Snipers and the Hague Convention (The Spectator, 1914)Two and a half months into the war, a devoted reader of THE SPECTATOR (and we are among them) responded to an earlier article concerning partisan sniping activity in occupied France and Belgium, wrote to the editors to point out that the Hague Convention (precursor to the Geneva Convention) condemned the practice of summary sniper executions. Mention is made of the fact that the occupying German forces
disregarded the law. Anticipating the American Century (The Spectator, 1921)Attached is a review of The American Era by H.H. Powers. The reviewer disputes the author's argument that the First World War made Britain a weaker nation:
"Mr. Powers' interpretation of the war and it's squeals is that the Anglo-Saxon idea, having triumphed, will set the tone for the whole world. He also believes that the real depository and expositor of this idea in the future must be America. Britain, he thinks,in spite of her great geographical gains from the war-- he considerately exaggerates these, has sung her swan song of leadership."
A similar article about American power can be read here.
Wyndham Lewis Gets Panned (The Spectator, 1921)An unnamed art critic writing for the British magazine SPECTATOR gave his back-hand to Wyndham Lewis , the father of Vorticism. Prefering the artist's drawings to his paintings, the ink-stained wretch opined: "The point might also be raised whether Mr. Wyndham Lewis should ever use oil paint. It is a medium which he seems to have little capacity and no sympathy..." German Military Expansion (The Spectator, 1912)This small piece from THE SPECTATOR magazine concerned the 1912 budget increase mandated by the Imperial German "Defense Bills" which called for a growth of the German army and navy. The expansion of the fleet was to include eight battleships and nine cruisers of various sizes and provide for further additions later. The German Army was to be furnished with two additional army corps. Sketchy News Reports (The Spectator, 1912)The attached three news reports were among some of the very first British magazine notices on the Titanic disaster to be printed. The Spectator editors rejected, even as a possibility, the fact that the great ship had broken in half; they also rejected a number of other observations made by the surviving eyewitnesses. British Attempt to Prevent Jewish Growth in Palestine (The Spectator, 1921)Confronting the issue of growing unrest in British Palestine, Winston Churchill cautioned the British colonial administrators to soothe the tempers of the Arabs in Palestine by limiting the growth of the Jewish population. Winston Churchill and the Mesopotamia Occupation (The Spectator, 1921)"Mesopotamia should be placed in the same file as Gallipoli, along with all the other various assorted fantasies conceived by his Lordship. Mr. Churchill hopes to avert any fresh rising by setting up an Arab Government. The people are to elect a National Assembly this summer, and the Assembly is to choose a ruler...Mr. Churchill admits that that he does not know whether the people of [Iraq], who are rent with tribal, sectarian, racial, and economic feuds, will choose the Emir Feisul."
Click here to read about Churchill's other folly: the Battle of Gallipoli. Review of Kaiser Welhelm's Memoir (The Spectator, 1922)Surprisingly, a British magazine published a terribly dry and unsympathetic review of My Memoirs by Kaiser Welhelm II (1859 - 1941).
Click here to read what the Kaiser thought of Adolf Hitler.
*See a Film Clip of the Exiled Kaiser* A Post-War Study of British Conscientious Objectors (The Spectator, 1922)"Conscription and Conscience " by John W. Graham is very briefly reviewed here; the summation provides some fast facts on the history of British conscientious objectors during World War One, yet tactfully fails to mention that during the course of the war, the British Army ordered 306 conscientious objectors be shot at dawn. In 2006 the British government pardoned them; just in time. The U.S. Marines Land ''Over There'' (The Spectator, 1918)A British journalist encountered the United States Marine Corps and found them to be an impressive curiosity that spoke an odd, nautical language. One Marine in particular was singled out and, although anonymous some of you will recognize right away that he could only be one man: Sergeant Dan Daily of the Fifth Marines.
Click here to read about the high desertion rate within the U.S. Army of 1910.
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