The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1914-11-12
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER IL. 1914
Causes of the Great War


are they fighting for One can not
point to any one cause of the awtul
war which is devastating Europe. PER
hans it might be truthfully said how
ever that. if there is any one cause, 1t
Iaay be called a war of mutual fear,
There are occasions of war and
there are causes of war The ocea-
sions of war are on the surface; the
causes of war are embedded in econ
omical and political controversies and
racial antipathes. 1t is well to bear
these distinctions in mind The oc-
casions of war are readily seen; the
causes of war are more difficult to
discover. The explosion in the bed
of our Kennebec river today was oc-
casioned by the pushing of the but
ton which sent the electric current
along the wire, but the cause was the
relation of the chemicals in the stick
of dynamite. The occasion OF the
Civil War was the firing upon Fort
Sumpter; the cause was the collision
of the ideals of government represent
ed by Abraham Lincoln and Stephen
A. Douglas which had been eXpounded
years before by Daniel Webster and
John G. Calhoun. The occasion of
the French Revolution is said to have
been the purchasing of a diamond
necklace for Queen Marie Antoinette
at time when the treasury was ex-
hausted. But the cause was really
the despotic feudalism of those days.
the assassination of an Austrian
Prince and Princess. But the causes
are deeper and are found in the econ
omic competition and in the ambition
of nations for commercial and politi-
cal supremacy
The people of Germany have be-
lieved for long time that other ma
tons have been planning the dismem-
berment of the German Empire. All
nations about the German Empire,
with the exception of Austria, have
built their forts to protect themselves
from the supposed invasion of the
Germans. Belgian forts were not
constructed to protect Belgium against
France but against Germany.
In 1889 the present Car, Nicholas,
was the guest of the Emperor Will
liam. There was brilliant banquet.
1t was an hour in German history
when the friendship of Russia was
ardently desired The wish of all
Germans was to eliminate every thing
that was French The music, the
menu, the speeches were all German.
Not a Russian or a French composer
of the Kaiser to ignore everything that
was French. In this quiet and yet
emphatic way he wished to cement the
friendship of Germany and Russia.
The Kaiser closed with an eloquent
peroration in Russian. 1t was now
the moment for the Russian Prince.
Would he reach the heights to which
his Imperial cousin had scared? To
the amazement of all, on the fateful
evening, he responded neither in Ger
man nor in Russian, but in the Ian
guage of the French 1t was a dis
appointing ending for those who had
built high hopes on "Invincible Ger
many" whose strength would be based
on Russian friendship.
Last June came the assassination
of the Austrian Prince and Princess
and the Germans believe that the AL
lies were forced to disclose their plan
for German dismemberment earlier
than they intended. The Germans
wish to insure the integrity of their
nation. They believe they are fight
ing in self-defence. Now, when we
turn to Austria we meet another stu
alton. We have nation in fear be-
cause of the constant slicing away of
her territory and also a nation in fear
of the growing power of the Balkan
States. Russia has always desired a
port on the Bosphorus. That Is the