Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-26
REPLIES TO SPEECH OF
GERMAN CHANCELLOR
Denies Firmly That Belgium Traf-
licked Her Neutrality With
England.
BRITISH RESPECTED RIGHTS
Foreign Minister Cites Teutons' ODE
liberate Violation" of Little Ma
tion's Observation-Disclosures
Called ''Despicably Mean"

LONDON. August o6.-Sir
Edward Grev, the British foreign
secretary. has sent letter to the
press replying to a speech deliv-
cred in the German reichstag last
week BY DIR. Won Betfmann-Holl-
veg, the German chancellor. In
the letter Sir Edward deals at
length with the charge that Bel
oium mad tratficked her neutrality
with Great Britain and the allies.
In his letter Sir Edward cites
the German purpose in the pres
ent war to eventually gain donll-
nation OF the world, and levy
tribute that the cost OF the strus-
gle may be paid. He says the
allied nations must fight on Tor
the right to live.
Text of the Letter.
"There are some points IN Tue sPeoSAi
the German chancellor made las.
week." the letter says. when may
think. be suitably dealt with IN ie'-
ter to the press pending fuller re'ie"
of the situation, which may De appro-
pirate in some other method ana a'
some other time.
II will state the facts ana reueeo ~ :
they suggest as briefly and clearly as
can and ask you to be good enough
TO make them public.
Never Reached Foreign Office.
zone Belgian record. a conversation
with the British military attache' was
published by Germany last autumn 10
nrove that Belgium had trafficked her
neutrality with us, and was. IN eject
in Mot with us against Germany.
The conversation. of which the most
use has been made, never was reported
to the foreign office, nor, as far as the
record, show, to the war office at the
time, and we saw record OF 1t the
first time when Germany published the
Belgian record.
But it bears on the face of it that
it referred only to the contingency OF
Belgium being attacked. that the entry
of the British into Belgium would take
place only after violation or belgian
territory by Germany. and that IT did
not commit the British government. NO
convention OF agreement existed be-
tween the British and Belgian govern
ments.
"Why does the German chancellor
mention these informal conversations
of 1905 and ignore entirely that OF
April 1913? I told the Belgian min
lister most emphatically that what we
desired in the case of Belgium. as
with other neutral countries. was that
their neutrality should be respected.
and that so long as it was not violated
by any other power. we should GER
tainly not send troops ourselves into
their territory.
Charges Attempted Bribery
Let it be remembered that the first
use made by Germany of the Belgian
document was to charge Belgium with
bad faith to Germany. What is the
true story" The 29th of July. 1914, the
German chancellor tried to bride us by
q promise of future Belgian independ-
ence to become a party TO the viola
lion of Belgian neutrality by Germany.
On the outbreak of the war he de-
scribed the Belgian treaty as Il scrap
of paper, and the German foreign sec
rotary explained that Germany must go
through Belgium to attack France be-
cause she could not afford the time
to do otherwise. The statement of Herr
Won Jagow is worth quoting again:
The imperial government had to ad-
vance into France by the quickest and
easiest way. SO as to be able to get
we'll ahead with the operations and
endeavor to strike some decisive blow
AS early as possible.
Matter Of Life and Death.
TT was a matter of life and death
with them, as if they had gone by the