BOOKS OF THE DAY

Germany Pushes South-East (C. A. Macartney) South American Contrasts (Julian. Duguid) A Champion of Internationalism (Honor Croome) More About Holland House (Christopher Hobhouse) A New World-View (F. Sherwood Taylor) .'. Horace Walpole's Correspondence (John Hayward) ..

PAGE

to8, to9 to9 III0 nto II II A Born Ruler (S. K. Ratcliffe) .. ..

Six Autobiographies (James Bramwell) ..

The Greek Anthology (C. M. Bowra) .. .

The Recall to Religion (Kenneth Ingram) .

Detective Fiction (Nicholas Blake) ..

Current Literature . .

• • • • • • • • • • • •

PAGE 1112 1113 1114 1114 I 16 1118

GERMANY'S INTENTIONS

By C. A. MACARTNEY

WHAT are Germany's intentions ? The central question of European politics today may be summed up in these four words—which are not quite equivalent to asking what are her wishes. Many believe the latter, like the wishes of other people, to be inexhaustible ; but under " intention " we may understand a serious well-considered ambition, which it is proposed to realise in the not-too-distant future.

It is a question to which no one, whether. friendliiy disposed towards Germany or the reverse, can remain in- different. Unfortunately, Germany's central position on the Continent is such that a number of different answers to it might appear on the face of them equally plausible, and the extremely various utterances of the Fiihrer and his entourage have done little to clear up the resultant uncertainty. We are left looking for guidance, and our estimate of the :value of the answer which any one observer may give must depend on his knowledge of the subject and his facilities for observation.

Herr Schacher can fairly claim deep attention for his views. He is himself a German, a graduate of two German univer- sities, a student of his country's history and, politics, a pro- fessional observer, and now resident in Prague, which is about as good a forward observation post as any in Europe.

His own answer is quite positive. Germany's real aim, he says, is expansion towards the south-east, down the Danube valley, and across the bodies of Austria and Czechoslovakia. Those two States, together with Hungary, Roumania, the Balkan States, Turkey and the Ukraine, are to be reduced to a condition of vassalage which is never very clearly defined, but is at least to be complete enough to ensure Germany implicit political domination and unrestricted exploitation of their treasures of undeveloped natural resources. Thus the destruction of the States of Western Europe is not an object in itself; on the other hand, the south-eastern drive cannot be accomplished without first reducing France to upotence, while when it has been achieved, the British position- in the Mediterranean will be rendered untenable, if only by reason of the rake-off which Italy will have received. Hence the bread conclusion is drawn that the peace of all the world is threatened by these ambitions, which can only be thwarted by strict maintenance of the principle of the indivisibility of peace.

Herr Schacher substantiates this thesis, firstly by an analysis of Germany's pre-War policy, which he maintains to have been precisely identical with that of Herr Hitler ; secondly, by quotations from Mein Kampf ; and finally, by an account of the policy actually pursued by the National Socialist Government since its advent to power. The last may be summarised as follows : destruction of the principle of collective security-, chiefly by the method of concluding bilateral treaties, the immediate object being to destroy the Little Entente and isolate Czechoslovakia ; the reduction of each separate State to both political and economic subservience through the astute and unscrupulous economic policy attributed to Dr. Schacht ; and the acquisition of further political- control through the support of groups in the various countries which are " ideologically " sympathetic to National Socialism, and through adroit exploitation of the problems of treaty revision and of minorities.

He leaves his reader torn by conflicting feelings ; admiration for much skilful writing, appreCiation of much valuable infor- mation, acquiescence in the general conclusion, struggle with consciousness of the weakness of much of the argument, and with something approaching resentment at its manifold and Germany Pushes South-East. By Dr. Gerhard Schacher. (Hurst and Blacken. 7s. 6d.) often blatant unfairness. Pre-War Germany's policy towards Austria-Hungary is endowed with a tortuous and Macchiavellian character which is frankly incredible. Now Germany is repre- sented as strengthening and supporting her ally, now as deli- berately pushing her on towards suicide. The extremely powerful " Gross-Deutsch " movement, which demanded of Austria only the western and predominantly German portions (it, is true that these were conceived on the most lavish scale) is simply ignored ; it is always insinuated that Germany proposed to exert some complete hegemony over all the heritage of the Dual Monarchy. How little Dr. Schacher, who appreciates so easily the natural character of the Slays' longing for national unity and independence, is inclined to apply the same criteria to his own people, is shown by the astonishing fact that in the chapter discussing Germany's attempts to incorporate Austria he never once mentions German national feeling in Austria, and for Germany's motive gives only " certain strategical considerations and the old Pan-German desire to. procure in Austria . . . a useful instrument on the one hand to bar the Brenner frontier, and on the other to facilitate the actual push south-eastward and give it a base outside the German Reich itself." Hardly less amazing is his sweeping assertion that " the young nations in Central and South-Eastern. Europe., .. . have from the very beginning sought to assure the democratic rights of the minorities." Among a host of minor instances of unfair writing may be mentioned the suggestio falsi made in connexion with the fact that the unfortunate General Gombos' death took place in a Munich nursing-home.

• There are frequent inconsistencies of tone. When the emphasis is being laid on the immediate danger. to the State's of south-east Europe themselves, we hear of the measures into which they, including Italy and Hungary, are being forced in self: defence ; when it is the danger to the world that is being stressed, these same States appear as Germany's willing tools. In general, where the question of territorial revision is con- cerned, Dr. Schacher is so concerned to prove Germany the villain, of every move as to leave his readers in a state of complete bewilderment.

. These defects come very near degrading Dr. Schacher's book from the status of a serious political, study to that of a pamPhlet ; but not quite. It remains true that he has succeeded in giving us a large amount of valuable information on German aims and Methods ; and above all, there are a number of pages which reveal an extremely keen political observation: The passages on Italy's essential conflict of interest with Germany in the Danube basin are first-class; it is a pity that the author seems' to go back on them in a later chapter, and still more pity that he did not supplement them by a fuller account, which he is cer- tainly capable of writing, of Italy's own policy. Another passage of great interest is the discussion of the Italo-Yugoslav Treaty and its possible implitations for-future developments. We could also have done with hearing more about Germany's alleged supP!ir of the Croats, to which one or two mysterious allusions are made. Altogether; this book leaves behind a certain sense of frustration.. One feels that Herr Schacher Could haVe done so much better. He is 'obviously ari acute observer; no lesi Obviously excellently informed ; he might have written a really first-class book. At the worst, however, we cannot deny the service which he renders in drawing 'attention to movements and tendencies which have not received in England one tithe of the attention which they deserve.

There is a short bibliography, containing too high a propor- tion of impressionistic works by journalists, but with some valuable titles of German books. - There should have been indek. The translation is excellent on the whole, with only some 'half-dcgen lapies into Germanisins;