The Daily News. TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 1912. "MY CONSTANT DUTY."

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 193, 13 February 1912, Page 4

The Daily News. TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 1912. "MY CONSTANT DUTY."

A recent speech of the Kaiser, and the speech of Mr. Winston Churchill, reported in our cable columns yesterday, are closely related. One should not be considered without the other. The Kai- | ser mentioned that it was his constant [duty to strengthen the German forces on sea and land, and that his people must therefore get ready to spend more money. To soften the blow the Emperor said that hi& policy was towards maintaining friendly relations. If a friend strolled into your parlor, waved a revolver, threw a dagger om the table and drew a sword and mentioned that he was your very good friend and' that waß why he brought the tools, you would call him a liar. But let that pass. Maybe, it is merely a matter of pride with Germany to enter into a race with Britain which they cannot possibly hope to win. Mr. Winston Churchill, in a speech which is destined to become famous, if merely for the matter it contains, has shown that Britain owes everything to her navy, and that Germany was honored and respected and was doing very well indeed before she had a single ship, which is, of course, quite true. But Mr. Churchill's speech is the more remarkable, because it shows that Britain can keep on outpacing every rival, can build faster and better ships, can man them more quickly, and will remain "stolid and implacable" as usual. His reference to the recent war scare is reassuring. He definitely declared that at no time during last year did Britain contemplate aggression, and that she does not contemplate aggression in the future. Britain has the excuse in a great navy that she is preserving the peace of the world. Germany has no such excuse. A navy is of no possible service to her except for aggressive use. The British Minister spoke quite frankly about possible cessation of building, but Britain cannot cease while every European country is racing madly to build. Also this mad race is of more aid to Britain than to any other country, foi Britain is the great warship builder for most nations. Money for foreign shipi pours into British banks in a perpetual stream. It flows out of the Continental banks—and money fights. Various admirals and experts now out of the senior service tell us with weary iteration that the navy is not what it used to be in their time, urge huge navy loans, and all the rest of it. The people, with their finger on the national pulse and their hand on the national treasury tell » that the navy was never so good, so well manned, so effective. It is comforting to believe the more modern men. Frank discussions between representative men on either side are much more likely to stop the race in warship building than the diplomatic conversations of the past.

Lord Haldane, for instance, is im Germany to discuss the relations with Britain, and, it ii stated, he will tell Germany the truth about the British attitude, which is not antagonistic to the Kaiser's people. One interesting point in regard to Germany's proposed increases is that Germany has not been quite so poor for some time. The prudent man does not feel that the time to buy is when his pockets are more empty than usual, and it is not likely that Wilhelm's words will cheer the hearts of his people, especially as there is no reason under heaven why the navy or army should be increased, because Britain would cease her increases the moment Wilhelm said "Halt!" The German people are a very thoughtful lot, and their chief present thought is that it is a shame to pour millions which they cannot afford into the sea when the expenditure merely forces a corresponding expenditure on a country much better able to find the money. They resent the increase of taxation, they want revision of tariffs, they want more and cheaper foreign foodstuffs—and Wilhelm gives them iron and steel, which may never earn a penny and which may eat up millions of pounds in materials and men. It may do our cousins good to hear from the responsible British Minister that Britain will continue to increase the navy while Continental Powers go ahead with their armaments. In the remote future when the lunacy of war is understood, this age of fiendish preparation will be looked back to with pitying smiles as an epoch when rival nations were bo frightened of each other that they spent uncountable millions to secure an armed and sinister peace.