WAYS OF A WOMAN.

Taranaki Daily News, 24 December 1915, Page 12 (Supplement)

WAYS OF A WOMAN.

QUEEN SOPHIE OF GREECE. (Correspondent of Sydney Sun.) London, Oct. 12. Sir Edward Grey has been rather badly mauled this week because of failurea in the Balkans. The plain fact ii that we have been beaten by a woman. Queen Sophie of Greece has proved cleverer than Venizelos, and has landed us in a position far worse than we would have occupied had we never combated her shrewd influence. The Queen is a masterly woman, thoroughly tutored in the German Royal woman's duty of controlling her husband. She is not beautiful to look upon, but her taste 13 exquisite, her dupes in Greek society include many powerful families, and she listens obediently to instructions from her 'brother Wilhelm, and the Berlin Foreign Office. When the Kaiser sent last year a telegram to his sister telling of German victories and conveying "regards to Tino," London was disposed to laugh, and Queen Sophie was depicted in weekly newspapers conveying these greetings to the dazzled King Constantine. But before long this Constantino had surrendered nis will to chat of his Queen. He had in Berlin, after the second Balkan war, ascribed publicly all the Grecian successes to the teaching of the German military system, and lie forced a general election rather than allow Venizelos to send, as promised, a Greek army to help our fleet force the Dardanelles. Queen Sophie still gets wires from Wilhelm at all hours of the day and night, says Athens; and they all bid her tell much to "dear Tino." As she is convinced that her brother is going to conquer the world, she finds it easy to make out a case for the Fatherland. Sarcastic people in Athena, and the Greeks here in London, say that these copious telegrams from the Kaiser are like "bringing owls to Athens," which useless as bringing coals to Newcastle. They are certainly supported by a pro-German press campaign amazingly extensive and thorough throughout Greece, and by pertinacious and impertinent efforts on the part of the German agents. They are supported, too, by bags of German gold, which has become an ordinary currency in Bulgaria and Greece. Many Athenians seem to have agreed that money does not. smell, no matter whence it comes, or for what uses it is intended. For they have pouched it quietly, and it has bad its effect among the political and public people whose influence lias been used against us. All this we could have fought. But to fight the Court's flatterers and wealthy society influence and the Queen's large following, was a task beyond our diplomatists.