The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-09-26
CONVERT POLAND INTO GREAT BUFFER FEEL ID
By RICHARD s. SCOPE

Berlin, September 14.--fSpecial4 cor lspondence.)-K Wilhelm is re- lived to violate providenee's decree
 presenting Europe with a new. a
 venth. great power. It is to be a enuine great power. occupying all of
 st-central Europe. and separating
 rever Germany and Austria from dssia's threatening might. This plan
 being matched by Kaiser Wilhelm.
 Imperial Chancellor Bethmann Holl- eg. and by War Minister Falkenhayn
 the basis of the Austro-German vic iries In Poland and Lithuania. Eng
 nd's former premier, the Marquis of alisbury. first had the notion that a fventh great power in Europe would
 olate heavens decree. He told the
 udents at Oxford that Europe's divis-
 Tn into a dual alliance of Italy and
 ussia and triple alliance of Ger
 any, Austria. and Italy was provi- entially ordained. What" asked
 student, would happen if in addition
 these five great powers and Eng
 nd the sixth, a new seventh great pwer came into existence 2" sProvi- Zence," retorted Salisbury, "did not
 ake seventh great power and does XpL Intend 10.
 Kaiser Wilhelm thinks he knows
 ore apotu providence than Salisbury.
 e believes he has the physical means
 converting providence to his stand eint. Just now Germany holds all pland. neary all Lithuania, great fhrt of the Baltic provinces, and a Xflnge of Red Russia. As she also LPlds Belgium, and the richest part of rance, no one can accuse the Kaiser
 presumption, Kaiser Wilhelm is an Ptimist about the immediate future, but is pessimist about the remote fu- Ire. He knows that if Russia cannot
 lin now, she may win a couple of gen fations hence. Her population grows three millions a year., and her rate &f Increase Is we'll kept up. Germany's trthrate since the war of 1870 has tllen from 45 to 30 thousand Russia lay get over her present trouble, lhich is that owing to industrial and pucational backwardness she cannot lake use of her population advant- IEeA In 50 years. Russia will have DO. 100000 citizens and Germany will |hve only 100,000,000. If Russian gov | |fnmental methods improve, and reach .he German standard, Russia will be Iple to crush Germany like an egg. Hut of this ugly future springs Kaiser Wilhelm s notion of big and populous Hhffer state between Germany and lussia, which buffer state will be Flu Ippes seventh great power.
 Kaiser Wilhelmns seventh great power Ian solves for Germans, who are confi- Ient of victory, the hard problem of how [p draw. profit from victory. Germany is fIvided into two well defined parties, the 2hnexionists and the anti-annexionists. he annexionists preach that Germany Must take as much of her territorial con iests as she can force the enemy to Held. Tn particular. they want more or Iss of Belgium. part of the French min Ms district, the Dombrowska coal region
 southwest Poland: the industrial Polish enter Lodz. and the Baltic provinces as Er as Riga. The annexionists are large
 an economic party, and are strongest nong the national-liberals. A national peral congress has declared by a vote
 all with two exceptions for annexion. Hleichstag Leader Bassermann Is strong | for Annexion. The annexionists know l bat Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg is gainst wholesale annexion, and the an i exionist movement takes an anti-Beth- Jan Hollweg coloring. It further. takes ID anti-Kaiser coloring. Behind Kaiser Wilhelm and Bethmann Hollweg stand he anti-annexionists, whose chief leader ' ex-Colonial Secretary Dernburg. These @fe not against all annexion, but they |lould limit annexion to narrow strips or Ilolated fortresses which would strengthen Ilermany's position. They would swal- Wv the Dombrowska coal region because lies on the existing German Russian Esontier. But they do not want Lodz, Elhich is far in Poland; and they do not liant Belgian or French territory Kaiser wilhelm does not want Lodz, because 0odz would present him with the unrul-