GERMAN EYES ON EGYPT

Timaru Herald, Volume CI, Issue 15503, 13 November 1914, Page 4

GERMAN EYES ON EGYPT

COMMERCIAL ACTIVITIES. Considerable attention is given by the German newspapers to Egypt, and great disappointment is obviously felt that nothing has been heard of tlie re- • volt which' Germans expected to break 1 out there when war between England and Germany began. Germans also b.tterly resent the fact that have been treated as alien enemies in Egypt, for it does not suit their purpose to have'to leave tihat country at a time like the present. An interesting and I enlightening article on the subject was published in the "Kolnische Zeitung" recently. It is written by Dr Hugo ! Gi'Othot of Leipzig, a German traveller : and author who ha® spent most of his i time studying tlhe economic and other in <East v .1 Dr Grothe declared that Kngland'actefJ; 'il- • legally when it ordered German and Austro-Himgarian Consular agents to leave Egypt' and when it "took /into custody" German and Austrian subjects. He asserts that it was not military considerations that dictated these measures, and that they were adopted from essentially economic motives. According to ' Km,' Eng'.and took tlie excellent opportunity wthieh was thus offered to. get rid of a very inconvenient rival, Jind "to destroy the peaceful work successfully carriecl out by th's rival in the domain of trade and of culture during the past few decades." SOME STATISTICS. What a strong grip Germany had already obtained in Egypt is fully explained by Dr Grothe. The value of the goods exchanged by Germany and Egypt in the years 1885 to 1889 was, on the average, £50,000 per year; in the year 1912 it was £5,000,G0D. T .n the year 1882 the number of German vessels pajs'ng through the Suez Canal was 109, with a tonnage of 127,000/ in 1913 the number of vessels was 700, and- the tonnage about 3,000.000. In tlhe year 1912 there were 2COO German subjects in Egypt, and about the same number of Austrians and German Swiss. A German bank established itself in the country, in the beg'nning of the present year, and opened eight branches in various towns. German merchants and engineers were facilitating the intercourse between the two countries by devoting much attention to one of the main products of Che country, namely, cotton, and by erecting factories end storehouses. It is no wonder, writes Dr Grothe, that in ) these circumstances England has looked on the growth of the German economic influence in Egypt with the greatest uneasiness. SPREADING CULTURE IN EGYPT. Dr Grothe adds tihat it was not only in economic life that Germany came into ever closer touch with the Egyp- . t'ans,_ for much has been done in the ' domain of culture by spreading the German language and German education. Successes were achieved in this ' domain, also, he states, wfoich were 1 watched by England with great jealousy. Germans were act : ve in the 1 library at Cairo, in the Department for Experimental Farming under the educational authorities, and in the Office -pf Health. The influence of German » schools and German churdhes became ? ever greater, German hospitals were - opened, and during the past few years a German quarter has been established tin Cairo. One can imagine what ? would have happened if English people had shown any inclination to adopt i suoli measures in a country that occupied towards Germany the posit : on i that Egypt occupies towards. Engf land. i? . " . r 1