J. M. Kennedy

“ We should, by this mere act of declaration, shut off food from Germany. We should take our part in the great struggle instead of smugly sitting by while the world's work is done by other nations. Even Germany would then know that her plot against humanity had been both judged and doomed. ”

“ The prospect of having to face conscription, with its permanent and heavy burden upon the financial resources of the country, and its equally burdensome effect upon nearly the whole of its industries, should in itself stimulate the manhood of the nation to come forward in its defence, and thereby demonstrate to the world that a free people can rise to the supreme heights of a great sacrifice without the whip of conscription. ”

“ A century and a half ago the living body of Poland was torn in pieces, but her soul has not perished. It lives on in the hope that the hour of the renaissance of the Polish nation, of its fraternal reconciliation with Great Russia, will come. ”

“ At the moment of Germany's success we must transform ourselves into a nation whose first business is war. Through South America she would strike at us next.
"I have been all my life a fighter for peace, but I appeal to President Wilson, the Senate, and my private fellow-citizens, of whatever descent, to end the system of aggression and defence by arms, and to replace it with international law and international police." ”

“ Austria-Hungary is, by breaking down the Danube Monarchy, to burst or weaken the Triple Alliance, and subsequently to isolate the German Empire completely. Our own interest, therefore, calls us to the side of Austria-Hungary. Moreover, the duty of preserving Europe, so far as may be possible, from universal war, likewise directs us to support the endeavour to localise the conflict, thereby adhering to that straight line of policy which we have now pursued with success for forty-four years in the interest of the maintenance of European peace. ”

“ If, to take an inconceivable hypothesis, the Italian Government had wished to go to war on behalf of Germany against the wishes of the Italian people, and if, further, Italy, like Germany, had been composed of a powerful ruling caste and a well-drilled population, no doubt the Italian army would have invaded France. Unlike Germany, however, Italy is composed of peoples whose nature are of a more independent character, and whose form of government is entirely different. ”

“ The defence of Liège will always be the theme of one of the most inspiring chapters in the annals of liberty. The Belgians have won for themselves the immortal glory which belongs to a people who prefer freedom to ease, to security, even to life itself. We are proud of their alliance and their friendship. We salute them with respect and with honour. ”

“ It is no exaggeration whatever to say that in every country of importance throughout the world the most strenuous endeavours were made by the German Press agents to disseminate Germany's point of view—to show at the beginning that both Germany and Austria, particularly Germany, were two innocent but ill-used countries which were reluctantly compelled to go to war with their powerful neighbours, as, if they had remained inactive a day longer, they would have risked their very existence as independent States ”

“ We are with them heart and soul, because by their side and in their company we are defending at the same time two great causes—the independence of small States and the sanctity of international covenants—and we assure them, as I ask the House in this Address to do, in the name of this United Kingdom and of the whole Empire, that they may count to the end on our whole-hearted and unfailing support. ”

“ All these facts point to the conclusion that Italy will eventually go to war with Austria. But the moment has not arrived yet. She will have no difficulty in finding a pretext. She may find one in Albania, or in the treatment of Italians in Trieste. The Government may plead the irresistible pressure of public opinion. There is no need for Italy to feel any shame at turning against her old allies, as there is no disguising the fact that she had remained a member of the Triple Alliance for purely time-serving purposes. When she does act, she will act with vigour. ”

“ The mere contemplation of the overbearing and brutal methods to which people have to submit under a Government controlled by a military autocracy—living, as it were, continuously under the threat and shadow of war—should be sufficient to arouse the enthusiasm of the nation in resisting any attempt to impose similar conditions upon countries at present free from military despotism. ”

“ There could be no more splendid sanction than the declaration of a great nation outside the immediate conflict that, where she is a party, they shall, so far as lies in her power, be kept sacred.
"Germany has confessed enough. Louvain has been blotted out. For the German planting of mines in the open sea alone it is our duty to declare war. The facts have changed the whole aspects of things, since President Wilson's [Pg 164] plea for patience was made. We should ourselves guarantee the commerce of neutrals and of the allied nations, leaving the English Fleet free to do its separate work. ”

“ But if Germany wins it will not be the victory of the quiet, sober, commercial elements in Germany, nor of the common people of Germany with all their virtues, but the victory of the blood and iron military school, whose doctrines and principles will then have received a supreme and terrible vindication. ”

“ Only under compulsion shall we grasp the sword, but if we do, it will be with the calm consciousness that we are guiltless of the disaster which a war must bring upon the peoples of Europe.
This "calm consciousness" does not seem to have been disturbed by the reflection that in the spring of 1913, when Europe appeared to be settling down to a period of peace and prosperity after the Tripoli and Balkan wars, the German Government suddenly startled the whole world by imposing a special war levy of £50,000,000, and by increasing the peace strength of the [Pg 32] German army to 870,000 men. ”

