The decision of the Government, which our London correspondent announced on Friday, to close all the London museums and art galleries has aroused much amazement and criticism, not only amongst those who frequent such places but in all sections of the community. Everyone can understand that if we are shutting down our centres of culture when Germany finds it worth while, despite its stringency in men and money, to keep hers open, and when France is beginning to reopen her galleries, either things with us are worse than we suppose or a big blunder is being made. At any rate we are cutting a poor figure before the world.
Thinking people, who believe that these places are an important part of our education and well-being and a sign of our prestige to the tens of thousands of our gallant visitors who are in London for the only time in their lives, are dumbfounded at the thought that if we are short of men and money we can afford to run all our theatres and music-halls and kinema shows as usual and yet cannot afford to open the British Museum or the National Gallery.