She made up her mind to leave the _Daily Bugle_ and seek employment elsewhere, but next day Mr.Hardwick showed no trace of disappointment, and spoke to her with that curt imperiousness which had heretofore been his custom.
"Miss Baxter," he said, "have you been reading the newspapers with any degree of attention lately ?" "Yes, Mr.Hardwick." "Have you been watching the drift of foreign politics ?" "Do you refer to that speech by the Prime Minister of Austria a week or two ago ?" "Yes, that is what I have in my mind.

As you know, then, it amounted almost to a declaration of war against England--almost, but not quite.
It was a case of saying too much or of not saying enough; however, it was not followed up, and the Premier has been as dumb as a graven image ever since.

England has many enemies in different parts of the world, but I must confess that this speech by the Austrian Premier came as a surprise.

There must have been something hidden, which is not visible from the outside.

The Premier is too astute a man not to know exactly what his words meant, and he was under no delusion as to the manner in which England would take them.