The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1914-11-12
WHY GERMANY IS
ENGAGED IN WAR
Rev. Charles River, Formerly of This
Locality, Once Resident in Ger
many, Gives His Impressions.


Under date of Nov. ., Rev. Charles
River, Phi. d., of Quebec, who formerly
lived in this locality and is well known
here, addressed letter to the Quebec
Chronicle, which was published the next
day, stating why Germany went to war.
The letter was as follows:
Dear Sir:-In quite a goodly number of
your able, strong and terse editorials Won,
have found yourse1f-like many of US
confronted with this most puzzling eng
NAUTICAL fact, one SO difficult to understand,
to wit How it has come to pass that
nation stepped in intellectually, as the
Germans undoubtedly are, has allowed it
self to be thrust into such a whirlpool of
war, deVastatlons, massacres, with no end
| of untold, Infamous, unredeemable crimes
of every imaginable kind /. for one.
would find it impossible to explain unless
1t were Tor one. of the three following rea-
sons, if not, even. for all three of them.
| Having lived for many years in different
parts ofsiermany, and mingled very close
lly--owing to academical and family con
nections-with quite few of their famous
fame, | may perhaps be permitted to say
/ a word or two on that subject
The three ore-mentioned reasons are
to my mind the following First-There
! being no question that the Germans have
| worked harder and more perseVeringly
THAN any other nation on all the paths
i OF human knowledge, especially ON those
/ OF industry and commerce, 1t was natural
that they should want to own such tracts
Of the earth from where the indispensable
raw materials are derived. and that lie
moccupied and useless in the hands of
nations seemingly incapable of using them
for one reason or another 1t is a fact
that the Germans have derived more
) profit and wealth from the French and
lsome English colonies than either the
| French the English have been doing all
i the time. 1t was then perfectly human
that they should feel am invincible GRAY
ing for the ownership of such fields and
countries. Very likely the welfare Of the
world would be greatly benefited if these
tracts and lands were in the hands of a
most ambitious and enterprising race, il
not the most Woodworking under the sun
Secondly. Germany is facing a very
omnous problem, one due to the ever
growing increase Of her population. An
, authority which calls itself conservative
estimated-a year ago-that by the year
1929, the population of the Empire would
!, be about eighty millions, about twice
what it was in the days of Prince Bis
marck j take it from some statistical re
ports that Germany Is far from being self
supporting During the years from 1886
to 1900 the corn-growers of the country
were able to supply but 92.6 per cent o
/ the nations needs in rye, and 1871 pei
cent in wheat and spelt. And, during
very recent years, Germany has had t,
import very nearly two million tons 0
: wheat, owing to a deficit in rye that
averaged half million tons in the year
1902-190 The reader viii easily see TIN
disproportion, there, between the growth
I of population and the increase of produc
Il ton. Again it was not solely very, ven
Il human, but imperatively required tina
some remedies should be found for obviat
:. ing the danger that was visibly imperillin
@ the future of the Empire The creation o
# colonies or the capturing of other people
colonies, WERE beside the acquisition Q
new markets, the only means they foun
. able to solve the problem of an ever-lr
!. creasing population, and an ever-increa'
! ing industrial output in exchange fo
: food
'e Finally. it was not quite unnatural, nc
a to say that it was very human, that tn
s Germans should look with envy at the a,
is vantages of countries, such as France an
England, whose population and birthrat
~ are steadily decreasing, and who neverth
n less. both own a Colonial empire out
s.. all proportion with, not simply the size
,e the Mother Country, but with its decrea
,t ing population 1t was all the more gal
ing because OF, the fact that it Is thanks
the Germans industry that the said col
:, MES have become thriving and 'prosperou
~ The Kingdoms of Siam and the Seneg
~ Colony are vivid instances of the sa
- fact Now, sir, not one of the reason
g aforementioned, nor any other that mig
ne probably be adduced in support of Il
Germans pretentions and ambition
fit would clear them Of the mspeakable erin
r. Of having declared war and waged it t
he way they have done But in spite of the
N. fiendish, barbarous methods, it Is impC
ne sibe to deny that there has been, tn
~ there is still Culture which is distint
oh IL German. The names of my form
teachers and friends vouch for the tru
ii of what | say von Ranke, Momsen
! Curtius, Windhorst, Dollmger, Treitsch
Ae are their names And no man can eXpe
"a to have his scholarship taken serious
~ that does not master the German Ia
M guage.
he Yours obediently,
pt CHARLES RIVER, Phi. ID