The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1914-01-16

the English opposition to the extern
sion of the Baghdad railway to the
Persian gulf, that our readers can
readily appreciate how much meanlng
there is in the chanCellor's declaration
that the satisfactory progress In the
Improvement Of Anglo German rela-
tions has enabled his government, in
an open exchange of views, TO ap-
proach a solution Of that problem.
TO realize how salutary is the i'm
provement in the German official at
titude toward Great Britain, n has
only to turn to the prolific output of
anti-British literature from German
presses less than two years ago. Ten
| books replete with warning about
British hostility to German interests
were the product of the first four or
five weeks Of last year. These works
were all claimed to be "educative'
and their uniform message was that
| Great Britain was determined to de-
stroy Germany: that the way to meet
| the peril was to arm more strongly on
| sea and on land; and that the Ger
man public must b. impressed with
the peril, and must call for a patriotic
| policy should the government fail IN
it's patriotic duty. 1t was held by the
chief German authority on the inter
national aspects Of the Baghdad rail-
Way-Doctor Rohrbach-that this en-
terprise had placed a weapon In the
hands of Germany by which England
could be wounded in a mortal place.
For, reasoned the doctor, England can
be attacked and mortally wounded by
land from Europe only in one place;
Egypt. The loss Of Egypt would mean
for England not only the end of her
dominion over the Suez canal and of
her connections with India and the far
east, but would probably entail the
loss, also, of her possessions in CEN
trail n east Africa. The conquest of
Egypt by a Mohammedan power. like
Turkey, would also imperil England's
hold owe her go, 600. 900 Mohammedan
subjects in India, besides ~prejudicing
her relations with Afghanistan and
Persia. Turkey, however, can never
dream of recovering Egypt. until h
is mistress of a developed railroad
system in Asia Minor and Syria, and
until, through the progress of the An
atolian railway to Baghdad, h Is in
a position to withstand an attack by
England upon Mesopotamia. The de-
feat of Turkey by the Balkan allies
has, of course, administered a quietus
to this kind of speculation, but that
does not diminish the significance OF
the c~hancellor's declaration: 81 hope
that the spirit of mutua trust, which
characterizes u present relations
with the English government will then
etxend to those circles in both coun-
tries which still regard. with a certain
scepticism the rapprochement of the
two peoples"
The way may thus be cleared for
the possibility Of the renewal of Brit
isll cooperation in the Baghdad
scheme. AS Herr o Gwinner point
ed out, in an article published in June,
1909, the Germans had from the out
set of the Anatolian railway construc-
ton English associates, but these
came to grief in South American COM
mitments, and dropped out. DR.. Won
Siemens, who was the first to conceive
the idea of restoring to civilization
the great wastes Of Asia Minor and
M~esopotamia, had always been anx-
ious to have British partners in this
business. His motives were frankly
political, since the finding Of any part
of the capital in London had been
made fairly impossible by a press
campaign against everything Turkish.
So, when Herr o GWinner signed
the Baghdad convention, he was able
TO induce the bearers of some Of the
most respected names in the. city of
London to become partners in the
scheme with the Deutsche bank. The
| OlIIlSH LOISi5u OtllCS was COUSLllSu
also, and agreed, on certain condi-
tions, met by the German promoters,
to help towards increasing the Turk
ish customs, thus creating the neces-
sary new yer whereby to guaran-
tee the Baghdad subvention loan. 1t
was the testimony of Herr Won Gwin-
| ner hat If these agreements had been
| carried out, the entire Baghdad rail-
way would have been finished and
working at the time he wrote, and
that possibly he would not nave been
chairman of the company, but his
place would have been filled by some
candidate of the entente cordiale."
AS a matter Of fact, the representa-
| tives Of German and British high
finance have never drifted so far
apart as the public opinion of the two
which the chancellor is earnestly
working will ON that account be the
easier to realize.