He and his friends formed a powerful
group both in the cabinet and out of it. But they were forcing the pace,
and the elements of resistance and reaction were strong. He pictured the
dismay of his friends, the possible breakdown of the reforming party. Of
course they might so stand by him--and the suppression of the book might
be so complete--
At this moment he caught sight of a newspaper contents bill displayed at
the door of the only shop in the Piazza which sold English newspapers.
One of the lines ran, "Anonymous attack on the Premier." He started,
went in and bought the paper. There, in the "London Topics" column, was
the following paragraph:
"A string of extracts from a forthcoming book, accompanied by a somewhat
startling publisher's statement, has lately been sent round to the
press. We are asked not to print them before the day of publication, but
they have already roused much attention, if not excitement. They
certainly contain a very gross attack on the Prime Minister, based
apparently on first-hand information, and involving indiscretions
personal and political of an unusually serious character. The wife of a
cabinet minister is freely named as the writer, and even if no violation
of cabinet secrecy is concerned, it is clear that the book outrages the
confidential relations which ought to subsist between a Premier and his
colleagues, if government on our English system is to be satisfactorily
carried on.
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