An Amsterdam despatch stating that Field-Marshal Moltke has been relieved of his post as Chief of Staff, and Major-General Letz has been appointed his successor, adds the following comment:
With regard to the probable cause of this change much speculation is indulged in. Some say that General Moltke erred in his plan of operations in massing great armies in East Prussia while the issue of the campaign in France hangs in the balance. If he had sent the armies to Galicia the disastrous Austrian débdcle would have been avoided, but the concentration of huge armies on the Russian frontier is a most awkward plan. Others assert that the Kaiser is very eager to launch the attack on Great Britain in order to gratify his personal animosity, but General Moltke does not approve of this as the attack on Britain would scarcely produce any decisive result. Lately the Kaiser has been advocating the devastation. of British cities
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.