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public property, to demand of Belgium permission for the freepassage of German troops. The King of the Belgians appealedto the King of England for diplomatic intervention with a viewto safeguard the integrity of Belgium. The British Governmentthereupon demanded an immediate declaration of Germany thatBelgian neutrality would be respected. (Blue Book No. 153.) TheGerman Ambassador made a final attempt by submitting to theBritish Government a telegram from the German Foreign Officeby which he was instructed to repeat in the most positive formthe assurance that, even in the case of an armed conflict withBelgium, Germany would, under no pretence whatever, annexBelgian territory. The telegram further read: "Please impress"upon Sir E. Grey that German army could not be exposed to"French attack across Belgium , which was planned according to"absolutely unimpeachable information." (Blue Book No. 157.)

Even this failed. In the evening of August 4 th the BritishGovernment presented an ultimatum expiring at midnight, i. e. ata time when German troops had already crossed the Belgianfrontier. The war with England had come!

After all that has been said concerning the development ofFrench, English and German negotiations in the course of thecritical week, no further proof is required that England would have gone to war even if there had been no German violation of Belgian neutrality. The responsible leaders ofEnglish policy had, on the strength of the formally notbinding Entente with France, in the days followingupon the presentation of the Austro-Hungarian note toServia, so firmly engaged England in the direction ofimmediate active intervention on the side of France , thatEngland could no more stand aside if not at the priceof the overthrow of the Cabinet and for fear of thereproach of perfidy.

It has to be considered, and it is evident, that those personswho had led England into war had to do all they could torouse public feeling in order to cover their own responsibility.It has been shown how insincere a proceeding this was. Enough,to point to the documents which the German authorities succeeded in