GERMANS IN ENGLAND.

Colonist, Volume LI, Issue 12680, 27 October 1909, Page 1

GERMANS IN ENGLAND.

The "Nation in Anns," the journal of the National Service League, pub- > lishes a letter from 'an absolutely ro- ! liable source,' suggesting that the I Germans in Great Britain have a ! scheme of organisation already pre- j pared. "A gentleman with a thorough knowledge of the German language," says the correspondent, "was having luncheon at a restaurant in London, and sitting at the next table to him was a foreigner, who. speaking in German in an undertone (but which nevertheless, my friend was able to ' hear), addressed the ■"'niter who was attending to him as follows: — 'Where . do jou mobilise ?' An sv.-er, _ 'Sheerness., My friend thought this somewhat strange and startling, so decided to try the same question himself, ' which he did the following day at another restaurant, and got the reply, 'Ghatbim-.' ' ' The secretary of the Loague believes that there is no doubt about the German organisation. He | quoted to a reporter an extract from | V the speech delivered in the House of Lords a year ago by Lord Roberts: — "It is calculated, my lords, that there 5 are 80,000 Germans in the United 1 f Kingdom, almost all of them trained j ■.■soldiers.: They work many 'of the' hotels at some of the chief railway ' stations, ■and if \a Germaii foroeon.ee ' got into the country it would hate th*

.advantage of help and reinforcements sucih as aio other army or foreign soil has ever before enjoyed.'' "From time to time, too," the secretary added, one hears stories from Army ofhcers who vouch for the fact 'that detachments of German officers indulge in staff rides around various ports and landing places, studying apparently their possibilities. Another thing of which I have 'heard, and of which- the Germans make no secret. Jiugltsn officers visiting Germany who lhave mentioned casually, when in company of Gorman, officers tho names of little places in this country— villages and small towns, etc.— havo at times been surprised to hear one of these German onicers say quite casually: 'Oh yes! That's in my district.' J hore is no concealment about ib. lliey mean that the place mentioned is in that part of Britain which hag been assigned to them for purposes of study."