ANGLO GERMAN RELATIONS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 133, 3 July 1909, Page 6

ANGLO GERMAN RELATIONS

GERMAN VIEWS. i Mr. Aeneas O'Neill does a real p|ibliservice in reporting, through the l|ageof a recent Nineteenth Century, tu opinions of some notable German *»- tlie naval situation. "FATAL INCAPACITY FOR MUTUAI UNDERSTANDING" , The predominant feeling left by hi: enquiries in Germany—he writes t'roi. Berlin—is that "there is a fatal i* capacity for mutual understanding eve> in tho highest quarters." Besides th> persons whom he cites by name, lie ha ascertained the feeling of manjj win withhold their names. t There is A gen j era! agreement in regarding Sir E»lwa.x .Grey's suggestion for a standstill »■■■ wholly: impracticable and daibgerou.end incompatible with the dignity o Germany. France, imposed a siiuila.' condition on the Prussian army at Tii sit, but that was the dictation of a eon queror. PLEA FOR "A CONVERSION OF I'LHUC OPINION.' Rear-Admiral W'eber strongly favom an understuuding between England am .Germany, but it should not take th form ot a treaty, but should consist in t> conversion of public opinion to mor. reasonable views. He made the ver, shrewd observation that Germany's con stantly extending provision for the pou prevented her indulging in any exc?s of armaments. Then, too, since t'n closing of the port of Hamburg for . ,fe\v weeks during the cholera epidem. icost Gennauy 2UU million marks, tn loss' which would result from a bloekau of all tlie German ports can be imagbe rather than computed. Such risks wi. not be lightly incurred.

A POLITICAL RAPPROCHEMENT ' I NEEDED. Count Ernst uu Koventlow, also a re tired naval ullicer, traces the presen ill-feeling to commercial rivalry am' jealousy, which England also feels w wards the United States, but for kin ship's sake does not express'. He ad vises "an effort to bring about a rejj procheuient in the political sphere, wit h out any limitation of armaments"—sa., to have worked together over the Ba. kan trouble, instead of against eacl other, or to arrange the Bagdad railwa. and other Turkish questions.

WAR IMPOSSIBLE. Dr. Otto Arendt, memhur of t!i Reichstag, characterised "the invasio spectre as idiotic"; and he considered war between England and Germany I be absolutely impossible. Every no ship built by Germany lessened tli temptation for England to repeat tli experiment of Copenhagen. Without Continental ally England would not a. tack Germany; and the Japanese AH anee had removed the risk of a Cont: nental Alliance, lie thought England financial position weaker than Gc; many's, and more needing attcntio than the Navy. AllegedGeimnn design on our colonics he spoke of as moon shine. EFFECT OF OUR NAVAL AGITATION.

Professor Samassa, one of the mos ardent propagandists of the I'an-Gennai League, did not helicvo at all in tin possibility of an Anglo-German war, a: England could never subjugate Gci many, while- Germany had nothing t< gain from a. war with England. G(jr man West Africa, from which he hajust returned, offered, to his mind ai excellent and extensive held for Genua' emigrants, although emigration wouli not again become necessary until afte: fifteen or twenty years. In his opinion "the cd'ecl of the present agitation ii. England would probably be that Gcr man circles dis'poecd to hasten the pro gross of the shipbuilding programme would now abandon that idea in pre ■{ scn-e of the senseless increase of he) own Navy by England." EIiKLIXU IX THE TWO NAVIES. Captain von Pustau, a naval write) of noie, mentioned as characteristic ol Hie spirit animating German naval off! ccrs the fact that during his service the\ hud nave)', to his knowledge, chos'en England as a hypothetical adversary in tlie war-games which were regularly played by them. Indeed, a most cor-,' dial feeling of comradeship existed M\ l.weon the ollicers of both navies, the' Germans always feeling that, the English naval oflicers were nearer to them in sympathy and character than those "f any other nation. He went so far as to say that if the nuestinn were left to the admirals of the two fleets the problem would soon ho solved.

ENGLAND'S BEST ONE OP ,1 DEFENCE. i Captain von Pustau was disposed ti( regard tin; future in a hopeful -spirit seeing Hint, from the moment when pri vnte properly, not only of neutrals ,bul also of belligerent States, was •protectee', at sea. the whole anxiety for liritisM imports' and exports would immediate!" [■ease, and the Navy would no longs'' count for more than the Army in th<.' system of military defence. As soo). a- the; new principle, was adopted, th' f "eean. which would 'belong to all th< neutral Powers, would he regarded a?,

sacred by the lielligcrent navies, am' I heir action would be restricted to terrt torial waters; If that reform were real Ised EiiL'lnntl would have no need of r hundred Dreadnoughts, or even of half the number, as they could be dispense!' wilh in favor of a cheaper type of vessel to be used for blockading and trans, nort. 1

•■a«rf.e with thine ahversait/ QtHCKTA." Hi'i'v von Rath, formerly private fioel retarv tn Merlmrt. Itisinnrelc. m'onouneof 'IIn- ilnnwr ciniilnil hv'llritisfi aimrehon sinns us ilwiili'dlv serious: ''if slops lv "»l *» l ; !v Inkfii In ivert. the riros-on< Aiijfln-Ci'riii-in \icril. lie fenrs it ni.v soon wove in !„• |„„ | : ,|,.." ]„ |,f„ o pi-,i ; (ii. ,; i||,. (i..i-- ,T)|uij,iu «;is art Anglo flcrtiinn political nmlorsta-i'linsr on tin iinmclest nn«K cnvi'riiiff Furonean r' 'Vi'll y e»li)iiial interests." Salinl.e.' herself with colniiinl expansion. Enorlani' mi'.'hl assume a more arpominortntin.iftilude Imvanlsfionnany in ilie maltei nf colonial aequisilions. ' Tile whole art'cle is n. valuiih'e ai' 'o our seeuiu' the situalio;i through Herman eyes'.