Before the treaty was drawn up, General Mackensen had already ordered the demobilisation of the Rumanian army. Hopeless as the situation of Rumania had become, it was no doubt preferable to deal with a totally defenceless foe. 'Disarm your adversary before plundering him' is a commonplace of professional brigandage. Before the conclusion of the Brest-Litovsk negotiations the obliging Trotsky had disbanded the Russian army, believing, or affecting to believe, that the whole fabric of German military power would collapse like the walls of Jericho at the sound of the revolutionary trumpet. This, however, did not occur; Germany forthwith reverted to military measures for the purpose of enforcing her demands, and the treaty was speedily signed. Rumania is permitted to retain a very small force under arms, but practically all war material is placed at the disposal of Germany and her allies until the conclusion of a general peace. The demobilised troops must remain in Moldavia so long as the German occupation of the rest of the country continues; the date for the termination of this is not fixed. German military tribunals will continue their sittings, and the Rumanian courts must not interfere with their jurisdiction. The country in reality will remain in German hands.

Space will not permit an analysis of the other provisions of the Treaty.* Rumania will be allowed 'an assured commercial route' to Constanza. She is bound to offer full railway facilities for the passage of German troops to Odessa through Moldavia and Bessarabia. The occupation of the great seaport of Southern Russia, which has been carried out in defiance of the treaty with the Ukraine, has been followed by the capture of the great fortress of Sevastopol, the docks of Nikolaieff, and the important emporium of Rostoff on the Don. For the moment it is not certain whether Novorussisk has succumbed; but that event cannot be long delayed, and the whole series of Black Sea ports-for Turkey is already at Batum--will then be in the hands of Germany and her allies.

* The full text has lately been published by the journal La Roumanie, now issued in Paris, for June 6, 13 and 20. It is translated into French from the official or semi-official German papers, the ‘Norddeutsche Zeitung and the Reichsanzeiger.'

The Black Sea thus becomes a German lake. But the importance of this fact, though great, is overshadowed by the circumstance that Germany is now in a fair way to the possession of a direct route to Central Asia and the frontiers of Afghanistan and India. From Rostoff there is direct railway communication to Baku, whence the route lies across the Caspian to Krasnovodsk and thence by the railway leading to Merv, Bokhara and Samarcand. The Turks have reached Tiflis; and, though the Georgians and other races of the Caucasus may still give trouble, it seems not unlikely that the Rostoff-Baku line will soon be in the hands of the Germans and their allies. There is also the alternative route ConstanzaBatum-Baku. It is true that neither of these routes possesses the same importance as the over-land route Berlin-Kieff-Tamboff-Samara - Cheliabinsk, or the route vid Moscow to the last-named place, where the great Siberian trunk-line begins, while a branch starting from near Samara leads southward to Tashkend. These, however, do not fall within the scope of this article.

The route viâ Rumania and the Black Sea or Southern Russia has been discussed for years past by the organs of Pan-Germanism, which aim at setting up a German Mittel-Asien corresponding to and connected with MittelEuropa and Mittel-Afrika. The ultimate goal of Germany's advance was to be China, which was to form a German sphere of influence counterbalancing or dominating Siberia on the North and India on the South. This project gave way to the B.B.B. (Berlin--Byzantium -Bagdad) scheme, as German influence in Turkey became consolidated, but now reasserts itself in view of the British occupation of Bagdad and the German occupation of Rumania. The condominium in the northern Dobrudja has been devised with a view to the retention of Constanza and the control of the Danube waterway, both important for the future Drang nach Asien as well as for commercial reasons. The international Danube Commission is nominally maintained, but in reality abolished, being now confined to representatives of the States situated on the river or on the coasts of the Black Sea, all of them now under the hegemony of Germany.

