GERMAN NAVAL AMBITIONS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 201, 29 September 1909, Page 2

GERMAN NAVAL AMBITIONS

"A LYING AND TREACHEROUS FALLACY." A GROUNDLESS FEAR. MEMOIRS OF VON HOLSTEIN. By Cable.—Press Association.—Copyrigfni Received September 28, 10.30 p.m. Berlin, September 28. A retired German official, llerr Vonrath, in an article ill the Deutsene Revue, entitled " Reminiscences of Von llolstein," shows that the distinguished lute chief of the Political Department of the Foreign Office was a strong opponent of the policy of unlimited naval expansion. He is credited with approving the campaign pursued by Vice-Admiral Gals'ter and others against the big ships policy. The late Von Ilolstein declared, referring to one of Viec-Admiral Galster's 'pamphlets, ''Tile main tiling is to expose the lying and treacherous fallacy embodied in the statement that every fresh ship is an addition to German power, when every fresh ship causes England, to say nothing of France, to build two."

Von Holstein, in December, 11)07, is reported to have himself as follows: "In the German pernicious and eostl.v naval fever that is raging lies a dangerous disease, fed upon groundless fear of attack by England. The danger is between Germany on the one hand and England and France on the other, but entering the calculations were other Powers. \Vcre the German fleet destroyed it would at least lie doubtful whether England and France might not join America in a struggle with the yellow race."