18 FEBRUARY 1938, Page 34

THIS WAS GERMANY Letters of Princess Marie Radziwill

This boo:. (Murray, 15s.) consists

• of an admirable, seriesef, letters from a Frenchwoman in the van of Berlin society to General Di Robilant, one time Italian Military Attache at Berlin: Princess Radziwill was Married to a close friend of the Kaiser's and her letters, being very frank, reflect the times to per- fection. The eye-witness commentary on the diplomatic life of this period has become a common feature ; but so , distinguished are these letters by shrewd- ness and rAce of -perception that even those who know the pOriod inside out will find high entertainment in them and mans '-glints of bright light in neglected places. The key to the stand- point is that the Princess sympathised with Wilhelm II, even liked him, but that She also -deplored' his Iftidtis:iin say, through him with precision. The whole long drama of which the Kaiser was the central figure is gradually unfolded with a fine lightness of touch often weighted by human anxiety. Almost all that need be said about the German people is said here, and since the past can shed light on the present. . it mould be a good thing if people back from a scatheless fortnight's tour of Germany would, before writing to the Press to prove the innocence of that great country, take a read in this book and think twice. In the long run it would be fairer to Germany, too.