GERMANY'S AMBITIONS.

Marlborough Express, Volume XXXIX, Issue 58, 9 March 1906, Page 4

GERMANY'S AMBITIONS.

The caaenssion of Belgian neatralifcv by the Journal oi Paris ra-uUla attention to the campaign of ti;o Be!jshn public ist, M. Eagens B^ie, iv favour of an alliance batwoen Belgiua and Holland on a twofold basis—economic in tbe form of a Customs union, and military as to ttie joiut aynfrMn of defence iv re gard. to the mouth cf tha Scholdb on fci.e western s tie and on the ea»tf»rn tho province of Luubnrs?. Tne pro ponal, although afciU utdor tJißeoasinr. from an academic rafcber than a pvac iCil fit»udjioinv, has rtceiveci tnuch no'fcsfie ia both cuuntries as woll as in t.v.i Eayopean p?eas, Ia regard to th<; p;S3ib!e vioUiti'oa'of Balirian mmtra--1 (,y, de:>l6 with in tha Journal, M. B.;ia pom's on!; thaS BriiislA statoame*, and not:* Sly Lv:k& Palner'.-jJo: , have awajs favoured thj *' bavrior " sys j t::m, by V7hie vi Bollaiid conaftitate;. a aycoad line of detesiee ugalost attach icoia eitl^ar sicio ; »nd from fchis he sSrengthens hi-"* ar#atn<?Bti in favou; o j lint aotiou with Boigiu-.n. He t-&ya : —'• Formerly.the barcior wis directed against F^auee. 16 served as ap ot icticm against the caprke ol an ov«rwhalmiogiorea. Who can deny that to day it is an effective bulwark against tbe Germanising i>y«teai which is silent'y at work in our midst ? Ante werpaLd Rotterdam are ranidly (allia^ uncitr fchis inflaenca. It has be eptae tsiJiinfoit that Germany covets odr ports and nourishes wide reaching schemes oS ambifiion in respect to our 'nation. We uaders'-asid the imperious necessity which drives her towards th? p'o'rta which coanxiand her Hinterland. i-uS tbfs must uofc imply ariy remonica--tion of out independence. Gorman commercial supremacy as far as the North Saa would n«B oniy weigh heavily oh the testofEoirope.bat would be a serious menace to British interests. Tlie port of London would lose a large proportion of tha carryiog trade wicu oiher parts oi the Eajpire. Ana bear in mind, that having oncy established & Customs uaion with Dutch ports; Germany would not only establish her commercial supremacy on a firm basis, bufcshe would create naval porta at Heldec, at Flashing, even at Antwerp, close to British waters. It must be admitted that the German cruisers of. 18,000 tons now building are not intended for navigating the Kiel Canal, The Kaiser requires strategic naval bases in northern waters wifchin 48 hcii?s of each other. It is in this connection thafe the co operation of Belgium and Holland would prove of practical value in counteracting Gerinaa ambitions— first, because tboy are against the general interest of the rest of Europe, and secondly, because it is the policy of the other States to reduce the ' points of, friction' to a minimum. Eagland should emply her influenca to bhia end by favouring a combination which lunar, tend in the long run to preserve the balance of power in Europe. Her interests are at stake as well as on? own. And I beiiove that if British statesmen do not grasp this aspect; sf tha situation, th> y are in- | directly courtiag grave difficulties ia I the future."