to stultify their stomachs with "horse soup."
This was a reckless assumption, indicative of a shocking disbelief in
human nature; an inexpedient conclusion. They were all honourable men on
the Kitchen Committee. What! all? the reader may exclaim. Well, all but
one, perhaps--who told an interviewer in London that "horseflesh made
excellent soup!" But that was long afterwards; and, moreover, proved
nothing. The gentleman in question no doubt acted discreetly, before
unbosoming himself, in placing six thousand miles of sea between him and
the Kitchen. For that matter greater iniquities than his have been
condoned to give prejudice a fall.

The Italian and American Consuls had protested on behalf of their
respective governments against the recent indiscriminate assault upon
non-combatants. We were pleased to hope that the protests were not
unavailing. They were in conformity with the spirit, if not with the
letter, of International Law; and it was stated that the Boers desired
to stand well with any and every nation that might possibly make real
their Utopian dream of European intervention. Of course, t