that the German Navy is being built in the interests of the world at large for the express purpose of stripping Great Britain of the sovereignty of the seas, which she so tyrannously abuses, and other nations are strongly urged to throw in their lot with the challenger. We should like to ask Lord Lonsdale whether his formula "Trust the Kaiser" covers the Kaiser's eldest son. We note, amid the present hubbub, that the Campbell-Bannerman policy-the limitation of naval armaments-has been dropped ke a hot potato, and the Manchester Guardian publishes lengthy tl-grams from its Berlin correspondent emphasising the unreasonableness of imagining that the German Navy can be limited, although for many years the Radical Press has, in season and out of season, asseverated that the limitation of naval armaments was the key to the Anglo-German problem, and, moreover, that a relaxation would begin in this year of grace, 1912, under the terms of the German Navy Act. Whereas now these same organs are preparing the public for an increase of the German Navy and the German Army. Disarmament is consequently ruled out of Anglo-German" conversations." Germany is to continue developing her menacing preparations on the same Enprecedented scale, with the acquiescence and apparent approval of our Quaker Press, which, on most days of the week, is more German than the Germans. For in Germany, at any rate, there is some serious, though helpless, opposition to what many Germans regard as a perfectly unnecessary expansion of armaments. THE COCOA case was that all that was required to secure a mitigation of naval competition, and the consequent release of funds for social reform, was a frank talk between the British London or and the German Government, which, ex hypothesi, -Colney was pining to reduce the German navy, and only Hatch P needed the decent pretext of a suggestion from us. That was admittedly Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman's view, though there is reason to believe he realised his mistake before Le died. The Cocoa case is that Germany must increase her armaments to her heart's content, that we shall make no adequate response, while our microscopic Army remains as it is. Moreover, we are to play fast and loose with our continental friendships and to become a sort of marplot of Europe. A Cocoa bishop has emitted the sordid suggestion that, as we do a larger trade with Germany, we shall throw over our entente with France to embrace our more profitable clients. But what decent Power would wish to embrace such a prostitute? The Haldane-Cassel mission, at any rate, serves to reveal the nakedness of the land and to expose the unspeakable fatuity of our Potsdam Party. Journalism has become such a frightful hustle under modern conditions that few journalists have time to stop and think, hence the egregious suggestions in the Press. When you have one organ proposing to placate the Cerberus across the North Sea by presenting it with the posssessions of our oldest ally, Portugal; while others, again, urge the establishment of "the mailed fist" at Walfisch Bay for the benefit of South Africa; while a professor comes forward in the Spectator to offer Australia to Germany; we can only ask whether this is London or-Colney Hatch? We should have been delighted with Lord Haldane's trip to Berlin on one condition-that he had remained there, spending a happy life in talking Schopenhauer in congenial company, instead of playing ducks and drakes with the British Army, intriguing against British interests, and arousing the apprehensions of Britain's friends. Similarly, we would say to all those who are busily giving away what does not belong to them: "Why not be really generous and give yourselves to poor dear Germany'? South Africa needs South Africa. Portugal is under no temptation to hand over her Empire to Germany. Australia is useful to the Australians. But as you feel Germany to be so forlorn and pathetic, why not offer to go and console her?" We could compile a substantial list of persons-including many gentlemen of German extraction-whose room would be more valuable than their company to England, though we could not guarantee them a good reception in Germany. They are so much more useful masquerading as Britons. Pourboires OUR readers will observe that throughout the propaganda in favour of "doing something" for or giving something to poor dear Germany," there is no suggestion whatever that Germany should give anything to Great Britain. It is the old policy of pourboires. As already pointed out, we are categorically warned against mentioning the naval question, though one comic pundit-we think in the Manchester Guardian-suggests that we might persuade Germany to disperse her navy, and so relax the tension in the North Sea? But, ex hypothesi, the German navy never has been, is not, and never will be a menace to this country; the whole end of "the German peril" being the invention of the National Review. Why then should we wish to scatter a friendly fect which is only awaiting the appointed hour, according to Lord Lonsdale, to do us a good turn? The whole thing isutterly insensate, and the more you look at it the more insensate it becomes. It is the policy of neurotics and decadents. Whatever Germany gets out of us we are to get nothing out of her-and its advocates are persons who exhaust their energies in assailing Sir Edward Grey for his inadequate protection of British interests! According to these grotesques, whether they call themselves Radicals or Unionists, whether they write in the Cocoa or the Hebrew Press, or in monthly magazines, the whole duty of a British Foreign Minister consists in licking the boots of the igning German Emperor. The latest manœuvre is as plain as a kestaff, and we apologise for emphasising the obvious. Germany, c. rather, the German Government, had got