"THE BRUTAL ENGLISH."

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 7, Issue 429, 26 November 1918, Page 1

"THE BRUTAL ENGLISH."

fSpecially written for " The Times/') " The Germans do not know how to hate. That is a characteristic of the brutal English," said the Kaiser in one of his war orations. Some of us, who may have been misled by unkind things we have read about the Kaiser in our newspapers, which seem to have been in a conspiracy to render him obnoxious, may not be inclined, all in a moment, to agree with him in his estimate of the English character; but, by the time they have read this article, they will, perhaps, conclude he was justified in calling them " the brutal English." When war broke out there were in Great Britain and her colonies quite a number of Germans and sons of Germans. They had settled on British soil, they often informed us, with nothing but the best and most amiable intentions towards us. "Ve haf kom here for your goots," they frequently told us. In England they acted as waiters, as clerks in mercantile houses, as shop-keepers, and whenever possible they got billets in post offices and telegraph offices, for they always longed to improve their minds; and in such places it is generally easy to pick up little bits of information interesting and usefnl not merely to themselves but to the Fatherland. Herr Adolph Freid mann, a German resident in Switzerland, with great candour, informed us a couple of years ago that every German abroad is required by the German Government to act as a spy But if these good Germans in England were spies, it was merely a sideline with them, done in their odd times, and not allowed to interfere with their daily work. They waited, they clerked, they sorted letters, they despatched telegrams with precision and industry. \Vhat more could we ask of them ? But when war broke out what did the brutal English do with these people they had previously tolerated, if not welcomed ? Cruel soldiers and unfeeling policemen rounded them up, and put them into internment camps. It is true that Mr McKennn let out 40.000 very shortly afterwards, but the brutal English turned on him then, and bumped him out of the Cabinet, just because he was filled with the milk of human kind ness they themselves lacked. And they took occasion to bump out Haldane and some others because they were warm-hearted men who loved the poor Germans

But all the Germans were not interned just at first. Some very respectable and wealthy ones were left at large. It was not done out of kindness, but with the cruel motive of the cat, who lets the mouse run a little way but never out of reach. And every now and then they pounced upon one of these poor people and ill-treated him. Poor Mr Consul Ahlers was hanged because he sent interesting little items of news to the Fatherland He had been a long time in the country, and was quite English in his way. And Mr Carl Loder was shot, and several others done to death. And when Kitchener was drowned on the way to Russia, because some of the English Germans thought the Tsarina would be glad to hear he was coming, and sent to tell her, these brutal English got quite nasty, and destroyed the goods and furniture of quite a lot of them. As if a General more or less made any matter when they had so many and all Bill Massey's army to pick from, as well. How pleasant it is, now that the war is over, to b'e able to look back and see how differently we have behaved. Life in the sunny south has made us milder and sweet-natured. It was only with difficulty the Government could persuade itself to put a few of our Germans on a couple of islands. And even then it was untiring in its kindness. It allowed each of them three times as .much money for his food per day as it allowed our own soldiers, and permitted them to import wines and cigars and other luxuries free of duty. It was worth while being a German in New Zealand, I assure you. And a launch was thoughtfully left handy so that they could have a run down to the Kermadics when they got tired of Motuihi. How different we are from those biutal English. In England they know a good deal, or fancy they do, about making munitions, but did it ever occur to them to make one of their capable educated Germans Minister for Munitions? They \|nuld have laughed at the idea if it had been puggested to them, but thirik what a brilliant success it miirht have been. An English Mi»i'tor miffht easily pet in a panic : f-h< "itrmv was winnings, hut the wV> hail a second chance would I ■■ r oT. rnpahle and collected what- ■ ve* happened T T nfortunately we have a little fly ; n f'lir oin'ment Some of our New Zetland woman who lost pons and husbands nt the war, said they did n >f want anyone of German blood in Ministry, hut the Government v rv widely refused to listen to them while thev were in a state of temporary lVitati' n And after nil they had little to complain of. We had only 17.000 men killed, and about as many more permantly injured, so we sh.ill have quite a lot back out of our

hundred thousand. It is just like the women to get excited over trifles. And they even wanted to go further and petition the Queen, bat the Government would not allow Her Majesty to be bothered over so small an affair.

But the worst is not yet told. There is a flinty-hearted Member of Parliament who for two or three sessions has actually tried to get a bill through the House preventing peoplo of enemy origin, however excellent in themselves, not only sitting in Parliament but even on County Councils. He does not even want them to be Justices of the Peace. For two or three sessions the Government has managed to defeat his nefarious scheme, but he is just the sort of man to try it again if he gets half a chance, so he must be watched carefully. He cannot be wholly a gentle-minded loyal-hearted New Zealander, but must have a leaven of English brutality in him. Ido not want to be pharasaical, but is it not nice to think that the Kaiser cannot class us, even in his own mind, with the brutal English'?