The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1922-02-06
LORD Lee MISLEADS
IN QUOTING CASTER
Wickham Steed Questions
Whether Apology Is Not
Due French.
GOOD FAITH AT ISSUE
Articles Oh German Subsea
Warfare Hurt Friend
ships.
BLAME ON TRANSLATION
British Officers Excerpts May
Not Have Been From
Original.
BLAME ON TRANSLATION
Hy wICKHAM sTEED.

Editor OF the London Times.
LONDON, Feb. Omitted News. A
point OF apparently minor, although
OF very real, mportance-inasmuch as
it concerns the question of good faith
needs to be cleared up between
France and England.
1t relates to the articles on German
submarine warfare by Capt. Castex,
which were cited by the First Lord OF
the Admiralty, Lord Lee. in a speech
before the subcommittee on naval
limitation at Washington on Deem
Der 80.
expressed approval Of German sub
marine methods.
The alleged inaccuracy or Lord Lees
quotations from these articles aroused
resentment in France--a resentment
which was accumulated by his conten-
ton that the general meaning of the
Castex articles was as originally de-
scribed when on February l Ambassa-
dor Jusserand drew attention to the in
accuracy.
This is point requiring elucidation.
In his original statement Lord Lee said :
Now this officer. who has been APP
pointed principal lecturer to the senior
officers course, will no doubt, unless
there is a change of policy. be pouring
what we regard as infamy and poison
INTO the officers of the French navy.
That is justification for what 1 can only
describe as our apprehensions. even the
bitterness that we must feel, in the
thought that under any conceivable cir
cumstauces out present allies and late
comrades in arms should contemplate
the possibility OF warfare of that kind.
Ludcndorrf Quoted.
Earlier in the same speech Lord Lee
alluded to Premier Brands quotations
from opinions expressed by Ludendorff
and NIoltke as showing the aggressive
tendencies OF Germany BY implication
he assigned equal Importance to the
articles in the Rcrste Maritime by Cas-
tex. whom he described as the Chief OF
Staff and Admiral of the Second Division
in the Mediterranean, and designated
as the principal lecturer OF the senior
officers course next year"
Whether Castex is or is not the
French equivalent of Ludendorff is a
secondary matter. The main point is
whether Lord Lee quoted and interpret
ed him correctly. Since at home Lord
Lees quotations made it seem doubtful
Wnetner INC LSNG OF inc dCtudi ditiCitS
were before him, ] have made it a point
TO secure the issues containing them.
and to study them carefully. Castex,
whose reputation appears TO be that Of
an officer more addicted to the exercise
of his literary gifts than OF practical
navigation, published in issues of the
Revue Maritime in January, February.
March and April. 1920. a series called
1.-THE Synthesis of Submarine Warfare"
Not until the FranSfurter ZeitaGg
called attention to them was their ex
istence revealed to the public. II would
be of some Importance to ascertain
whether Lord Lees quotations were
translated from original French OF 9TH
erwise. II would be difficult to under
stand why, when quoting from the first
article. he read the passage: Thanks
10 the submarine, after many centuries
OF effort, and thanks TO the ingenuity'of
man, an instrument is at hand which
will overthrow for good and all the
naval power of the British Empire"
without saying that the paragraph be-
gan with the words: THUS the Ger
mans reasoned"
There is no doubt that in the form
in which he made them Lord Lees
quotations from Castex's first article
were incomplete, unfair and misleading.
II he or any of his advisers understands
French and prepared from the original
texts tho extracts he read at Washing
ton. these emissions arc objectionable.
But IL he and his advisers had before
them only general summary Of Cas-
tex's articles and concluded from such
summaries that the general argument OF
the articles was so reprehensive as to
merit denunciation in an International
conference the question becomes broader
and merits closer examination.