(2) Even those who oppose the Pan-Germans and stand for a "peace without annexations" cherish the design of laying a foundation for German power within the sphere of Germany and its allies, upon which _later on_ a more ambitious structure of power could be reared. The trouble with "these gentlemen of the _Vaterlandspartei_," one Socialist writer explained, was not that they asked for too much but that they asked for it all at once. If Germany could strengthen its grip upon Central Europe, Bulgaria, and the restored Turkish Empire, one of the great schemes contained in the Intellectuals’ Manifesto could be realised _without annexations_. It may be that when the German Government ultimately state their minimum requirements they will seem modest, compared with the Pan-German programme. Even so they will require careful scrutiny lest there should be more in them of the Pan-German spirit than appears on the outside, more than is compatible with the safety of the world. EDWYN BEVAN, _January_, 1918. *I.* *THE PETITION OF THE SIX ASSOCIATIONS.* The following is the full text of the Petitions addressed to the German Chancellor, Dr. von Bethmann Hollweg, and to the Governments of the various Federated States of the German Empire, on March 10 and May 20, 1915, by the League of Agriculturists (_Bund der Landwirte_), the German Peasants’ League (_Deutscher Bauernbund_), the Christian German Peasants’ Unions (_die christlichen deutschen Bauernvereine_), the Central Association of German Manufacturers (_Centralverband deutscher Industrieller_), the Manufacturers’ League (_Bund der Industriellen_) and the League of Middle-Class Citizens in the German Empire (_Reichsdeutscher Mittelstandsverband_):— Together with the whole German people, those occupied in business pursuits, whether in agriculture or manufacture, in handicrafts or trade, are determined to endure to the end, notwithstanding every sacrifice, in this struggle for life and death which has been forced upon Germany, in order that Germany may emerge stronger in its external relations, assured of a lasting peace, and thus also assured of further national, economic, and cultural development at home. Since the whole German people recognises these aims as its own, and has given tangible proof of its willingness to make sacrifices for their achievement, the rumours recently circulating in town and country were bound to be most disquieting. These rumours (confirmed, apparently, by certain announcements in the Press) were to the effect that preliminary steps were being taken to prepare the way for peace negotiations, and, in particular, for a separate peace with England, based on certain English wishes and demands.