The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-10-08

est and easiest way so as to be able l to get well ahead with their opera ttons and endeaxor to strike some de-
 clslVe blow as early as, possible. It l was g matter of life and death to ! l them, for, if they had gone by the
 more southern route, they could not nave hoped, in view of the paucity of
 the roads and the strength of the for tTesses, to have got through without
 formidable opposition entailtng great loss of time This loss of time would
 mean time gained by the Russians for | the bringing up of their troops to the German frontier. Rapidity of action
 was the great German asset. while
 that of Russia was the inexhaustib1e i supply Of troops eOf1cial report of l the British ambassador in Berlin to
 the British goyernment.)
 This conv ersation preceded by
 few minutes that in which the Ger man chancellor, giddy at the sight of the abyss into which Germany was falling. uttered these celebrated
 words Just for a word neutrality. a word which in war times has been so 8 aften disregarded Just for a scrap of paper, Great Britain is going to make war on a kindred nation. At what
 price would that compact (neutrality) have been kept? Has the British
 government thought Of that 2 sir Will liam Gsaschen replied that fear of con
 
 as an excuse for breaking a solemn
 engagement. (Ohicial report of the
 British annbassador in Berlin to his
 government-)
 Tt is very clear from these doeu-
 ments that Germany had for a. long time premedttated the violation of the neutrality of Belgium and that she < has even recenci1ed herself to the Ter rible danger of war with Great Brit ain. Rather than renounce the advan-
 tages she thought she would gain by not respecting the treaty. In the face of these confessions the allegations that France wished to violate the neu- trality of Belgium. an allegation sup ported by no proof. falls to the ground.
 ITO continue the analysis of the German note.s one reads. If Belgium consents to assume in the war which is about to commence, the attitude of friendly enutraIity towards Germany, the German gov ernmert, on it's side, engages when peace is restored, to guarantee the integrity of the king dom and its possessi ons.'
 tscou1d Belgium, without being false to her duties of neutrality, take up tn g position which the German govern ment calls friendly neutrality? That is to say could she allow the German armies to- pass without opposition through her territory? Can the Ger man 80Y6ruu16ll 1ISc11 c4A1SN CL sllAAcSe | question:
 Tt is enough to re-read the con- versation given above between the British Ambassador and the German Secretary Of State to come to a clear l conclusion in that respect.
 ssIf the violation of Belgian territory was to procure so signal an advantage to Germany that she had no fear of | bringing on war with England to at tain it; then for Belgium to lend her self to the passage of German troops must have meant the certainty of fa- tai consequences for France. Thus | for Belgium to have yielded to the l German uItimatum would ipso factc | have conferred g considerable advan fage to Germany to the detriment of 1 the other beHigerent, and would have | conRtituted a breach of neutrality.
 Germany concludes her note by | threats. She engages. on the, condi- tfons already defined, to eyacuate Bel gian territory at the conclusion of peace. If Belgium behaves in hos tile manner (that is to say. if she does her duty) Germany will be obliged to consider Belgium as an enemy. She would then leave the ultimate ar- rangeTnents of the relations of the two states to the decision of arms-in oth- CT words. if Belgium does not agree to violate the treaty, Germany will treat her as an enemy and adds a yelled threat of annexing a part or the 'WnOlG or her I6TI4IOTY. '-The moral Abre of nations is not always measured by their size of pow CT, Belgium is small and weak, but her answer bears witness TO her love of Justice and to her respect of the right She would rather die with hon or than live dishonored.
 t'That was made clear by the an swer of her government The answer was as follows:
 '' The German note has been a pain ful surprise to the Belgian govern ment. The intentions which the Note attributes to France are in contradic- tion to the formal declarations which were made to us on the 1st of August in the names of the Republic Be- sides, tf-conrary to our expectations France is about to violate the -neu- trality of Belgium, Belgium would be prepared to fulfill tits neutrality obIigat- tions, and her army would offeH to the invader the most vigorous resistance The treaties of 1889, confirmed by the treaties of 1870. commit to the g-uaran- tee of the Powers and notably to the government of His Majesty the King of Prussia, the independence and neu- tra1ity of the Kingdom of Belgium
 'sThe Chancellor of the German Empire said in a sitting of the Reich stag on the 4th of August: We are in a state of legitimate defense. Ne cessity knows no law. Our troops have occupied Luxemburg and have .pernapS a1ready pentraGed 1nti Bel gium. This is against the law of na= tfons. France, 1t is true, has declared to Brussels that she is determined to | respect the neutrality of Belgium as long as her adversary respects it, but we know that France was ready to invade Belgium. France can afford to wait; cannot. A French at tack on our flank in the region of the lower Rhine might have been fatal It is for that reason that we have been compelled to ignore the just protests of the Governments of Lux