THE GERMAN SOCIALISTS.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVIII, Issue 147, 21 June 1917, Page 8

THE GERMAN SOCIALISTS.

{To the Editor.) Sir.—lt does one good to read of the seamen at Home and their attitude towards Mr. Ramsay Mac Donald in his efforts to reach out to his "comrades" the Socialists of Germany. Considering also the attitude of some people in New Zealand—and many in Australia—an extract from the writings of Dr. Thos. F. A. Smith may be worth quoting: -'They (German Democrats) have only objected to the existing form of militarism, but other wise men have always ■•been unanimous that military training should be complete and universal. Their British 'genossen' (comrades) have either misunderstood or wilfully per<verted these teachings. German Socialists have unswervingly insisted upon every man learning the use of arms, •while their British followers have preached absolute disarmament and <lone their utmost to betray England into weakening herself below the minimum necessary to guard the land, and to (maintain the country's pledges tft the ■world." Kautskey writes in "Die Internationalitat and tier Krieg" ("Vorwarts" '{Publishing House, Berlin. 1015), p. 20: "We. have fought against the militarysystem not to make the land defenceless, but in order to introduce another system in its place, which gives us the necessary guarantees that the army will always be the tool of the civil authori-1 ties, and not their master. When the Jatter is the case we call such a condition 'militarism,' and it is against that alone we fight." Seeing that military power is absolutely subordinated to the civil authorities in the case of Great Britain (Mutiny Acts), then, according to the principle of German Socialists, their British colleagues were wrong in all their efforts which they have made against the armed powers at Home. And the same, of course, applies to Australasia.—l am, etc., J. MAKJOEIBAffES STEELE.