“ A war with England, France, and Russia at the same time appears, fortunately, to be ever more improbable; but the possibility of such a conflict cannot be excluded, and far-seeing statesmen must reckon with it. The Triple Alliance countries, which are compelled to have recourse to large armies, cannot hope to compete successfully with the fleets of England and France on the high seas. In the event of a struggle, therefore, our oversea imports would, in a short time, be done away with, and our industries would languish for want of raw material. ”

“ It was not Austria-Hungary which started the conflict with Servia, but Servia, which, by its unscrupulous encouragement of Greater Servian aspirations, even within Austria-Hungary, endangered the very existence of the Monarchy, and created a condition of things which finally found expression in the atrocious deed of Sarajevo. If Russia believes it must intervene in the conflict on behalf of Servia, its right is no doubt good, so far as it goes. ”

“ Austria, too, has no choice. Either the countries on the Lower Danube must be her friends, or she must seek to annihilate them. It is as Napoleon said: "the Power that commands Constantinople can command the whole world, provided that it can maintain itself there." And when Bismarck said that the whole Balkan Peninsula was not worth the bones of a Pomeranian grenadier, he could not have foreseen that this territory would one day become so essential a route for German imports that we should not, if necessary, shirk [Pg 185] a conflict with Russia to maintain our freedom of trade there. ”

“ The Parliamentary Committee are convinced that one important factor in the present European struggle has to be borne in mind, so far as our own country is concerned, namely, that in the event of the voluntary system of military service failing, the country in this its time of need, the demand for a national system of compulsory military service will not only be made with redoubled vigour, but may prove to be so persistent and strong as to become irresistible. ”

“ Therefore, inasmuch as we were asked by our ally for assistance at a time when commerce in Eastern Asia, which Japan and Great Britain regard alike as one of their special interests, is subjected to a constant menace, Japan, who regards that alliance as a guiding principle of her foreign policy, could not but comply to the request to do her part."
"Germany's possession of a base for powerful activities in one corner of the Far East," the Minister added, "was not only a serious obstacle to the maintenance of permanent peace but also threatened the immediate interests of the Japanese Empire." ”

“ However, the Grand Vizier, Djavid Bey, Talaat Bey, and Djemal Pasha, but not Enver Pasha, struggled to secure in the Council of Ministers the triumph of the policy of strictest neutrality, persuaded that for Turkey it was preferable to maintain an attitude of prudent expectation and not to enter into any engagement. Experience had shown them that their Balkan enemies, for the moment divided among themselves, would probably end by reconstituting their alliance and falling on the Turks, and agreeing among themselves as to the partition of Turkey in Europe. ”

“ If, on the other hand, the Triple Entente and their allies win, all Italy can hope for on the conclusion of hostilities is the cession of Trent and the protectorate of Central Albania, with Valona as a reward for her neutrality. Whereas if Italy threw in her lot against Germany and Austria she could hope to recover Trieste and to establish a sound military reputation into the bargain. Moreover, if Italy remains neutral she is likely to experience before long grave economic and social unrest. Italy is very hardly hit by the war. There is a great deal of unemployment. ”

“ The Balkan States, the perpetual menace of the Danube Monarchy, if we are to credit the statements made at Vienna, were exhausted after their campaigns, first against Turkey and then against one another. Austria herself had had her way with regard to Albania, and Russia had given up her project of securing an outlet on the Adriatic for Servia. Italy, the third partner in the Triplice, was beginning to recover from the effects of the Tripoli war; and France and England wished for nothing better than to be let alone. ”

“ First, the armies and Government of Germany profess the deepest scorn for international law and for treaties solemnly recognised by Germany.
Secondly, the devastations of the invaded countries (incendiarism, murder, pillage, and atrocities) appear to be systematically pursued by order of the leaders, and are not due to acts of indiscipline.
It is necessary to emphasise this two-fold characteristic of the German proceedings. They constitute a negation of every human and international law, and bring back modern warfare, after centuries of civilisation, to the methods of barbarian invasions. ”

“ For the last half century she has been the centre of Europe; courted by many; feared by many; treated with deference by all. No country has had such a reign of prosperity and splendour, yet all the time she has been discontented ”

“ It is all the more gratifying that, according to information which has reached us from well-informed quarters, the scheme for a German news service in foreign countries has by no means been abandoned, but that, on the contrary, an extensive organisation is actually doing work in the desired direction.
A German syndicate was very quietly formed a few weeks ago for the purposes of this foreign news service. It uses the organisation of a news agency already in existence; its activity is gradually to be extended over the whole globe. ”

“ The Government knows there is no need to advise the Parisian population to calmness, resolution and coolness.
Frenchmen, be worthy in these tragic circumstances! We shall obtain a final victory; we shall obtain it by untiring will, by endurance and tenacity.
A nation which does not desire to perish and which, wishing to live, recoils neither before sufferings nor sacrifices is certain to conquer.
Two days afterwards an important declaration, signed by the representatives of England, Russia and France, was issued in London and in the other capitals. ”