into a deplorable Less at home and abroad, owing to miscalculations, clumsiness, and the mutual loyalty of the members of the Triple Entente, ich was as steadfast as it was surprising to Berlin. As usual we are to be called in to get the German Government out of its diculties at the cost of our interests and our honour. German Junkerdom, i.e. the governing classes, who still rule the roost and treat the rest of their countrymen as pariahs, have sustained several nasty knocks. The Caillaux question is touched upon sewhere, and here we need only observe that the late French Prime Minister, like M. Rouvier before him, was the man for Germany's money." His humiliation and collapse, followed by the formation of a patriotic ministry of all the talents, under the dance of a statesman of the calibre of the new French Premier, M. Raymond Poincaré, who, speaking with France behind him, Las publicly reaffirmed in uncompromising terms the policy of the Bastian Alliance and the British Entente, is a bitter disappointKent to the Wilhelmstrasse, which hoped to do further business with “our M. Caillaux.” THEN, again, as already pointed out, it is an axiom of Prussian policy that there must be and can be no serious "truck The Visit to Russia between Russia and Great Britain, whose relations are best regulated from Berlin. The brilliant success of the recent visit to Russia of a distinguished delegation of British public men, who returned the visit of the Russian Duma to this country, caused as much concern in Germany as satisfaction to England. The reception of the visitors by every one in Russia, from the Emperor and Empress downwards, revealed an amount of spontaneous goodwill and cordiality such as has been rarely vouchsafed to foreigners in any country. There was no discordant note during the entire fortnight, and the most discordant politicians combined to make it successful. The counterpart of our own Cocoa contingent alone stood aloof. All other sections of Russian society-the Church, the Army, the commercial classes, the man in the street-did all that in them lay to make their visitors' stay enjoyable, and every one who was privileged to participate in this unique episode brought back the liveliest recollections of the evident friendliness of the Russian people towards England. To those who have fought against Russophobia this visit is one of the most encouraging events of our time and will contribute to convert the understanding between the two Governments into a solid popular compact, such as that which so happily prevails between ourselves and France. Owing to the sudden death of Mr. William Lowther, the father of the Speaker, the deputation was deprived of its natural leader, and Lord Weardale was suddenly called upon to discharge the responsible duties of that office, which by common consent he fulfilled admirably and was a material factor in the success of the visit, the organisation of which, as in the case of the Russian Duma's visit to this country, we owe to the intelligence and disinterested enthusiasm of Professor Pares, one of those remarkable men with no axe of their own to grind, who occasionally crop up when some specially important work has to be carried through which doesn't appear to be the business of any one in particular. Professor Pares, who, among other distinctions is the most modest of mankind has, by his unselfish and brilliantly successful labours, placed two great Empires under deep obligations. If the Russians can only control their cranks, and we can control our cranks, all should go well with Anglo-Russian relations. But let us not blink the fact that all such Ententes are unwelcome to Germany, who is obsessed with the idea that she is entitled to regulate all the international friendships of Europe, and practically to dictate the foreign policy of every other State. She will move heaven and earth-chiefly earth-to make mischief between Russia and England, and Englishmen and Russians should be perpetually en vedette. She insists on treating an exchange of courtesies between any two great European Powers as a rebuff to herself. So be it. A Blow to THE German Government has courted another rebuff much nearer home, which incidentally supplies a crushing answer to the Lascelles and others, who had been trying to frighten us by describing the German people as in a state of uncontrollable fury owing to something or another which we said or did last year. Sir Frank Lascelles can't tell us what. If we remember aright, Sir Frank Lascelles speaking with the authority of an ex-ambassador, who for many years had led the strenuous life in Berlin, declared that never had Anglophobia been so rampant in Germany as to-day. Possibly he had imbibed the idea from the German Emperor, who is very fond of telling his English friends, "I am the only friend of England in Germany," though he abstains from describing how be has worked up his subjects against us in order to get his fleet. The German elections which were held in January completely disprove the assertion of Sir Frank Lascelles, whom in future we shall hesitate to regard as an infallible expert on German affairs, seeing that he is totally ignorant of the state of German opinion, and, consequently, all the interpretations which he has drawn from the events of last year-out of which the Cocoa Press makes Euch capital-fall to the ground. Curiously enough, the German Emperor made precisely the same mistake, as his Government resolved to run an "Armaments election" on Anglophobe lines as in 1907, and confidently counted on repeating the brilliant success of Prince Bülow by painting the British bogey in lurid colours and calling upon "a country in danger" to supply "poor dear Germany" with the national defences of which she stands so woefully in need. We should be the last to exaggerate the effect of the FOL, LIX 2 |