n aggressiveness and
German militarism.

England has not attempted to isolate Germany. She has only herself
emerged from her isolation. If she can be accused of having made a
grievous mistake in her foreign policy, it is that of having been
blind for so long to the perils which threatened European liberty.
Since 1870 she has submitted for twenty-five years to German
predominance, because she had to oppose the colonial ambitions of
France in Africa and the ambitions of Russia in Asia. To-day England
has returned to her ancient traditions. She has never suffered for any
length of time, and will never suffer as long as she remains a
first-class Power, from the exclusive predominance of any one
Continental nation. She has ever fought for the maintenance of the
balance of power. She defended that balance against Charles V. and
Philip II. in the sixteenth century, against Louis XIV. in the
seventeenth, against Napoleon, against Nicholas I., and Alexander II.
in the nineteenth century. She defends it to-day against William II.
But she is no more the enemy of Germany to-day than she was the enemy
of France or Russia ten years ago. _And if the equilibrium of Europe
were threatened to-morrow by Russia, as it is threatened to-day by
Germany, England would become to-morrow the ally of Germany._

It may be contended, no doubt, that in opposing the supremacy of
another empire on land, she is only defending her own supremacy on the
sea. But the history of four hundred years convincingly shows that
England in defending her own interests has always been fighting the
battles of European liberty. And to-day more than ever, when Europe is
transformed into an armed camp, when might has become the criterion of
right, when all nations are living in perpetual dread of a European
conflagration, the strict adherence of England to her old principle of
the balance of power remains the best sanction of international law
and the surest guarantee of the peace of the world."

VIII.--GERMAN MEGALOMANIA.

"Whatever may be the cause of the state of mind of the Germans, they
are certainly suffering just now from acute 'megalomania.' The
abnormal self-conceit, the inflated national consciousness, express
themselves in a thousand ways, some of which are naive and harmless,
whilst others are grossly offensive. They show themselves in a craving
for titles and in gaudy and tasteless public buildings;[5] in the
thousand and one statues of Bismarck and Wi