THE KAISER'S GUILT

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 2261, 9 April 1921, Page 2

THE KAISER'S GUILT

IX an article in the World’s Work, Herr Harden, the well-known German editor, makes probably the first German admission that the Kaiser and his courtiers launched the war. He describes how Germans were trained through 20 years of the Kaiser’s rule to believe that hale and envy of the world threatened the prosperity achieved by their own iron thrift, and proceeds: ’‘All - this merely because a coquettish actor, His Majesty by the Grace of God, was hunting for a star-part to win applause in a constant succession of costumes. His mediocre and unpopular ministers wanted to renew their prestige by repeating the role which had brought success to ; Prince Bulow in the Austro-Hus-sian conflict about Bosnia. His capable generals wanted to exploit what in their opinion, was the last opportunity to remove with the sword the- difficulties which had been brought about by an appallingly bad policy. The ministers wanted bluii’; the generals wanted a preventive war before the superiority of the "enemy” became invincible. The Kaiser himself, outstripped by bis son in popularity with the people, at the call of grandiloquent cowtfrdice and yet the slave of his long-standing heroics, urged on by his ‘dynastic feeling’ and his fear of assassination, was pleased to take upon himself the duly of avenging the murder at

Sarajevo as the executant of»the solidarity of monarchs. He dared not appear a coward, and, falling as ever on the side of the strongest alarm, he declared war.”