istence of the document was first made known to the public by the
military correspondent of The Times, who published a letter on the
subject on March 6, 1908, but its contents were not divulged.

The significance of the letter can be understood only in the light of
the naval and political situation six years ago. During the preceding
year, 1907, The Hague Conference, ostensibly convened in the interests
of international peace, had resolved itself into a committee to
determine how to diminish the severities of war. There was a section of
opinion in this country which was persuaded that the only method of
seeking peace was to reduce the navy and army. At the same time the
Imperial German Navy was making swift and steady progress, and its
menace to British supremacy aroused considerable alarm in this country.
Although the British Navy held superiority over the German Navy in ships
not of the dreadnought type, the balance in dreadnoughts was virtually
even.

Dreadnought Supremacy.

It was stated in Parliament that in the year 1916 Germany, according to
her naval law, would have thirty-six dreadnoughts, a number which would
involve the building by this country of forty-four such vessels in the
same period, toward which the Government was only providing two in the
current year. It was also stated that in the year 1911 Germany would
possess thirteen dreadnoughts and Great Britain only twelve, which
statement was founded upon reasonable assumptions. Could Germany reckon
upon the continuance of such a relative position, the advantage to her
would be very great.

It was at this critical moment that the German Emperor indited his
letter to the First Lord of the Admiralty, which is printed below. When
the fact became known there was a good deal of public feeling aroused
both in this country and abroad. Lord Tweedmouth stated that the letter
was a private letter and purely personal. Prince von Buelow informed the
Reichstag that the letter was of both a private and political character,
adding some remarks concerning the "purely defensive character of our
naval programme which," said the Chancellor, "cannot be emphasized too
frequently."

The German Foreign Office officially announced that "in his letter the
Emperor merely corrected certain erroneous views prevalent in England
regarding the development of the German fleet."

Readers are now in a position to judge for themselves the accuracy of
these statements. It should be rem