Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1915-04-06
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BELGIAN NEUTRALITY
NOT lN%0LAfED,-sAAW
British Writer Declares Germany
Was Forced 10 Act Promptly
IN scif-Defanse,
FRANCE ARD ENGLAND GUILTY
ff~-
sseFas' Amusement Found IN Rruaaeis
coH7'etssy Expoeod Great Erit.
aims Hypesrtsy In the War.
AID ENGLAND GUILTY
aims Hypeerisy In the War.
BY George acrrard Shaw

~ 0cof9e Bernard nShaW.
(From the Nation, London, Feb. 30
Neutrality is utter kumbug. That is
my position, tThere is. no such thin:
as q breach OF neutrality, hc2auS.
there IS no such thing as neutrality
The importance of bringing This
simple natural fact home at presen'
arises from three considerations.
Trst--12he ,dangsr OF obscurinu tae
real issues of the var by the false
issue Of the neutrality Of Belgium.
tSecond-aThe danger that, instead
OF real terms OF peace, fictitious terms
in the form ct fresh guarantees c:
neutrality may be accepted as valid.
Third-The general objection tic
throwing stones when you live in q
glass house and are allied to eastern
= powers whose whole history is q
huge cucumber frame.
Belgian Neutrality Not Violated.
Those mo insist that neutrality. is
read and is sacred are committed b.,
1.-THE facts to the following PROPOSE.
: lions:
Flrst-GeTnanY has rot violated
Belgian neutrality. She has made
war on Belgium, which her g,larante
OF Eelgium's neutrality in no way a5.
rogated her right TO do, and her guar.
antee CT Eelgium's neutrality still
stands, in spite OF the war, and act1,.
ally entities her to treat a violation
of it by another power as a casus
bslli. '7 ssIBr'
Second-France and England have
violated the neutrality of Belgium by
invading her and fighting on her soil,
though they are not at war with her.
Third-Germany offered to keep, the
peace with Belgium on condition.
that Of a right Of way-which Britain
was the first to demand and to en-.
force by war In China.
Fourth-Britain and France refused
to respect belgian neutrality except
on a condition which they knew
would not be fulfilled and which in
any case Belgium could not ocrtro!
namely, that Germany would koen
the peace with Behsium.
Hfth--Gormany offered peace in
Belgium.
sixth-Britain ordered war geremp,
torily. ii " 2a I,G, oztgts ~
I defy any international jurist to
put a creditable' complexion on. these
propositions except by showing that
they are a reductio ad absurdum Of
the theory Of neutrality and admitting
that Belgium might as well have sboen
q free country as a neutraliZed one
for all the use the guarantee proved.
British Hypocrisy Exposed.
and it is because l was not, duped
by that theory that Iihaye set myself
from the first to .niscredit the Belgian
pretext for war rand, to induce our
ministers and newspapers to drop it.
l did So even before the document
found in Brussels by the Germans left
the foreign! office SO completely bowl
ed out on ths Eelgian point by the
German chancellor that lit had not a
word to say. r @ #gr
Why did Germany make war on
Eelgium? Because she was. afraid to
delay her rush on5AParis by attacking
France through Lorraine and Alsace.
Why did she attack Trance? Be-
cause she was terrified 10y the Russian
mobilization and, was afraid that
France would strike her from behind
when she was attacked by Russia.
Why did we attack Germany? Be-