"You haven’t said anything about the women?"
"Oh, charming!" interjected Greens, with a smile which suggested many hours of delight with the ladies of the North and South Island. "And my advice is this—if you want a real fine girl for a wife and chum, marry a New Zealander."
"Cheer oh!" chirped Coronet, inviting all to drink to the girls of Maoriland.
"At the same time, Greens, don’t you think that our Secret Service is just as good as the Germans?"
"Well—it’s quite good. And its great merit is that it never speaks. While the Germans openly vaunt their wonderful system, our men apply themselves quietly and sternly to their task. Such a service includes men of the most chivalrous and daring kind; it also numbers some of the queer folks. You see they are not officially recognised. If nabbed in the act, they must pay the price. While a thoroughly patriotic service, it is, unfortunately, one which we can never honour in a truly public way. There are skeletons ’neath the soil in all parts of Germany of many noble fellows who have died for the Cause. In German fortresses you can see others who foretold the war, who helped to place our Expeditionary Force in the right spot to meet the great hordes who tried to capture Paris. The work of these men has been accomplished throughout a period when public opinion denied Germany’s intentions and refused to affirm the theories of such splendid prophets as the late Lord Roberts. Think of the mental tortures of such patriots. Picture their agony and grief when viewing the careless throng. How cruel! How maddening it must have been! Yet each went on ploughing a lonely and dangerous furrow over the fields of German espionage and defence. You talk about bravery under shrapnel and in face of the bayonets of Huns! But it takes a brave heart to do that job. And, mark you, if Germans are good at the game, the French are as good, and the Russians infinitely better. It may be a sound policy for us to allow the cocksure German spy to buy the faked maps, plans, and news, and to stop the same from going through the post. But public opinion ought to be more firm on the question of naturalised Germans and their families. These are the men who have grown wealthy in our midst, who have married our women, who have been honoured by the greatest of our institutions; yet, all the while, their homes and offices have been the centre of intrigue for the downfall of this land of ours. The real German spy, who is unnaturalised, and risks his life, deserves as much credit as the brave men of the Prussian Guard. But the low swine who would sever the hand that has fed them are the ones we should hound out of our country."