So I tried again.
"Well," I said, "I might decide to murder fifty Spanish women in
London, just to even things up."
The Adjutant laughed. But the Colonel was taking it too seriously for
that.
"Do you mean it?" he asked.
"Well, what would you do, sir?"
"Land an army in Spain," he said promptly, "and show them what it
meant to treat English women like that."
"I see. They would resist of course?"
"No doubt."
"Yes. But equally without doubt we should win in the end?"
"Certainly."
"And so re-establish England's honour."
"Quite so."
"I see. Well, sir, I really think my way is the better. To avenge the
fifty murdered English women, you are going to kill (say) 100,000
Spaniards who have had no connexion with the murders, and 50,000
Englishmen who are even less concerned. Indirectly also you will cause
the death of hundreds of guiltless Spanish women and children, besides
destroying the happiness of thousands of English wives and mothers.
Surely my way--of murdering only fifty innocents--is just as effective
and much more humane.
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