The Story of the Great War, Volume 1: Introductions; Special Articles; Causes of War; Diplomatic and State Papers
History
The Story of the Great War, Volume 1: Introductions; Special Articles; Causes of War; Diplomatic and State Papers
World War, 1914-1918
Official publications in the press by Great Britain, Russia,
Germany, and Italy, July 30 to December 6, 1914.
Various speeches by officers of the Governments.
It is from these official documents, cast into one form by
rearranging all letters, telegrams, proclamations, speeches, etc.,
in their chronological order, that the following history of the
diplomatic controversy is compiled.
It will be observed that, from the necessity of the case, the books
of the six principal allies against the Teutonic Powers are
threefold in number the books of those powers; and that, from choice
of their promulgators the books of the Teutonic Powers are also
disproportionately less in total volume, owing to the almost entire
absence in them of communications between Austria-Hungary and
Germany; while the correspondence between their adversaries is
presented by these with a fulness which gives the neutral reader the
impression that nothing of importance has been withheld--indeed,
that the Allies (to use for convenience the popular designation of
the anti-Teutonic powers) have laid all their cards face upward on
the table. The intelligent reader will not have to be cautioned that
this is a psychological, rather than logical, inference.
If any prevalent arguments on either side fail to be upheld by the
evidence here given, it will be because this evidence does not
appear in the official documents; the editors feel that their
functions do not warrant their inclusion of pleas or testimony
formed outside of the records mentioned above. The time will not
come until long after the close of the war when the conflicting
claims in the vast amount of propagandial literature issued by both
parties can be judicially weighed by impartial historians, and
presented at the bar of public opinion. In the meantime, however, we
can bring before this court the case as officially presented by the
contesting parties, a "perfect enumeration" of all the available.
The editor acts merely in a reporting capacity. He does not
discriminate between "Trojan and Tyrian," unless it be called
discrimination to refuse by allotment of lesser space to inflict on
the party neglecting fully to present its case a penalty beyond that
which necessarily results, in adverse effect, on the mind of the
reader from this omission.
In brief, the controversy is presented as a case in law. The
evidence is given in the correspondence between ministers of state
and the pleadings are presented in the words of responsible
statesmen, who apply this evidence to the issues in question.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account