To see ourselves as others see us is seldom very
pleasant— witness the recent book by M. Siegfried. By way of exception Professor Kantorowicz, in The Spirit of British Policy, trans- lated by Mr. W. H. Johnston (Allen and Unwin, 25s.) is only too flattering. The well-known Kiel jurist has tried to give his countrymen the English point of view. He shows that we have not been, in our national policy, the hypocrites that many Continental writers make us out to be. He credits us with a genuine desire to deal fairly with other nations, espe- cially with subject races, and he accepts our own firm belief that we have no coherent or consistent foreign or colonial policy. In a special chapter he demolishes the familiar German legend of England's Machiavellian plot to encircle Germany and induce her to go to war so that she might be destroyed. That legend, of course, is baseless, as every serious English politician knows, but the author's exposure of its falsity is none the less valuable. Professor Kantorowicz, though a warm admirer, ventures to point out the defects of our qualities, and is doubtful whether we are not taking things too easily if we are to regain our old prosperity. Pro- fessor Gilbert Murray contributes a judicious preface.
* * * *
Previous page
