At the start of the war, some Liberal groups mobilized committees to protest the war, including the South African Conciliation Committee and W. T. Stead's Stop the War Committee. A common theme was that this capitalistic greed for the gold and diamonds that motivated the British seizure of two independent countries. Angry crowds often broke up anti-war meetings. The British press was overwhelmingly in support of the government, with only the "Manchester Guardian" and the "Westminster Gazette" outspoken in opposition. With the press against them, anti-war elements relied heavily on street corner distribution of their many pamphlets. Nevertheless a tide of young men volunteered for the war, as many as 100,000 a month at the peak. Liberals split, with many top leaders following Lord Rosebery in support of the war. Many nonconformists, the backbone of the Liberal Party, likewise supported the war