July 26. IQ17 
LAND & WATER 
Holland. From this it can be realised how much German 
monfey Holland gained during the war. And as Germany 
stopped long ago sending gold to Holland, the balance was 
largely paid in notes, which are likely to become '■ scraps of 
paper "at or before the end of the war. 
But even if all the millions which Dutch trade earned from 
Germany were realised at their face value, it cannot console 
the bulk of our people, who to-day are suffering from a food 
scarcity, which is mainly due to the large exports to Germany. 
Take the case of potatoes. Holland produces far more than 
she needs for home consumption. In ordinary times, about 
ten pounds of potatoes are weekly consumed per head of our 
population. Since more than a year ago, the large exports 
to Germanycompelled our Government to ration our people in 
regard to potatoes. They had ultimately to be reduced to two 
or even one pound per week, and recently Amsterdam was 
entirely without potatoes. That caused riots, in which a few 
people were shot and many injured. It must, however, not 
be thought that our people are less law-abiding than the 
British people. They are rather more long-suffering. But 
while tliey were themselves without potatoes, they knew that 
large quantities were still going to Germany. 
The Germans, with their usual falsehood, tried to cast the 
blame on Great Britain and incite our hungry people against this 
country. But the facts were too well known in Holland. 
The British Government at last took steps to stop the one^ 
sided Dutch export to Germany. A commercial agree- 
ment was made some time ago between this country and 
ours, whereby the Dutch Government was left entirely 
a free hand to decide how much Dutch foodstuffs, should 
remain in Holland for the Dutch people themselves. But 
of the quantities allowed to be exported, Germany and Great 
Britain were to get an equal share. About 20,000 tons of 
Dutch potatoes of last year's crop were already exported to 
Germany. But before Great Britain rjeceived her share of 
the old crop, new potatoes were sent to Germany. That 
unfairness the British Government did not allow, and no honest 
Dutchman blamed her. This country is perfectly willing 
to receive no potatoes or other foodstuffs from Holland, if 
none are sent to Germany. 
The same unfairness is apparent in the export of eggs. 
In normal times the Dutch people can afford to eat on the 
. average two eggs weekly per head of the population. Holland 
produces an abundance of eggs-, and, before the war, used 
to receive also large quantities imported from Germany. 
Germany now sends Holland no eggs, but receives from her 
ever so many more. In consequence, eggs, too, had to be ra- 
tioned in Holland. They are distributed through the muni- 
cipalities, who, in the middle of February, could get no more 
than 13 per 1,000 inhabitants, instead of the normal con- 
sumption of 2,000 per thousa-nd inhabitants. And in the 
same 7nonth, not less than 622 ions of Dutch eggs were exported 
to Germany. The same thing happens with vegetables, beans 
and peas. Our own people have to go short because of the 
large exports to Germany. That situation they have tolerated 
for two years. It is enough to make the most law-abiding 
people revolt. 
And the more Germany gets the more she claims. If a 
finger is given to her, she takes both hands. She bullies 
Holland unceasingly, and may yet drive our country into the 
war. That this can" never be on her side, is what every level- 
headed Dutchman fully understands. But the rulers of 
Berlin have a particularly urgent reason to dislike Dutch 
neutrality, now that Holland cannot supply them any longer 
with the same huge quantities of foodstuffs as before. The 
Germans perceive the certainty of losing Zeebrugge as their 
submarine base. I am sanguine enoughto hope that Ostend 
and Zeebrugge wlil be wrested from them before the coming 
winter. Germany would then have only the Ems as her 
submarine base in the North Sea, and that prospect is as gloomy 
to her, as it is cheerful to Great Britam. The river Ems 
gets frozen in the winter and is at that period of the year in- 
convenient for a piracy campaign. Besides, the distance is 
so much greater and Great Britain can bottle up the Ems 
far easier than Zeebrugge. 
Therefore the German rulers have their eye on the Scheldt, 
to compensate themselves eventually for the loss of Zeebrugge 
by removing the submarine base to Antwerp, whose harbour 
has since their occupation been of very little use to the Huns. 
