[Footnote 6: This refers to Sir Edward Grey's telegram to Sir E. Goschen, British Ambassador in Berlin, which is given on p. 178 of "How the War Began."] [Footnote 7: Sir E. Goschen's report has been given at the beginning of this chapter.] [Footnote 8: Quoted on p. 136-7 of "How the War Began." In this dispatch to Sir E. Goschen, Sir Edward Grey states that he refused to give any undertaking even if the French colonies were respected, saying that England must keep her hands free.] [Footnote 9: See footnote No. 1.] CHAPTER II German Press Campaign--Disseminating False News--The Secret Press Society--Sir E. Goschen's Report--A Suppressed Telegram. IT has been indicated in the preceding volumes in this series that the plans of the German Government had been very well thought out before the campaign was undertaken. When hostilities had been engaged only a few weeks, evidence came to hand from many parts of the world that the determination of the Kaiser and his advisers to wage war was no sudden whim, no definite stroke of policy dependent upon unexpected circumstances. For example, the proclamations issued by the German consuls in South Africa summoning reservists to the colours had been printed in Germany, it was ascertained, and sent out about the end of April or the beginning of May--in other words, some two months before the assassination of the heir-apparent to the Austrian throne, which was the nominal cause of the dispatch of the Austrian Note and consequently of the general European War. Again, certain German merchant vessels in Australasian waters were observed on July 30th--_i.e._ the day before Germany declared war on Russia--to begin conveying wireless messages to one another in code. It was commented upon at the time that this was an unusual practice, especially as these steamers, with equal suddenness, refused to answer the wireless messages of British vessels. In other words, two or three days before the campaign was actually opened, means were found of notifying German vessels on the other side of the world that peace was about to be broken.