THE New Zealand Herald AND DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS. TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 1900.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 11348, 17 April 1900, Page 4

THE New Zealand Herald AND DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS. TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 1900.

Our London correspondent in his interesting communication which we published on Saturday, referred at some length to the feeling in France towards England, and the grave risk which exists of some hostile movement which would involve the two countries in war. No one who has carefully followed the drift of public opinion in France, as reflected in the columns of the Paris press, 'will require to be told that there is at the present time a degree of restlessness in the French nation which bodes no good either for itself or its English neighbour, or for that matter for the peace of Europe. It is always difficult to analyse or define the true inwardness of popular emotions and popular delusions; and there is no other country in the world where these emotions and delusions are more rife than in France, or where. they seize hold of the people more readily and spread more quickly. Tho French people, notwithstanding their many admirable qualities— we count among these their strong natural affections, their thrift,. and ardent love of country— as hysterical and petulenfc as a woman whose nerves are overstrung. They are subject to curious hallucinations. One of these just now is that England is menacing France, and that it is therefore the duty of the French to deal perfidious Albion a deadly blow before she can carry out her wicked designs. They believe that the war with the Boers is merely a preliminary canter, as our London correspondent remarks, to enable Great Britain to get its army into proper fighting trim, and that when the war is over and England has a quarter of a million seasoned troops under arms, she will then turn her attention to France, lay waste her coastal towns, and snap up her colonies. It is even feared by some alarmists like M. Delafosse, whose remarks are quoted by our correspondent, that England and Germany may make common cause against France and destroy her as Poland was destroyed without any other Power raising its little finger to assist her. We do not, of course, require to assure English readers that there is no foundation for this frightful nightmare from which the French are suffering. No British statesman, we are confident,- harbours any idea of attacking France, and as for the British people, though they are naturally angry with France for permitting its newspapers to pour out abuse upon the members of the English Royal family and the British nation as a whole, and for the irritating pin-pricks which it is never tired of giving us, nothing could be further from their thoughts than a desire to follow up the South African war with another against France. Wo have cause to be annoyed with France for the petulent jealousy and viperish animosity which she has displayed towards us, but we know we have nothing to gain by going to war with her. We have territory enough without coveting our neighbour's possessions, and have no wish to annex a French province or colony at the cost of piling up the national debt to appalling proportions. But the French people are not convinced of this, or at any rate a section of them. The disastrous superstition has taken hold of them that we are perfidiously preparing to attack them, and is assiduously encouraged by such hairbrained writers as Paul de Cassagnac, who keeps telling his countrymen that England can only regain her "lost prestige" by pouncing upon France and bleeding her to death.

This fear in its turn has given rise to an eager desire to act before England is ready to strike. Wo are accordingly growing familiar with the idea of a French invasion of England. France is being urged to hurl herself upon her Western neighbour while her aruiy is still engaged in South Africa, and her home defences depleted, and to plant an army corps upon English soil. It, is said that there is something more than, the empty vapourings of the cafes in this sinister counsel; that it is not merely the chatter of irresponsible Paris journalists, but is the opinion of men of weight and influence, in French affairs. We are told that nothing unpleasant will happen while the Exhibition is open. Even the national safety, it seems, must give way to the golden harvest which Paris shopkeepers and others hope

to • reap from the great , international show. But the moment the Exhibition :is over the troops of France will be set in motion, and war with England will be declared. According to these prophets of evil the closing months of the present year are likely to be big with momentous events. A writer in the St. James' Gazette, who seems to possess information of a kind, has been making inquiries in France,, and has come to the conclusion that war, may be looked for next September. Popular opinion in France is excited and ripe for it—in spite of M. Loubet's pacific sentiments in his inaugural speech at the opening of the Paris Exhibition—the generals are in favour of it; the array is ready for it, and everybody speaks of it- He compares the state of readiness in France with what he describes as the lack of preparation in England, and adds: "Is there any wonder that France imagines her opportunity will come this autumn 1 I say in all seriousness that unless England and her Ministers awake to the necessity of diplomatically impressing France with a very different opinion of us to that which she holds to-day, and of so depressing her without delay that opportunity will taken." •.

All this sounds a little alarming, but though no one can say what may happen in France, what autumnal' madness may seize upon the French people fretting under imaginary humiliations and eager to avenge them, wo are reluctant to believe that the French nation or the French Government, however loudly the Chauvinists may shout, seriously wish for a war with England, or that it is to be counted among the likely possibilities of the dying months of the century. A section of the French press no doubt favours an attack upon England, but it is a question how far the French press may be accepted as the bona-fide representative of French national feeling. It is blatant and ignorant, and we are disposed to think that beneath the scum and froth which it concerns itself with there is a solid and sensible public opinion which, though perhaps infused with no particular friendliness towards England, and which would gladly see France recover some of her old military glory, is not likely to clamour for war with England, which would mean, if successful, the enthronement of the triumphant general, and if unsuccessful, the overthrow of the Republic. Such a war would be attended with risks for France so tremendous that unless the nation went stark, staring mad, it is a thing which we cannot believe is likely to happen. It could not be entered upon at all unless with the consent of Germany, or with the active assistance of Russia, and we do not think that either Germany or Russia is prepared to adopt that course. The moment France moved her army against England she would be at the mercy of her old and victorious foe. And we fancy the probabilities are that Germany would not remain inactive. There is also the Anglo-German agreement to be l kept in mind. Its terms have never | yet been disclosed, but we would not be surprised if they provided for such a contingency as that of serious trouble between France and England. The attitude of Russia is perhaps a little more dubious, but the Czar has shown, or at least lias been credited with showing, a distinctly friendly feeling towards England. Still while we do not share the gloomy pessimism which prevails in some quarters regarding the dangers which are supposed to threaten England,.it would be a mistake to suppose that the outlook is free from all anxiety. We do not know the secrets s of the European chancelleries, but there is evidently a feeling abroad, which is shared by some shrewd judges of the drift of events, that we may shortly be confronted with a serious peril. It is necessary, therefore, that all parts of the Empire should keep themselves in a state of preparedness so that they may bo ready for whatever may happen.