My darling – I loved your ‘grousing’ letter. . . . Did you like my speech? You complain that I’ve spoken too little lately. What will you say when you read in the papers to-morrow my letter – composed after I went to bed last night – if I had thought of it earlier I.W. have consulted you – to the 4 Lord Mayors offering to speak in London Edinburgh & Cardiff? or if it comes off, I can at any rate stay at Penrhos for a night on my way to or from Dublin: fancy the joy of being with you there even for a few short hours! Do you think it is a good idea?.... It is not perhaps precisely my role to carry round the fiery cross, but things being as they are I must do my best to look & act as a crusader. . . . We got a telegram from French this morning describing Wednesday’s fighting, of which I gave a rather bald summary to the House. They fought for a whole day against odds of more than 2 to 1 without the slightest assistance from the French army. Indeed all this week our men have borne the whole brunt of the German attack. The casualties are mainly in the 2nd Army Corps (Smith Dorrien's) & the 4th Division (wh. came from the Eastern Command) ('owing' (as Sir J.F. says) 'to the necessity of withdrawing them under a terrific artillery fire'. He says the casualties are very heavy, probably 'amounting to several thousands & 18 or 20 guns'. The 1st Army Corps (Haig's) on the other hand inflicted heavy losses on the Germans. At last the French have been induced to move up on both their flanks, and 'take the pressure off his'. Today & to-morrow he ought to be safe in a strong position behind the river Oise near Noyon – Secret. The French have so far played a poor part, and it is time that they began to draw the German fire. Kitchener has sent a strong telegram to Joffre urging him now to make a determined stand. Our men have never been defeated & have retired against their will. We are going to send all the Egyptian & Mediterranean garrison & the 2 Indian divisions as soon as they can be got to Marseilles to support them. There darling is all the war news – not very exhilarating for the moment but there is nothing in it to excuse despondency. We are going to adjourn on Monday till Wed. week. The Irish are very jumpy & intractable, fearing for their Bill, & the Unionists (as B. Law told me to-day) equally so, fearing that they are going to be cheated – after Carson has offered (as he did this week) the flower of his volunteers to Kitchener to enlist as Regulars – unconditionally. I am now getting Birrell to try & persuade Redmond to agree, if he can get his Bill on the Statute book, that it shall not operate (1) for 12 months, nor (2) till an Amending Bill receives the Royal Assent. This wd. I think satisfy Law Carson & Co, and it is really a small concession for R to make. The best thing about it is that it wd. get rid of exclusion, & the 6 counties, & all (what you call) the B. Palace 'sticking points'. . . Be an angel, & write me a line . . by the early post to-morrow. It makes such a difference. I have a lot to do yet and fear I cannot write more before the post. I will begin a letter later on this evening. My own darling I love you.