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Have come across the following passage in Tom's book and am interested to hear what other folk make of it.
"They came into the dining room and found lamps held in lotus-like bulbs burning above each table. The tables themselves were set with brilliant, flashing cutlery and filigree work tablecloths. The women who did the fine work earned very little, and here the grace of things sat balanced on want. And here too-as Lieutenant Maclean has said - all justice had to await the defeat of the enemy and mightn't even happen."/u]n.
At this moment in time, I dont really understand this, just wondering if someone could enlighten me.

I haven't read the book but after just doing a quick search on Amazon I think it's definitely one I must add to my TBR list .... his Schindler's Ark was one of the best and most influencial books I have ever read, and I was singing its praises long, long before the movie.
Anyway, my initial reaction to the quote you post is that it is referring to the disparity between great wealth and easy living and the lives of those whose toil facilitated that easy lifestyle for others but a lifestyle they would never be able to enjoy .... WW1 did very much show up the disparity between the lives of the wealthy and the working poor and caused many to question why the sons of the poor were expected to give their lives in defence of a lifestyle they were completly excluded from. The last line I think refers to the argument being made at the time that the war must first be won and then maybe there would be time to talk about social justice or change and of course, they could not be sure of winning the war!
I'll be very interested to read what you think of the book when you finish it.

Thanks for your comments Fran, very insightful, and helpful
Will be happy to give you my impressions post reading.