When he does see and seize a thing he seizes it with the whole of his
weight, and wastes no breath in telling you that he has got hold. That
is why his press is so untypical; it gives the impression that he does
waste breath. And, while he has hold, he gets in more mischief in a
shorter time than any other dog because of his capacity for
concentrating on the present, without speculating on the past or future.
For the particular situation which the Englishman has now to face he is
terribly well adapted. Because he has so little imagination, so little
power of expression, he is saving nerve all the time. Because he never
goes to extremes, he is saving energy of body and spirit. That the men
of all nations are about equally endowed with courage and self-sacrifice
has been proved in these last six months; it is to other qualities that
one must look for final victory in a war of exhaustion. The Englishman
does not look into himself; he does not brood; he sees no further
forward than is necessary, and he must have his joke. These are fearful
and wonderful advantages. Examine the letters and diaries of the various
combatants and you will see how far less imaginative and reflecting,
(though shrewd, practical, and humorous,) the English are than any
others; you will gain, too, a profound, a deadly conviction that behind
them is a fibre like rubber, that may be frayed, and bent a little this
way and that, but can neither be permeated nor broken.
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