12th January.
"THE brief telegraphed summary which we received more than a month ago of Mr. J, L. Bashford's conversation with the German Chancellor on the political relations between England and Germany, made us anxious to read the full account; and that anxiety is now gratified by the arrival of the December number of "The Nineteenth Century and After." Mr. Bashford makes a few introuctory remarks, pointing out the absurdity and impolicy of the "cam-paige of insult' and mischievous suspicion" carried on against Germany by some of the London news-pal culminating in the insensate article mentioned by Reuter this morning,—'that inthelongrun would infallibly prove disastrous, whichever way it ended.... Whenever an incident unpleasant to England happens in any part of the globe, a German diplomatist or the Central Goverament in Berlin is said to be behind it. Could anything be more fatuous than to attribute so much' power to German diplomacy; or could anything be less complimentary to the representatives of Powers that are friendly disposed to us than to insinnate that they are completely under the thumb of their German Colleagues? If we look at the matter from an unprejudiced and businesslike point of view, we must surely admit that nothing is more mischievous than to convert a rival into a bitter enemy." The course followed by the " Times" and the "Spectator," among others, is markedly un-English. Germany is our mercial rival, and very strenuous rival; and it is the commonest thing to see British firms bitter rivals in business, but excellent friends in private life, and the same is true of our politicians; but it is reserved for certain journalists to hate and constantly attribute malign motives to our business rivals.
Alter a few complimentary remarks on Count Biilow personally, Mr. Bash-ford comes to his actual conversation with the Chancellor, which the latter began by noting that a certain school of British publicists seemed to look at a paper-war' against Germany as the main object of its lite. "Iam gratified, however," the Chancellor continued, "to see that a reaction appears to have set in—at least, against the calumnious excesses of this campaign—and gnome of the English papers have of late been dropping that tone of rabid bitterness that was so very irritating... Even the Anglo-Chinese Press—I refer to the North-China Herald'—considers the constant hammering at Germany with insinuations against our policy in China to be undignified and dangerous, and calculated to throw Giermany into Russia's arms." The Chancellor then contradicted emhatically the statement of the eking correspondent of the "Times" that the German Minister at Peking had interfered in order to prevent the ratification of our trouty with Tibet. Germany, he said, has no more concern with Tibet than she has with Manchuria; "at all events, I authorise you to state publicly thst Baron von Mumm did not meddle with this question, and that I characterise any other version about this matter asa falsification."
The Chancellor next dealt with the charge that the nervousness of the Baltic fleet was due to "warnings" from Germany. "There isnot a word of truth in this, either." As early as last August, the Russian authorities intimated to both Germany and Denmark that it was possible that a Japanese attack might be made from their territory, and both these neutral nations quite properly instructed their coast officials to be specially on the watch and investifieppen in German waters.
te the matter: and nothing did
The next charges refuted were that Germany tries to sow discord between England and Russia, and between England and France. Count Bilow declared that it was Germany's earnest desire to prevent any collision between England and Russia, which would almost inevitably involve Germany; and Germany. has done her utmost to preserve her own neutrality and keep China neutral, and localise the war. The Count made one excellent point. He said: "A pity in your country is always advocating a special understanding between England and Russia. Good we have nothing whatever to say against this, especially if iv make for peace, but when it is a question of Germany being on specially good terms with Russia, there is at once an outery in England that we have some ulterior aim in view, and that we are concocting an alliance against England." Again, he said that Germany is not so stupid as to try and interfere with an entente between England and France just at the moment when it was being concluded.
At all events, by agreeing to what you desire in Egypt we showed our ood-will to the British Government in that we did not throw any obstacles in the way of its friendly arrangement with France,"
Mr. Bashford having drawn Count Bilow's attention to the anti-English language used by German writers, and notably by some German historious in writings which are accepted as text-books at the Universities, and having lly cited a sentence attributed to rich von Treitschke in 1884: "The reckoning with England has still to come; it will be the longest and most difficult," the Chancellor replied that he knew Treitschke well and that the latter was certainly not an enemy of England. If hostile passages are quoted from his works, friendly passages should also be given, Treitechke, besides being a historian, was a pooh and a man of serang pessitus. Ifhe used the words cited, it must have been in @ moment of emotion or rage; but if he did, "they do not contain the doctrine encouraged or advocated by the statesmen or edu-eaters of the land." And Count Biilow repeated that he could assert from his personal knowledge of Treitschke that he admired England. It was equally untrue that Bismarck was a hater of England or entertained designs against England's position in the world.
The last accusation met by Count Billow was the recurring one that the naval policy of Germany is framed in contemplation of a war with England. Germany does not dream, he said of conjuring up such a war, and it would be a monstrous crime to do so. If there were only two big competitors in the world, Germany and England, and the conquest of England by Germany would mean the absolute supremacy of the latter, such a war might be politically justified. But there are other: big Powers, to which Japan must now be added, and as the apprehended war "would completely destroy German trade, as far as one can judge, and would seriously damage ritish trade, our rivals would utilise the opportunity for securing the markets of the world without firing ashet. So that, were we to come to blows, there would be a whole bevy of fertil gaudentes." The Ger-wan fleet is to protect German interests abroad, which are important enough now to demand ample provision. Finally, Count Biilow completely repudiated the idea that he had anything but admiration for England, or that he would think of fomenting hostility between the two nations.
A deliverance like this from the German Chancellor is so unusual and 30 obviously sincere, that it would, we should have thought, have done a great deal to counteract the dislike and suspicion of Germany that certain home papers
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.