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will know that they are fighting in his cause and that of Mexico. He also says that the men in the mountains are poor—and very hungry. If they could receive some money as well as the guns they will be able to carry the war to the enemy."
    "That will surely be done," Lincoln said. "But what of those British troops in the south? How can we reach them?"
    "I have talked to Mr. O'Higgins," Sherman said. "He assures me that the men now in the Oaxaca mountains will be able to take care of that. He has volunteered to contact their leader, Porfirio Diáz. I sincerely hope that it will be possible for him to accomplish this mission."
    "Diáz will do it," Juarez said. "If any man in the world can do it—he is the one who can."
    "Good," Lincoln said. "But what will our army be doing while all these battles are going on? Surely our efforts to supply the Mexicans in the north of their country is a magnanimous one and will enable them to drive out the French. But what of the south, in Oaxaca? To me it looks very much like we are asking the fighters there to pull our chestnuts out of the fire. I imagine this British invasion is doing them no harm at the present time. And when the British leave, or are driven out, why they will leave a nice little road behind. Surely our own army can do something to combat the invasion."
    "They certainly can, Mr. President," General Sherman said. "I have given it much thought. As soon as the present operation is organized and set into motion I shall have the plan in your hands."
    "I look forward to reading it, General. But for now—all aid to the Mexican fighters. And the beginning of the expulsion of the invaders."

THE IRON CONQUEROR
    Only a few white puffs of cloud hung in the still, pale sky over Belfast. The air still held a touch of winter in it, but since there was only a light breeze the sun felt warm. Seagulls flapped in great circles above the chimneys, buildings and dockyards of Harland and Wolff. A goodly number of people had assembled by the slipway, dwarfed by the great black form resting there. On the platform, between the crowd and the newly built ship, stood the shipyard's shipbuilder and spokesman, Edward Harland. Splendidly turned out in a dark wool suit and shining, tall silk hat.
    "And in conclusion..." he said, which remark was greeted with a sigh of relief, for he had been talking for a good half an hour. "In conclusion, I wish to thank all here who have constructed this leviathan of the deep. It is through your works and your skill that we can behold this mighty vessel that will very soon join the Royal Navy. Those who sail in her will bless you for your skill and your tenacity. For you who have labored to build the guardian of Britain, the pride of our navy, the mightiest ship of war that the world has ever seen, you must be swelled with pride at what you have attained. No other ship has armor as weighty, nor guns as mighty, nor engines so powerful that they can match hers. This is more than a ship, more than an insensate construct of iron. This is the pride and the strength of Great Britain and the Empire. This is the ship that will guard our bastions. A ship that will show the flag in foreign parts right around the world. You have built more than a ship. You have built history. Take pride in what you have done, for you have labored industriously and well."
    He took a deep breath and bowed in the direction of the royal viewing box.
    "I now surrender this ship to the able and noble hands of Her Majesty the Queen."
    There was a murmur through the crowd as the last of his speech was made; a flutter of applause from the stand where the silk-hatted and bonneted gentry sat. Stretched out on both sides were the crowds of flat-capped workers who had built this behemoth. Now there was louder applause, and some shouts of approval, as the tiny black-garbed figure stepped forward to the rail.
    Queen Victoria looked at the massive iron bow before her and nodded approval. The Duke of Cambridge,