In the region of foreign affairs there is very little
of im- portance to record. We have dealt with the Mexican situation elsewhere, but may note here two items of some interest. As the result of the dissatisfaction felt by the Chief of the General Staff in France at the result of the recent army manoeuvres, a number of general officers and others have been relieved of their commands. That may seem harsh, but war and the preparations for war are not games, and it is absurd to think that what is done in a football team or a cricket eleven—that is, the discarding of the unfit—should not be done in the matter of national defence. Another piece of news which may have important consequences relates to the letter which the German Crown Prince has written to the German Imperial Chancellor, taking formal objection to the proposed elevation of Prince Ernest Augustus of Cumberland to the throne of Brunswick unless he makes a formal renunciation of his claims to Hanover. Such action by the Heir Apparent is clearly ill-advised in a high degree. Whatever may be its origin, it will certainly be regarded as an attempt to curry favour with what we may call the extreme Prussian view of the German Empire. Its reception in South Germany and the Kingdoms of the Federa- tion is not likely to be very warm.
