LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.
GERMAN HATRED OF ENGLAND.
[To tits Eorros or me "srser,vos."]
Sin,—It is always well to try to understand your adversary's point of view. Many good people seem to be both astonished and aggrieved at Germany's outburst of hate against England. But surely a Mlle reflection makes that hatred, if not justifi- able, at any rate intelligible.
Germany gave us fair warning that she intended to go to war. After the Agadir incident in 1911, she demanded from us, in 1912, a promise of unconditional neutrality, and it is incredible that the English Government was not aware of the facts disclosed in the French and Belgian Yellow Books. The Home Secretary in his Memo. of October 9th, 1914, informs us that the ramifications of the German Secret Service in England, with its "enormous efforts and lavish expenditure of money," were discovered in the three years from 1911 to 1914. When war broke out no less than two hundred suspected spies were known to the authorities (see Emergency Legislation, p. 516). In spite of all this, the leading lights of the dominant party in the State were ingeminating peace at any price. Honours were showered on gentlemen with foreign names and German proclivities, and when any question as to Germany arose we usually began to apologize for our existence. One leading publicist suggested that it would be expedient to placate Germany "even occasionally at the sacrifice of purely strategical considerations." Lord Lorelown and the Cobden Club informed us that in their belief no British Government "would be no guilty towards our own country as to take up arms in a foreign quarrel," and that time would show that "the Germans have no aggressive design against us, nor we against them, and then foolish people will cease to talk of a future war between us which will never take place." Sir W. P. Bytes could see no reason for a standing Army. Sir John Brunner, the President of the National Liberal Federation, at the end of 1913 besought the delegates to pass resolutions in favour of reductions in our armament expenditure, and on another occasion he informed us that he would" infinitely prefer the protection of recognized international law to the protection afforded to us by our Navy." Quotations could be multiplied indefinitely, but it is sufficient to refer to the manifestoes in the Daily News and Manchester Guardian of August 3rd and 4th last. Then suddenly we declared war against Germany on what, to the Teutonic mind, was the flimsiest of pretexts. From the German point of view, could perfidy be baser?
But Germany did not trust to words alone. We made elaborate preparations for not going to war. In 1914 we weakened our financial resources by a peace Budget exceeding two hundred millions. The Germans always had a sincere respect for our bluejackets, but they knew that a good many of our ships were of obsolete type, with inferior guns—ships which it would be criminal to send on active service. We were reducing our exiguous Regular Army. In 1905 the Army strength was 221,000. In 1914 the Estimates provided for 186,000 men, but the effectivee were below establishment strength, and only amounted to 156,110. The expenditure on ordnance, armaments, and stores had been reduced by abseil one and a quarter millions a year (Army Estimates, Feb- ruary 27th, 1914). The Royal Artillery bad been reduced by about 5,500 men (Hansard, 1911 (C), Vol. XXI1I., p. 218). The Territorials were some 60,000 men and more than 2,000 officers below establishment strength, and 79,000 of them were boy. under twenty (Hansard (L) 1914, Vol. XV., p. 374). Lord Roberts's insistent warnings of the insufficiency of one military forces were scoffed at, and, as the Morning Post reminds us, "there was even an outcry in Press and Parliament that no pernicious an alarmist should be stripped of his pension and rank." Then came the German disillusionment. Sir John French's " contemptible little Army " upset the German apple- cart. With insufficient numbers, compensated for by superb gallantly, it stayed the German rush on Paris, and prevented the French flank from being turned till our allies had time to collect their forces. When a man puts out his band to pluck a harmless little plant, he is naturally exasperated when he finds he has grasped a virulent stinging-nettle.
Germany has hitherto waged war almost exclusively on foreign territory. In so far as the dangers and discomforts of war have been brought home to her, this has been due to the intervention of England. She was proud of her colonies, but Taing-tau and others have fallen, and the rest aunt likely soon to follow suit. Her trade is disorganized, and her fine mercantile marine has been swept from the seas. Her Grand Fleet is self-interned in the Kiel Canal. Her food supply is curtailed, and with every mouthful of war bread she is reminded of England. Germany has every reason to bate us, and it is to be hoped that before the war is over she will have every reason to dread us also.—I am, Sir, &c., M. D. C.
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