Page:Diplomacy and the War (Andrassy 1921).djvu/118

 supremacy on the sea, because this question has always been a question of life or death for the British Empire. No matter how peaceable German policy was, it is nevertheless a fact that England did not trust the peaceful intentions of Germany, and that she was imbued by a feeling that, once the German fleet approached the English fleet in strength, Germany would be a much stronger factor in view of her infinitely greater army than England, and that Germany might possibly yield to the temptation of pursuing a less peaceful policy than she would do during the time of her naval weakness. The possibility had to be considered in London that a combat with England could come about much more easily in such circumstances, and that such a combat might be fatal for the British Empire. Germany might have known that England would remain successful in the competition of armaments, because firstly, Great Britain was much richer; secondly, because the English army was far less expensive than the German one; and thirdly, because public opinion in England understood the necessity for the fleet far better than public opinion in Germany.

The preservation of a strong and powerful army was a tradition in Germany as well as a necessity, whereas the fleet was a new passion. Public opinion in Germany had to face the question sooner or later whether the Empire would not collapse under the burden which she would have to bear if she meant to support the upkeep of the most powerful army as well as one of the