THE INTERNAL CONDITION OF GERMANY.
AN exceptionally informing series of articles on the . conditionof Germany by a Swede, who has just visited many German towns, has been appearing in the Times. The Swede, who was educated in a German Univer- sity, and spent ten years in Germany, is frankly pro-Ally in his sympathies, though he still counts many Germans among his friends. He is so reasonable in his comments, and so quick to pick out what is significant, that we have no hesitation in saying that his diagnosis of the state of German feeling is as near the truth as any neutral 'writer is likely to bring us. The moral of all that he says is very plain. Germany is not being " starved " yet, and it would indeed be difficult to starve her in the strict sense of the word, but it is evident that the one thing above all others which is making an impression'on her is the blockade. She fears it. When it relaxes she rejoices ; when it tightens its grip she becomes alarmed. If the blockade should be weakened, says the Swedish observer, the war " may continue almost indefinitely." What madness, then, to relax it by any deliberate concession I Maddest thing of all to do it in the name of humanity, when a relaxation means not only a prolongation of suffering, but a jeopard- izing of the liberties of the world for generations 1 The correspondent found that no difficulties were put In his way, either when he entered Germany or when he wished to move about freely. He was conscious of being watched in trains, but no doubt the German authorities are satisfied that they have nothing to fear from Sweden, and are, therefore, even anxious to keep up the appearance of acting as though all their books were " open to in- spection." In Berlin he stayed at a boarding-house of the superior sort. Here he was among the va-et-vient of professional men and officers from the front. All be- lieved that the war would be over in three or four months. Were not France and Britain held fast in the West, were not Belgium, Serbia, much of the Baltic provinces, and Russian Poland conquered, and was not the way open to the Near East I What, then, remained but the conquest of Egypt and the war would be over It must be remarked here that, not only on the evidence of a mere Berlin boarding-house, but on evidence collected in all directions, the correspondent was convinced of the reality of the German intention to try to conquer Egypt. Camels and mules are being bought in large quantities and railways are being laid in the desert. There is no excuse for any one who does not accept the warning. If we take the necessary precautions, we shall have nothing to fear and probably something to gain. But the Germans mean business. The oorrespondent, in spite of the universal confidence, was not unduly impressed by it. He knows Germans too well not to remember that, in spite of the travelling habit which has been fashionable in recent years, the vast majority of them know extraordinarily little of the resources and temper of other countries. And, of course, want of experience is made good to their own satisfaction by their wonderful docility in believing what they are told to believe. They see everywhere the great maps covered with coloured flags showing the conquered territories, and they believe nothing but that the war is going splendidly for their country. Nevertheless, although Berlin outwardly has been changed hardly at all by the war, the correspondent came across evidence of doubts, anxieties, and even of riots. Accidentally he lighted upon the information that, in the belief of one statistician, Germany could not hold out for more than twelve months unless she could maintain her supply of fat-matters--among which, we may say, copra is not the least important. In November there was a riot of some magnitude in Berlin, and there has been -another since then. These food ri6ts—for such they are—appear to be originated by women. In a very curious and enlightening passage the correspondent says that the spirit of German women is giving out before that of German men. He does not mean that they do not work splendidly. They do. They are untiring in their hospital work, and even in hard manual labour such as navvy jobs on a Berlin underground railway, but their grumbling at the cost of necessaries grows louder and louder. They have no idea of accepting privation or— not to put it too strongly—inconvenience in their domestio economy quietly. Here we may congratulate ourselves that Englishwomen have nothing to learn from Germany. By decree there are two meatless days and two fatless days every week. That is to say, on two days no meat may be sold in shops or restaurants, and on two other days no fat. The law does not touch whatever may have been stored in private houses. Bread, flour, and milk can be bought only to the quantity for which the purchaser holds a ticket. Paraffin oil is almost unobtainable. An interesting point is the cultivation of fresh-water fish— carp, tench, pike, and so on. Tho Government, contrary to some accounts, have not yet called up the copper sup- plies. An acquaintance of the correspondent had 'been instructed to send a list to the Government of all copper articles in his works, but he had heard no more 'of the matter. The Government have drawn up an inventory, in fact, and have not yet made use of it. Butter varies greatly in price with the locality, but this'is true of nearly all forms of food. Butter reached 3s. a pound at one time in Berlin, but has since dropped to 2s. 3d. On the other hand, in one small town in West Prussia visited by the correspondent the maximum price of butter had been fixed at ls. 6d. a pound. One of the most conspicuOus shortages is in rubber. Indiarubbcr tires may be used but rarely and taxi-cabs are disappearing. Motoring for pleasure is unknown. If Englishmen have rather exag- gerated the shortages in Germany, 'tile Germans are also guilty of characteristic exaggerations. They really believe that Zeppelins will help to end the war. The almost universal confidence is, of course, reflected in any discussion of possible terms of peace, though we do not imagine for a moment that the statesmen of Ger- many really deceive themselves when they make such statements as that of the Chancellor in' the Reichstag last week. The authorities assert what they wish the people to believe, and no doubt they also hope to bluff their enemies to some extent. At all events, the correspondent thinks that the German terms of peace as at present formulated are something like this. First and foremost there must be what is called a " Free Rhine." For that reason the Germans will fight for Antwerp to the last. They mean to persuade or intimidate Holland into abandoning her rights at the mouth of the Schelde. Possibly this 'might be done by the extension of the German Customs Union. Belgium would be treated to the Alsace-Lorraine system. The correspondent came across no anti-annoxationists, though they are said to exist. He calls the notion that Germany will be persuaded, except by force, to evacuate Belgium " ridiculous." She has spent vast sums of money, both there and in Poland, on reorganization and on what she fancies is a tactful treatment of the popu- lation. Whence is she to recover this money I She is not rebuilding Belgium for love 'of the Belgians. The grandiose Customs Union with which the fancy of all Germans now plays would include, besides Holland (why not all Scandinavia 1), Austria, Bulgaria, Turkey, Roumania, and Greece. Finally, Germany would require freedom to extend as she pleased eastwards without interruption from Britain, and it is promised (if not believed) by the autho- rities that Britain, France, and Russia will pay for the war. The moral is worth repeating. Let us use our naval power to the last ounce of its value. Any other policy is perfidy to our cause and our duty. Germany, as we see, is not " starved " yet. But let us not commit the irre- mediable folly of using that fact as an excuse f6r supineness. It is worse than folly—it is madness—to say : " Since Ger- many cannot be easily starved, therefore we will not try to starve her." The Swedish observer has shown us the way, and we are certain that no other opinion worth having would disagree with his.
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