... It is plain enough that official England is quietly pursuing
a policy opposed to Germany and aimed at her isolation, and that King
Edward has not hesitated to use his personal influence in the service of
this scheme. But it is certainly exceedingly dangerous to poison public
opinion in the open manner adopted by these irresponsible journals.
Again, on July 28, 1911, in the midst of the Morocco crisis, Baron
Guillaume, Belgian Ambassador at Paris, writes:--
I have great confidence in the pacific sentiments of the Emperor William,
in spite of the too frequent exaggeration of some of his gestures. He
will not allow himself to be drawn on farther than he chooses by the
exuberant temperament and clumsy manners of his very intelligent Minister
of Foreign Affairs (Kiderlen-Waechter). I feel, in general, less faith in
the desire of Great Britain for peace. She would not be sorry to see the
others eat one another up.... As I thought from the beginning, it is in
London that the key to the situation lies. It is there only that it can
become grave. The French will yield on all the points for the sake of
peace. It is not the same with the English, who will not compromise on
certain principles and certain claims.
[Footnote 1: The alliance between Germany and Austria, which dates from
1879, was formed to guarantee the two States against an attack by Russia.
Pages:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25