There was some slight evidence also that German propaganda regarding
our past record and present intentions had produced some effect. What right had we, I was asked, who had conquered half the world by violence, to take so high a moral tone when Germany attempted a necessary and even inevitable expansion towards the east? A clear and convincing answer to that question is contained in an article contributed by Mr. A. L. Rowse to the current issue of The Political Quarterly. Mr. Rowse (who is a historian of the Left Wing) makes all the right points rightly, but he adds a further point which is new. He contends that when any given country becomes too powerful, retribution in the shape of a coalition becomes inevitable. He illustrates this valuable doctrine by the example of Great Britain after the Seven Years War. During the thirteen years between 1763 and 1776 this country became more powerful than was good either for ourselves or for the world. A coalition was formed against us which ended in the salutary defeat of 1782. Since that date we have been wise enough to identify our power with the interests of the smaller nations of Europe, and all subsequent coalitions thus tended, sooner or later, to veer to our side. This doctrine is not only comforting but true.
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