THE Temuka Leader. THURSDAY, JANUARY 18, 1894. PREPARATIONS FOR WAR.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2609, 18 January 1894, Page 2

THE Temuka Leader. THURSDAY, JANUARY 18, 1894. PREPARATIONS FOR WAR.

Something like a panic appears to have spread over Europe, if we are to judge by the preparations which are being made for war. The German Emperor began it. The old Parliament threw out his Army Bill; he dismissed it, and called together a new Parliament, which complied with his wishes. But after he got what be wanted, he has not, it would appear, got sufficient to cope with the armament of France. Italy and Spain, though on the verge of bankruptcy, feel a necessity for strengthening their defences, and it is proposed to spend £22,000,000 on improving the British navy. Considering that during nearly the lifetime of the present generation civilised nations have been able to settle their difficulties by peaceable arbitration, and that now public sentiment runs in favor of peace, such an exhibition of bellicose intentions is most extraordinary. Can it be that those behind the scenes are conscious of impending hostilities 1 It may be so, but We doubt it. For years we have been accustomed to expect War to break out with the dawn of each succeeding summer, but each year disappointed those who prophecied such disruptions, and peace has reigned in Europe for the last twenty years. There are fewer signs of war now than for many years. Russia seems to have given up her ambitious designs on Constantinople and turned her attention eastward, in which direction »ha is adding to her immense territory, ■pi' -nee js as restless as ever, but has no 1 Russia, What is France to aiiy excepL . Hkl to reuew > the fight for I She is no. - 0 * All • th Franco-German war. Then w*. * Triple Alliance, consisting of Germany, Italy, and Austria. The mission of the Alliance is peace. England is, of course, out of the question. She has given up fighting for a long time, with t le exception of quarrels with the African negroes, so it is difficult to see what all these preparations for war mean. An English Member of Parliament has suggested that representations should be made to all the European Powers that they should disarm by mutual consent, but was told that it was hopeless to expect they would do so. The Pope has on more than one occasion made an attempt to urge this idea on European Powers, but nothing came of it. It is therefore painfully apparent that the civilised Powers do not helievo that war is a thing of the past; it is evident that they are still afraid of eacli other, and mean to be prepared in case of emergen cv. There is another reason why the Powers are not prepared to disarm, and probably it is the chief one. Society throughout the Continent is honeycombed with discontented and anarchical organisations, whose only object is to overthrow the present authorities, and if armies were abolished the probabilities are that these would rebel. To fight these organisations, therefore, the armies are perhaps necessaiy, and it is probable that the defensive preparations which have been set on foot are duo to internal rebelliousness more than external diriger. At any rate, the cost of maintaining these tremendous armies is crushing the industrial classes on the Continent; the taxation is very heavy, and it would not at all surprise us if they eventually rebel against such useless expenditure. As for England, it is not fear of rebellion which actuates her in strengthening her navy. Per empire spreads all over the world, and she needs a powerful navy to protect her interests. All parties agree that jt is on imp pavy her power , (jhieUy depeuds, au4 ju

order to maintain her preßtige it is absolutely necasßary for her to improve the condition of her navy. It is, however, regrettable that such a necessity should exist; it is really deplorable that in this enlightened age nations, as well as individuals, cannot see the folly of wasting their energies on such destructive enterprises, but so it is, and so it will be for a long time yet.