12, Wilton Crescent,
London, S.W. 1.
May 1st, 1921.
Dear Mr. Ludovici,—
Thank you very much for letting me see the proofs of your book. It seems to me to be written at a very opportune moment, and to suggest a line of thought which could be followed with great advantage.
In these days of “propaganda,” when our fine old language is being wrested every hour of the day in speeches, pamphlets and leaflets, to illustrate the views of political parties, it is more than ever important that we should have a clear understanding of the true meaning of words.
Nor is the vague use of phrases confined to the pioneer of political causes. Our very war memorials are utilised to inform us that the brave fellows whose honour they commemorate died for “freedom.” If that were true, they indeed died in vain. Nothing can be further from even the most elementary conception of freedom than the present condition of society in these islands. But the pious and devout people who wrote those inscriptions are possibly not to blame.
Long before the war the nation had been so content to be governed by phrases that we were actually asked to enlist for such phrases as “The rights of small nations,” “Self-determination,” and the like, whereas in very truth we were forced to fight to save our own skins.
Your suggestions open up so many considerations that I cannot explore them all. But your proposition that the quality of our institutions may, after all, be sounder than the quality of the men who have failed to work them, seems especially worthy of notice. If your book serves to direct attention to the wisdom of our ancestors, it will be a great benefit to the public.
Yours very truly,
Willoughby de Broke.