Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. GISBORNE, SATURDAY, APRIL 27, 1918. THE BALTIC. THE BALTIC.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 14590, 27 April 1918, Page 2

Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. GISBORNE, SATURDAY, APRIL 27, 1918. THE BALTIC. THE BALTIC.

Tho German -treaties with Russia and Rumania, and the occupation of Russjan ierri|iory that lins -\^s.fst\ p.lapp sjppp (he signing of those i-veitips. h.ave made t>bp wav wore than ever ft war. Q$ deiencp for the British .E mpire, ' Already 'Gar* mans have boasted that they have now direct acoe&s to Afghanistan and the Persian Gulf, and if. the treaty stands and Germany is not made by the Allies to give up her territorial gains, we shall surely have to face, the position of the Hun being at the gates of India. He'has all his forces of corruption' and .-intrigue busy trying to stir up rebellion within the Indian Empire, whilst he is making plans of attack from without:' ' Tl^e ifl a pger % this l directi(|n, Upweye'r, js ppt immediate, for |3prmany ha? her han^s Ml m Europp, and tintil the fa^e of

nations is decided m the battles now raging m the West it would be futile for . her to attempt, aggression m Persia and Afghanistan. Meanwhile she is steadily enlarging her hold on Russia, along the Baltic littoral, ;md we should not be surprised any day to hear that Petrograd has fallen into her hands. The Germans are not making any direct attaok on that city, but by their advance m Finland and the movement of troops m Esthoniaand Livonia they are gradually surrounding it. The larger German purpose is now as clear as day. Dubious of being able to force a decision m France, the Kaiser turned to the East, there to carve out of Russian chaos a mighty Teutonic Empire. It is a big undertaking, but it is quite possible for him to become so firmly established m Russia, that, Northern France, Belghwn, and even Alsace-Lorraine may appear to-be quite dispensable trifles. In the nature of things he will yield nothing until forced 1 to do so and will push Ins .present offensive as hard and as far as he is able ; but suppose, it achieves nothing, and as tho. next lirijiter approaches the German people- become clamorous for peace? The Kaiser will then be m a position to approach the Alliesi and , say he will give up Northern France, Belgium, and even Serbia, if they will but lay down their arms. Could the Allies, on such, a proposition, afford to assent, leaviaig -unfaithful Russia to its fate at the hands of Teutonic taskmasters. We say unhesitatingly, no, and that there must.be no peace with the Teutons except oil "such terms as we are able to impose upon a beaten enemy. The possession of the Baltic provinces would give the Kaiser an empire m • Russia large anough. ai^d wealthy enough to compensate him for all', his war lo,sses, t and would establish him.sp strongly in.power, dominating the smaller states of Europe, that there would , be no .possible international security/ The .•'afoenace of. foiissia m the palmiest days 'of the Romanoffs would be . trifling compared with the menace of organised Prussia. As the possessor of Finland, Esthonia, Livonia, Cooirland and Poland, Wilhelm would, remain a great monarch, and the Baltic become merely a German lake. Norway and! Sweden /would be directly menaced by the occupation of 'these territories, and British commerce would be given 'a heavy blow. England, has... a. very, ancient trade and long-established interests m those waters.- 'Describing the ehcroacilnnents qf Germany, , the London Observer of .a, recent elate, : .remarks : it loioks as though the^ old- .Germanic Hansa domination of Ihe^Bkltip/and .its, en? trances was to be ..revived 1 by the, military. German Empire of to-day, ; The: process of extending the German \c6asj-lirie on tl|e Baltic is to be resumed^ujitiWt coyers Libau, Windau, Rigaland Reval', allnow^ actually m; German possession. Germany's policy is to incorporate Finland m, that central economic bloc which she hopes to dominate after the war. This •would' bring German influence iar northwards along the eastern "shores of the Griilf of Bothnia, and the ulterior object frould be to turn the northern bend and continue the same process -along ■' thf eastern, or .Swedish shore. But already', , with the perts of the Baltic provinces m her hands, Germany' can deal a shrewd l blow at British trade. To show wliht this means, we may simply say that before the war the Russian expats ' fr6Jh Riga and) Reval to Engjand' were nearly twice as great as the exports from these harbors to Germany, Avnile the -Raissian imports from Germany through tlie same p'drts fell considerably -short of those from ' England. .Holding Riga and Reval, are the natural; entrance^ to, the Riissian' markets, Germany can' at any, tifiie put the shutters np to this valuable British trade. But also trades largely with Swedeti— it .is'..^not always realised how largely!. 'Sweden's exports tst> England m 1913, the- last ; oomplete year of peace, were 238 million . kroner's, as; compared) with Germany^ 170 millions. This ti'ade, too,- is compromisedi' bqth for England 1 aSd for Sweden, by the conversion of the Baltic* Se«a into a German lake. .W© do not say, that GeVr many would' close the Cattegat, which German writers '■ are ;beginning, to speak of as the ''Northern Dardarielletf' j.'but it- is pertinent td recall th^^nany'-yearfi ago the Hansaeatic control -of Copenhagen was used to close tlie Baltic to British' trade, and it is not impossible tha^ modern Germany, having achieved her desire to dominate the Danish capital, might also close the gateway. She would ■ certainly do so if the Allies proceeded 1 with the post-war economic boycott, now boldly announced by France; And it is more than likely sho would establish, tolls, "And /how Trould Sweden herself .enjoy the* prospective new- status m the sea whiih washes air Most her entire coast-line V asks the writer.' "Henceforth she would have to trade with Russia through a' Kiga and Reval m German hand's^ and with Poland through Libau, now also a German port. TJI6 Finland entrances : would also be within the German sphered In these circumstanaes Sweden" wduldi' m futui'e do as much trade with,. Russia as Germany would! be pleased to allow he^ This, with 1 the probable injury of her trade westward with England and the oliter world, is calculated ; to, make Sweden reflect, and it i? surprising tJiat even the pro : , German . Conservatives m that country are beginning.^ to- think ra,ther furiously, on this subject.. Both before and during, *the ; war Sweden : has been making gyeat advances m power ;and ! wealth. In the 'twenty years proceding, the w,ar the output K of,iher. manufactures increased five-^f old. ' Her 1 mer> cantile marine had . kept pace with this development!" On January 1, 1915, Sweden possessedl 2846 yMercliant ships of a gross "tonnage 0f" 1,24:7^86. The Swedes have thus established a oarryihg trade independent of Hamburg, and it Aeenis , unfortunate for theni that, their entire commerce bids fair m, future to depend xipon German good pleasure and to> r ;be conducted through, German inteiv mediaries. However, it is not iqr England to prescribe policy to Sweden.; It wip take us. all our time tp consider and .protect our own interest's in' the Baltiq iSea, and tkese -are, to say the least, Isepiously threatened! by the. extension of German influenoe, which always means -political 'aggression and oommercia! -monopoly, over, those regions." - From ■the above will' be .': '-seen .the srgmfigan<je< ;of the Ger^man: move m Russia and the liecessify fop the war being fought to a finish. There pan- be no .: peace until .Germany is made to disgorge all her all'gqtten • gaihaV'. V- :' i>\ , '