ANGLOPHOBIA IN GERMANY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7296, 8 January 1902, Page 1

ANGLOPHOBIA IN GERMANY.

■ THE CAMPAIGN OF ABUSE. ! MR CHAMBERLAIN ATTACKED. (London Correspondent "Argus.") The Chamberlainphobiai of Germany increases. Meeting® have been held in about fifty towns and- cities denouncing the "insolence" of Mr Chamberlain's comparison of; British methods at the Cape with the conduct cf German soldiers and commanders during the Franco-German war. As a fact. Mr Chamberlain made no comparison of any kind. Referring to the accusations of " brutality " and "cruelty" he said: — "The time is coming when measures of greater severity may be necessary, and if that time comes we can find precedents for anything we may do in the action of those naitions who mow criticise our 'barbarity,' but whose example in Poland, in the Caucasus, in Algeria, in Tanking, in Bosnia, in the Franco-German war, we have never even approached." Tlie words convey no imputation on the German methods in 1870-1. In that war the military authorities adopted measures to which Mr" Chamberlain- declared we are equally entitled to resort. But the w^lls of knowledge in Germany are poisoned since the Emperor once more refused to encourage any idea of intervention; what Sir Edward Grey describes a® "foul and filthy lies" have been sown more widely * than ever. Dr Leyds and the Holland coterie have engineered two widespread movements — one directed to the boycotting of British : shipping in every large Continental seaport ; and the other ito the fomenting of a popular agitation against England throughout the German Empire. Mr Chamberlai<n's speech came in opportunely for the lastnamed movement, and the Hollander wirepullers! have taken good care to have nearly all the f anti-Chamberlain meetings attended by one or more of the great cloud of pro- j "Boer well-paid lecturers who have been working up Anglophobia in ; Germany. These meetings show a furor Teutonicus. They have been held—^during the past fortnight alonet-dn Gotha, Keil, Dusseldiorf, Duisberg, Elberfeld, Speyer, Celli, Brunswick, Bunzlau, and previously in Hanover, j Berlin, Leipsig, and many other places. At Leipsflg there seem, to have been 3000 persons at one meeting, and also a very large meeting' of women. Every cartoonist in Germany is picturing Chamberlain as Beelzebub in his many parts. • . Germans have* What is called a Busstag — an annuaj day of prayer and humiliation. Tie: theatres are closed, services are held in the churches. The Busstaig has teen held this week, and the correspondents %ell us that many of the pastors in Prussia, who would be shocked- if they were called Pharisees, . have associated the English Colonial' Secretary in their prayers against "the Evil One. The "Daily Mail " says that orthodox and Liberal, Socialist and Conservative, men and women alike, have been poisoned by this incredible agitation to surih a degree that Mr Chamberlain appeaas in their minds worse than the ArchFiend himself. Here is a sample of German abuse taken from the "Detmiold Zeitung": — " Chamberlain's <name will be associated in history with' that.- of Attila and Ghengis Khan. Tie who sweeps like a plague- over the prosperous land of the Boere.a nd leaves dying whomsoever he may touch with the hem ■ of _ his garment. The houses lie in ashes-^will he scatter them to the winds, as was said of Jerusa- ; lem? The cattle are slain— -will he poison J the wells with their bodies? The women and children are dying by thousands — will he. hasten death with powder amd shot? Certainly not, for that would he merciful. ; Will he torture the prisoners with red-hot iroris? What cruelty has nob taken place? What blackguardism which shocked) witnesses do not relate? When the plague sweeps' over a hind it spares one and forgets another in a merciful way— such mercy is not known, by Mr Chamberlain." When Mr Chamberlain was written to respecting -this agitation he answered that it was so evidently artificial that he would take no notice of it. He adldied! that no sensible German could be affronted by*the words he used to justify the action of tho British authorities in the Transvaal by reference to the universal policy of all dvir lised nations in similar circumstances. A German newspaper correspondent in London, Mr Sasse, of the "Vossiohe Zeitung," attempted to "draw" Mr Chamberlain into giving an " explanatory message" to the German .people. Mr Chamberlain anwered tbat, ih appealing to the practices of civilised nations to justify "greater severi-. ties," there was no suggestion that those severities, authenticated by official histories went beyond yvhat was jusb and necessary. But what was right and! proper in another nation could not be barbarous and inhuman if it should be practised by Great* Britain. Mr Chamberlain's epistles have only added fuel to the fire. There . was a tremendoUs outburst against him yesterday and to-day, and the " North German Gazette," which poses as the semi-official organ, after carefully misrepresenting Mr Chamberlain assaying that the European and German nations had' done much worse j things than the English, instead of quoting ] his words, proceeds to read! him a severe '• homily. His " inconsiderate and offensive words," it says, "have met with the justifiable displeasure of Germany." But it adds that the demand of the German public meetings that official steps sfliall be taken against th© unofficial expressions of a foreign Minister is one thajfc ib cannot endorse; and 1 it loftily concludes, "The reputation of the German Army is too firmly establishedi to be affected by false and misplaced comparisons." Mr Chamberlain is further assured that the agitation against him is not artificially manufactured, and the entire German Press echo the same statement. "Never," *says the "Standard" correspondent, "have I seen such a furore of indignation." But the whole thing, he adds, is the work of the panGermans, and these pan-Germans, I may add, have just been described by HerrSzell, the Hungarian Minister-President, as "half-cracked professors and yqung pothouse politicians." Most of *he English papers to-day discuss the subject with words of warning to Germany not to presume too much on the good nature bf this country. Even the "Daily News" discloses a drop of patriotism alt the bottom of its little teacup. The German campaign of calumny against this country and our soldiers, of which the Chamberlain incident is a side issue, continues to spread. English publio men are not allowed to speak of the conduct of the Germans in France without being metaphorically torn to pieces l but the German newspapers retail, and the German people, professors, and students appear to believe, the amazing stories circulated by Dr Leyd's bureau about our bloodthirsty and licentious troops and officers. They accept the Grasspan fiction that our soldiers put Boer women in front of the firing line, and other ridiculous tales as to the torture of children), the murder of Boer prisoners, and statements that the concentration camps have bsen deliberately organised 'to destroy Boer women and children. These statements are actually credited by a nation that is supposed to be sane and civilised. The " Cologne Gazette"

andi a few, very few, other papers have endeavoured to check this avalanche of " foul and fjlthy lias." "The Times" has written a powerful leader warning Germany that this foolish anti-British campaign may lead the two nations into a serious antagonism. Your contemporary also points out how true were Lord Salisbury's words the other! day, that England is the only country ih which, during a great war eminent men write and speak . publicly as if they belonged to the enemy. Sir Henry Camp-bell-Bannerman's "methods of barbarism" speech, and Sir W. Harcourt's "egregious disquisitions" on guerilla warfare, are. cited as . " illustrations of the encouragement given tb adverse critics abroad, and as also confirming Lord Salisbury's observation.