ABSTRACT
The Departmental Committee was possible because Asquith had become convinced, like a committing magistrate, that there was a case to answer. That case had been made almost entirely by persons outside or on the fringe of official life, the nature of whose evidence and charges pointed to generalized dissatisfaction and unease rather than an acute failure or particular scandal. Having taken the basic decisions as to the inquiry’s form and terms of reference, Asquith sought an acceptable membership. Bipartisanship with a smattering of specialists was the tested formula, but there is little precision in such choices. There were no accusations of dishonourable conduct or anything that smacked of impropriety. Du Cane’s weaknesses were only too easily understood: he was formed in the military mould, and the soldier had already become an anachronism in home civil administration. Within the cloisters of official life Du Cane made no attempt to conceal his displeasure with the Committee’s progress.
