New-York tribune., 1909-04-26
STRONGHOLD OF PEACE
Hamburg and the Dreadnought Scare
Commerce Its Life Blood.
Hamburg. April Il.

The welfare of a population of nearly a million
| depends upon unimpeded foreign trade Willis
| it fighting town In the early combats with
Danes and Wendes, and in the contests Of the
| Hanseatic League. its fortunes have langUshsd
in time of war. Continental crises like the
/ Thirty Years War and the NapoleOnic
! paigns have always involved the historic free
port in disaster and ruin. The discovery Of
America, with the promise of constantly en-
larging circuits OF overseas trade, the real
beginning Of the city's commercial history. Ths
establishment Of the German Empire and the
| subsequent Incorporation Of the town in the
zoIlveren enabled the most energetic body Of
merchants on the Continent to open communca-
tiOns with every land. It has taken the lead IN
finding markets abroad for German manu-
factures, in organizing the export trade with
cartels and masses of capital. in creating
| chant marine that is already whitening every
sea and in challenging the commercial SUI
prenacy of England. There is not more pa
cifc community in the European circle OF camps
and garrsons than the Hamburg traders. ship
| pers and bankers They are in close touch with
| all the centres of the worlds trade and lack
both patience and temper for discussing a
catastrophe appalling naval war he-
tween England and Germany.
Hamburg is the most brilliantly lighted city
in Germany. especially at night, when the Alstsr
basins. the lagoons. canals and rivers reflect
millions Of electric lamps and gas jets. Yet the
illuminated water surfaces are pale in compari-
son with the merchants smiling face when he
is questioned about the Dreadnought scare.
With radiant good nature he declines TO
slider a conflict between the two rival CONNER
cial nations as within the range Of possibilities
There are the best traders in the world he
will say. 'On each side of the North Sea. and
they must have peace in order to sell goods and
to keep both countries alive War will paralyzs
the commercial energies of both England and
Germany, drive export and import trade into
neutral ports. benefit every rival flag and be
runous to both countries" The smile broadens
when the merchant is interrupted with the in
cisive question. What are the German Dread
noughts for il not for attacking England? 20 For
keeping peace" he will reply with benevolent
chuckle Does anybody imagine that Ger
many Is so senseIess as to attack a power which
IS immensely superior the sea? We
haven't a single Dreadnought ready for action
at present In the course of a few years we
may have dozen Of them. and twenty or thirty
later on. Let suppose that there are thirty
| OF them and that they are pitted against thirty
forty hostile battIeships If the British line IS
shattered. there is fleet in reserve nearly as
strong to carry on the fight If our battleships
are destroyed, we have no second line. A naval
war with England would be a mad adventure
Our Dreadnoughts are not built for a sudden on
slaught against England. but solely for defence.
Our new navy is an insurance policy against
war
This conversation with an influential uler-
chant have repeated because II is so different
in tone from what am accustomed to hear in
England. where the worst possible construction
IS placed upon the designs OF a powerful rival
1t may not cover the whole ground Without
doubt Berlin martinets and bureauCrats would
justify the rapid construction OF powerful
feet, not merely a defensive measure for
shipping and coasts, but also as an effective
reason for rendering German diplomacy and
prestige useful "Beati possidentes" now applies
10 an empire which has an armed host for milf
tary warfare and a strong fleet for supporting
its land forces. Recent events in the Balkan
and elsewhere have shown that the military
empires bent upon using the full weiEnt OF
their armaments even IL they cautiously refrain
from throwing down Bismarck's iron dice OF
war: and it is not unlikely that the German
Emperor and his advisers have perceived the
advantage Of having navy as we'll as an army
in bringing the influence OF the Fatherland to
bear upon complex diplomatic issues So much
may be said without irrelevant discussion OF
violations Of public Ia " and overweening arnbi-
tons for supremacy in Europe. The discreet
merchant for his part was careful not 10 set
into deep water. lie did not enter into any ot
these important matters. What he expressed
faithfully was the peaCeable disposition Cf
workaday Germany. 1t has no idea Of plunging
Tecklessy into a momentoUs struggle for the
mastery of the seas with a power which has
every advantage in resources. maritime blood
and traditions of sea power 1t is convinced
that long England is on guard in the
North Sea. and holds her empire together Ly
her supremacy on blue water. Germany's naval
armaments must remain virtually defensive.
These impressions are confirmed when
strolls about this splendid city explores the
vast harbor, with its forest of masts and de-
scends the Elbe to the mouth Of the canal and
TO the outer Qualifications The harbor. with its
free port and customs quarter. stretches
four five miles from AItona to BIlw6rier
and shelters twenty-seven thousand vessels in
the course of n years foreign traffic. The mag
nitude of the commerce is disclosed by ths
spacious docks and landing quays. the enor-
nous warehouses and the svarms of steamships
and sailing craft trading with every quarter ct
the world. Long before Cuxhaven. with tie
landing stages for the largest Transatlantic
liners. is reached the tolerant merchants con-
vction is forced upon impartial mind that
the commercial and shipping interests Of Ger
many are too enormous to be hazarded i'm war
with England. One immense shipyard is passed
in this circuit of obseryation-that of Blohm s
Voss, where a cruiser battleship was recently
launched and another Is under construction.
and. like the two great yards at kiel tha
Weser establishment below Bremen and the
Vulcan at Stettin. it mas been enlarged and
provided with plant, and is now Pre-
pared. with the help Of the Krupps to turn cut
battleships 20 match the mightiest afoat- This
is the main suggestion of hostile intent. and It
is not conclusive. since it be readily ex-
1rr,tvD Of