Elmhirst enjoyed BR's letters in the Atlantic Monthly and in the Cambridge Magazine. He writes from Bombay as private secretary to the general secretary of the YMCA in India. He identifies with BR's statement: "Whilst others are sacrificing their lives for their ideals, I cannot seek a cowardly and ignoble comfort in silence", especially since he has been questioning the compatibility of being a Christian and a soldier.

See Elmhirst's highly critical reminiscence in old age of BR.