Now it was growing upon the public mind that four times this number would not be an excessive estimate.

But the nation rose grandly to the effort.

Their only fear, often and loudly expressed, was that Parliament would deal too tamely with the situation and fail to demand sufficient sacrifices.

Such was the wave of feeling over the country that it was impossible to hold a peace meeting anywhere without a certainty of riot.

The only London daily which had opposed the war, though very ably edited, was overborne by the general sentiment and compelled to change its line.