The Chitina leader. [volume] (Chitina, Alaska) 1910-1928, 1911-01-21
LET US MINE
OUR OWN COAL
MOVEMENTS OF GERMANY SIGNI.
FICANT..

Since the beginning of the present
year there has not been much discus
sion of the Anglo-German war scare.
The main cause of this stirring up
of war talk has been Germany's nav
al expansion.
Now, the average self-contented
American citizen reads the newspa-
per on the war scare and passes on
to other events that are nearer home
and of more interest to him. Now
it has been assumed or openly stat
ed that the matter is not one that
concerns Great Britain and Germany
alone, but the United States is re-
motely but none the less unescape-
ably affected by it.
Yet the American public has not
been slow to recognize and express
their very real, if indirect, interest
in the situation that threatens to
throw two of the greatest world pow
ers into an antagonism as sharp as
that of two gladiators in Roman
arena. Americans, like the rest of
the world, have noted Great Brit
aims attack of NERVES" over phan-
tom torpedo boats, invisible air.
ships, ETC., etc.
Nevertheless, Americans who are
familiar with European matters have
not disguised their interest of the
prodigious preparations for war that
are going on on both sides of the
North Sea. This was intensified by
the arrest of two Englishmen as spies
a few months ago on Borkum, the
western extremity of the German
Fusian Islands.
These arrests must be regarded by
those familiar with naval and mill
tary matters as an open confession
of Germany's activity in carrying on
both naval and military works of the
utmost strategic Importance on the
North Sea.
Some months ago at The Hague,
during the parliamentary sessions,
Baron Heeckeren, formerly in he
Dutch diplomatic service, declared
that the German Emperor had writ
ten letter insisting on Holland
her defences against
possible attack by Great Britain and
limiting that in the event of failure
he would be compelled to take meas
ures of his own.
Borkum, where the two English
men were arrested, has been a good
deal of a holiday resort. The shore
waters are shallow, but a great mole,
partly natural and partly artificial
stretches out from the southeast and
gives splendid anchorage to ships.
The day is fast approaching when
Borkum will no longer be known as
q holiday resort, for at the present
there are great works being carried
on and they are not being made to
attract the holiday excuursionists.
Although at present there are no
forts to attract the camera fiend,"
but the works going on are of the
kind that need suspicious sentinels
over them, and here and there are
little barracks tucked away among
the sand dunes with the word "ver-
boten" branded on every side, which
in American means keep out"
Now, with the strengthening OF
Borkum and other adjacent points by
Germany, may not all be intended
for a war with Great Britain alone,
but partly to what Germany limited
at in her letter to Holland. Now the
most important thing for the peace
OF Europe is the independence and
neutrality of the Netherlands. From
the British point of view the indie
pendence Of Holland and Belgium is
the first and greatest interest. For
II the Netherlands were in the hands
of q hostile power, it would be like
holding a rife at the heart of the
British empire.
Between Brest and the Baltic there
are no great natural harbors save
those of Holland and Belgium that
could be used effectively against