and over the mighty fabric before us.
"Yes," he nodded decisively, "she's worthy — like the men who will fight her one of these days."
"But our enemies and some of our friends rather thought we had degenerated these latter days," I suggested.
"Ah, well!" said he very quietly, "they know better now, don't you think?"
"Yes," said I, and again, "Yes."
"Slow starters always," continued he musingly; "but the nation that can match us in staying power has yet to be born!"
So walking between these two I listened and looked and asked questions, and of what I heard, and of what I saw I could write much; but for the censor I might tell of armour-belts of enormous thickness, of guns of stupendous calibre, of new methods of defence against sneaking submarine and torpedo attack, and of devices new and strange; but of these I may neither write nor speak, because of the aforesaid censor. Suffice it that as the sun sank, we came, all three, to a jetty whereto a