to undertake such an obligation definitely. In view of the fact that all the great powers were on her side, and that there was no opposition between England and France or England and Russia, it was not as necessary for her to pursue the policy of an alliance with Germany with as much determination as at the time of Chamberlain's attempt. England was afraid that, by entering into such an agreement, which was opposed to the traditions of British policy and which made her accept more far-reaching undertakings than those which she had undertaken towards France and Russia, she would endanger her friendship with these two powers.
According to the English point of view, her friendship would have been the automatic result of removing all the concrete questions at issue. England's friendship and mutual trust would have been firmly established provided an agreement with regard to the fleet had been arrived at, and for this reason England did not consider that it was necessary to express her goodwill in a previous agreement. According to German opinion, however, a political alliance would have had to precede the agreement with regard to the Navy. Which party was in the right and what method should have been adopted to secure this settlement? Both parties wished to act in accordance with the traditions of their own customs. And I must say that I believe that both systems would have led to the desired goal. The misfortune of the situation was that public opinion trusted Germany so little, and that public opinion was animated by such antipathy that there was no tendency
