WAR MEMOIRS OF DAVID LLOYD GEORGE 1917

CAMPAIGN OF THE MUD: PASSCHENDAELE 435
was an overwhelming case in favour of the request. France
was very much more exhausted than we were. She had called
up fifteen per cent, of her population, whereas we had only
recruited ten per cent, of ours, and her casualties were heavier
by at least a million, for she had borne the brunt of the
fighting during the first two years of the War, whilst we
were building up our Army. Sir William Robertson never
denied that there was a good case, and he would have been
quite willing to meet the French demand, but Haig said he
needed every available man for the Flemish campaign. He
succeeded in postponing the decision until the campaign was
well over. When, at last, he agreed with Petain as to the
limits of the extension, it was February before the change
could be effected. When Gough took over the line up to the
Oise, he found the defences were very unsatisfactory, but
his troops were tired out by their unparalleled experiences
and were in no condition to start digging. This was known to
the Germans. The advantage they took of it will be told in
another volume.
Passchendaele was indeed one of the greatest disasters
of the War, and I never think of it without feeling grateful
for the combination of seamanship and luck which enabled us
to survive and repair its unutterable folly. There is no better
illustration of its calamitous effect than the episode of
Cambrai.