ernment failed to receive an answer accepting their
advice.

"It is with profound regret that we, in spite of our ardent devotion
to the cause of peace, are thus compelled to declare war, especially
at this early period of our reign, and while we are still in mourning
for our lamented mother.

"It is our earnest wish that, by the loyalty and valor of our faithful
subjects, peace may soon be restored and the glory of the empire
enhanced."

CHAPTER VIII

MILITARY AND NAVAL SITUATION IN THE FAR EAST

We now pass to the first fighting ground in the Far East. Unlike the
campaigns in the west, the war in eastern Asia developed along lines
which any observer, possessing the least knowledge of history and
international politics and military strategy, could foresee. From both
military and commercial standpoints none of Germany's possessions in
the Far East could compare in importance with the little tip of the
Shantung Peninsula leased for a term of ninety-nine years from China
in 1898. This concession, about fifteen miles long and ten miles
across, was designated Kiao-chau. In the sixteen years since their
tenure began, the Germans had laid out at Tsing-tau, situated at the
extreme southern end of the peninsula, a city which was rapidly
growing to foremost importance among the ports of the Chinese coast. A
large part of the native population was induced to migrate, hills were
leveled, roads constructed, trees planted, and waterworks and sewers
laid out along the most up-to-date lines.

The Great War found Tsing-tau a modern city, almost European in
appearance, with a magnificent harbor, where natural advantages had
been enhanced by the construction of immense piers and breakwaters.
One line of railway connected the port with Chi-nan, capital of
Shantung Province, and Germany held concessions for the construction
of two new lines. The census of 1913 showed a total population of
58,000, of which Germans, exclusive of the garrison, numbered 2,500.
Non-German Europeans, Americans, and Japanese numbered but 630. The
European quarter was distinctly Teutonic.

The attack on Tsing-tau was a foregone conclusion. As a naval base and
a seat of menace to the commerce of hostile nations, Tsing-tau
occupied an unexcelled situation, almost equidistant from Nagasaki and
Shanghai, in virtually the same latitude as Tokyo, San Francisco, and
Gibraltar. Its defenses were second in strength only to those of Port
Arthur and Hongkon