Dutch neutrality bars that waterway effectively, and Germany 
can only make use of the Scheldt by violating Dutch neutra- 
lity, or by pushing Holland into the war on her side. She 
is just now trying very hard the latter policy by inciting 
Dutch feelings against England. I am, however, confident 
that she will never succeed in hoodwinking the Dutch people 
by gaining their active support. 
The overwhelming part of the Dutch people have too great 
a contempt for Germany. Besides, the Dutch understand 
fully that they would as a nation, commit suicide by taking 
Germany's side, and ultimately share her doom. Holland 
could be effectively blockaded to cut off all her supplies from 
outside, and all her colonies would be taken away. Heaven 
help our rulers in that case. But, apart from all these grounds, 
I trust my own people too much to believe that they will 
ever allow themselves to be duped in becoming the ally of 
the ruthless invader of Belgium, who is also the arch-enemy 
of our free nation. Should Germany try to make use of the 
Scheldt, she will force Holland into the war against her. Much 
as I dislike the policy of the Dutch Government in submitting 
too readily to Germany's ruthless methods, I feel certain that 
they will never allow ker to violate Holland's neutrality. 
And in view of the foregoing, it is rather significant that 
Queen Wilhelmina said recently in her speech from the 
"Throne: "Our people may yet be called upon to 
exercise their utmost strength for their freedom and 
independence." 
A Dreadnought of the Air 
By B. Percy Noel 
THE aeroplane of the type most suitable for the 
purpose of carr^'ing the war into the heart of Ger- 
many is ready. To execute the programme that 
the "British pubHc demands and which military 
authorities in all Allied countries have come to believe highly 
important, it is only necessary- to intensify the production of 
this aeroplane leviathan. It is ready developed, tried and 
proved. Of this I have had practical demonstration, thanks 
to the courtesy of the British Admiralty which authorised 
me to go as passenger on the trial voyage of one of these 
mammoth craft. Although it carries a load of several tons, 
th.is machine travels faster than any aeroplane regularly em- 
ployed by the Allies during the first year of the war. It is 
provided with two engines of the maximum power known to 
successful air engineering. The wing spread is so expansive 
that eighteen full-sized men could he along the planes head 
to heel and any one of them might walk on the ground under- 
neath the lower plane without bumping his head. It has 
flown with twenty-five people aboard as easily as with three. 
I saw one of these aeroplanes leave the ground for its air 
baptism, circle high and wing its way from the works to the 
naval station near by, just as it had left the assembling rooms, 
and an hour later without any alterations or adjustments, 
felt it hft into space v^th me aboard, to climb above the 
clouds and fulfil to the letter the Admiralty's requirements 
Even before we glided smoothly down to a perfect landing, I 
was convinced that the big plane was a success, realised 
that its employment in magnificent numbers as long distance , 
artillery in Germany was now only a question of months, 
while the beginning of its commercial use would date from 
the first days of victorious peace. 
The other morning I received a telephone message : " The 
big machine will leave the works at 11 a.m." It Was on the 
grass outside the great doors when I arrived, and Mr. Clifford 
B. Prodger, an American, who was to pilot it, was pulling on 
a' tightly-fitting cloth helmet. In front of us was this 
Brobdingnagian thing of the air, so heavy, solid, even massive, 
that it seemed incredible it ever would leave the ground. 
A mechanic in the fuselage fifteen feet above our heads 
asked : " Are you re^dy for the motors now ? " and the pilot 
nodded assent. Then a most amazing thing happened. No 
mechanics touched the screws to put the motors in action, 
but very slowly and noiselessly the blades began to move by 
an unseen hand actuating hidden mechanism. After a 
complete revolution, one motor after another began to fire, 
their blades whirring on either side of the fuselage. Then', 
as a final precaution, these great engines were speeded up until 
the indicators registered the desired number of revolutions. 
There was a double blast of air of terrific force accompanied 
by the continuous roars of explosions and the rumble of gears 
that caused the screws to turn less rapidly than the motors. 
The test over, the mechanic emerged through a trap door in 
the floor of the fuselage and the pilot climbed in followed by 
other men. 
There is a ridge some hundred and fifty yards distant. 
The machine must be in the air when it crosses that ridge, or 
crash. It is a tense moment for me as the huge aeroplane, 
released, moves ahead slowly at first, then goes on faster and 
