The Henson Journals

[29]

Wednesday, October 24th, 1923.

I happened to be present when a body of impressed carriers who were to be taken to the Cameroons by water were embarked on the river steamer at N'Gômô. Then the natives began to know by experience what war really is……

About that time I read a magazine article which maintained that there would always be wars, because a noble thirst for glory is an ineradicable element in the heart of man. These champions of militarism think of war only as idealised by ignorant enthusiasm or the necessity of self–defence. They would probably reconsider their opinions if they spent a day in one of the African theatres of war, walking along the paths in the virgin forest between lines of corpses who had sunk under their load & found a solitary death by the roadside, and if, with these innocent and unwilling victims before them, they were to meditate in the gloomy stillness of the forest on war as it really is.

Schweitzer. L.c. 169.170

[30] [symbol]

Miss Ker sends me two volumes of Aristotle's works with the name on the front page, "William P. Ker, Balliol, December 1877": and a book plate with the inscription "This Book belonged to William Paton Ker, All Souls College, Oxford, and in memory of him was given to H. H. Henson, Oct:1923". I wrote to thank her for a gift which wakes love and regret.

The "Times" reports that the Lord Chancellor has made Marcus Atlay, the Secretary of the Anglo–Catholic Congress, a canon of Gloucester. Probably family influence counted for something, since his wife is the daughter of one Devonian magnate, & the Ld Chancellor is a Devonian magnate himself: but following so closely on Frere's appointment to Truro, it is very "considerable".

MrSmuts made a great speech on the European situation last night in London, which the Times prints in full, and supports strongly in its leading article. It is frank, eloquent, & sombre. He proposes as the last chance for Europe the assembling of yet another Conference: denounces the action of France as perfidious, brutal, & fatuous: calls upon America again to intervene: and expresses a slender hope that, even at the eleventh hour, civilization may be saved. William heard some part of this speech through his wireless system.

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