GERMANY AND BRITAIN. iTo THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR.'] SIR, — You
are certainly indulging in an erroneous view of the situation if you think that the threat of an English interven- tion in the coming war has great terrors for us. We would dislike, out of sentimental reasons, to see England ranged on the side of our racial enemies, Latin France and the unwashed barbarism of Slavdom. A mere blockade of the North Sea and Baltic coast (assuming all naval fighting goes in your favour) can as little influence the final decision of the war as it did in 1870, when France had complete command of the sea. As for an auxiliary corps of a hundred and fifty thousand men to be sent to the assistance of France, they would, firstly, come too late ; secondly, be too weak in numbers ; and, thirdly, we, in alliance with Turkey, can create ample occupation for the whole British Army by launching an Arab army against Egypt, your weakest and most vulnerable spot. What Enver Bey did in Tripoli can, on a far larger scale, be repeated in the "army-inspection of Damascus," and you may be dead certain that the cadres for such an emergency are already being formed now. The Prussian system does not leave any- thing to chance, but makes its preparations long beforehand. You are probably right in assuming that England would be dragged into the war—as soon as the Austrian army corps are on the march towards Salonica and the Rumanians invading the north of Bulgaria. When public opinion in this country sees their Balkan heroes driven out of all their conquered territories, there will be an unparalleled wave of sentimental
Jingoism.—I am, Sir, &c., GERMANICUS. [We wonder what the disillusioned Turks would think of this naive letter P—ED. Spectator.]
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