The sun., 1914-09-27

selves, and that great final reckoning
would have come.
Such was the plan. and fortune ia
vored 1t. \ brutal murder had. not
for the first time. put Servia Into a
position where state may be blamed
for the sins of individuals. An ulu-
matum was launched so phrased tina;
1t was impossible for any sta - 20 ac-
Cept il az it ST cd and yet remain an
Independent State. At the FIRST sign OF
argument or remonstranCe tn Austrian
army marched upon Belgrade.
Russia, which had been already hu-
! inflated in 1905 by the forC!ble anneNa-
ton of Bosnia could not possibly sub
NIT second time to the Caudine Forks
| She laid her hand upon her sword hllt.
, Germany sprang To the side Of her ally.
| France ranged herself with Russia,
! Like a thundcrclap the war of the ma
! tons had begun.
! SO far all had worked well for Ger
man plans Those Of the British public
who were familiar with the past and
could look into the future might be we'll
/ aware that our interests We're firmly
! bound with those of France, and that
! If our faggots We're not tied together
they would assuredly he snapped each
in its turn. But the unsavory assassi-
nation which had been 81 Clevorly
chosen az the starting point of the war
bulked large in the eyes of our people,
and. setting self-interest to one side,
; the greater part of the public might
we'll have hesitated to enter into a
quarrel where the cause seemed remote
and the issues i'll defined
What was it to us if a Slav or a
| ~, bn harh,r AnaG pf
Salonica, So the question might have
presented itself TO the average man,
who in the long run is the ruler of this
country and the autocrat of its des-
TIMES. In spite of all the wisdom of our
statesmen, 1t is doubtful If on such n
quarrel we could have gained that ma
tlonal momentum which might carry uS
TO victory.
But at that very moment Germany
took a step which removed the last
doubt from the most cautious of us
and left US in a position where we must
either draw our sword or stand forever
dishonored and Inundated before Tho
world. The action demanded of us was
such a compound OF cowardiCc and
treachery that we ask ourselves in dis
may what can we ever have done that
could make others for one instant
imagine us to be capable of so dastardly
a course,
Yet that it was really supposed tina
We could do 1t and that II was no
merely put forward as an excuse fol
drawing us into war is shown by thu
anger and CONSERVATION of the Kaise
and his Chancellor when we drew bach
from what the British Prime Ministe
had described as IAN infamous propo
sal" one has only 10 read our Ambas
sador's description of his interview will
the German Chancellor after our de
c!sion was announced, 80 evidentl,
overcome by the news of our action
, TO see that through some eXtraOrdinar.
, mental alteration the German ruler
did actually believe that vital treat.
with Britain's signature upon it coul
, be regarded by this country as a mer
: scrap of paper
What was this treaty which II wa
, proposed to lightly set aside? II wa
, the guarantee of the neutrality OF Bel
, gium signed in 1899. confirmed verbal
, and in writing by Bismarck in 1877
by Prussia. France ana Britain, eac
r Of whom pledged their word to observ
and to enforce It. On the strength O
: Il Belgium had relied for her securit
, amid her formidable neighbors. On In
4 strength of II also France had lavishe
al al her detences-upon. her-eastern from