'A tout malheur il y a quelque chose de bien.' If Rumania must lose the Dobrudja she regains Bessarabia,

which has been offered to her by a native diet. The forced sacrifice of this kindred province in 1878 was deeply resented by King Charles and his subjects; and the non-Rumanian Dobrudja, which they were compelled to accept in exchange, was never regarded as an adequate substitute. It may be noted that the inlet of Akerman, in southern Bessarabia, offers a far better harbour than Constanza; but whether Germany will allow Rumania to possess the Bessarabian port remains to be seen.

The commercial and economic stipulations of the treaty, which have not been fully disclosed, would if generally known tend to confirm Mr Balfour's remark that Germany never loses sight of her commercial aims in her schemes of domination. The arrangements of the 'Petrol Peace' imposed on Rumania resemble those of the 'Bread Peace' imposed on the Ukraine. Both States are bled to the last drop. According to trustworthy information from Rumania, the Central Powers obtain the control of the Rumanian oil-fields for ninety-nine years. For this purpose a syndicate will be formed which will possess a monopoly of the production. A certain number of shares in this will be granted to the Rumanian Government. Until the signature of the general peace, the oil-fields will remain in Austro-German occupation. Rumania will be allowed a certain quantity of oil to cover her needs in case the yield of the small wells of Bacau, which alone are left to her, should prove insufficient. The pipe-line from Câmpina to Constanza remains in Austro-German hands. The Petrol Peace' has indeed earned its distinctive title. With regard to cereals, Rumania is compelled to sell her harvest to the Central Powers at a price to be fixed by a mixed commission, being allowed to retain only what is necessary for her immediate needs. A number of German officials will remain in the country in order to see that Rumanian needs are not interpreted in 'too broad a way.' The economic stipulations, as a German lady writes, seem very nourishing.'

As a last security, the control of the railways, posts, telegraphs and telephones remain in Austro-German hands till the end of the war. Even the Government and the foreign diplomatists are not allowed to send

cipher telegrams. Space forbids the enumeration of other humiliating conditions. Væ victis indeed-though Rumania was betrayed rather than conquered. When the fourth treaty was signed, Bucarest presented a mournful appearance. The streets were patrolled by German soldiers; a German general was installed in the palace; the King and Queen were far away in the Moldavian Carpathians; famine and disease prevailed. What a contrast to the gay scenes which marked the signature of the third treaty! Flags were waving over the crowded streets; parades of the victorious troops, receptions, banquets, investitures, concerts were the order of the day. Every one was happy and triumphant except the Bulgarian delegates. Pictures displaying the valorous exploits of the Rumanian troops, and post-cards which represented' grateful Civilisation' crowning M. Maioresco with a wreath and M. Také Jonesco administering the coup de pied to M. Daneff, abounded in the windows of the shops. And yet, amid all this jubilation, King Charles, who never lost his calmness of judgment, was inspired with prophetic misgivings. Receiving a wellknown Rumanian journalist a few hours after the signature of the treaty, 'It is not a treaty,' he said sadly, 'it is only a truce, and it cannot last.' 'Thanks to you it is definitive,' he telegraphed to the Emperor William, but he did not believe this in his heart.

The first Treaty of Bucarest marked the awakening of the Christian nations of the Balkans, the second the beginning of their fratricidal quarrels, the third the zenith of their madness, the fourth its inevitable consequences. In the interests of civilisation, militarism must disappear not only from Germany but from the Balkans.

Art. 11.-SPAIN AND GIBRALTAR.

1. Las Llaves del Estrecho. Estudio sobre la reconquista de Gibraltar. Por José Navarrete, precedido de una carta prológo del Exc. Sr. Teniente-General Don José Lopez Dominguez. Madrid: Hernandez, 1882.

2. Gibraltar y la Bahia de Algeciras.

Por D. Camilo Vallés, Coronel de Artilleria. Madrid, 1889.

3. La Humanidad y los Césares. Por D. Mario Roso de Luna. Madrid, 1916.

4. La Cuestion del dia: Gibraltar y Africa. Discurso del General Primo de Rivera. Cadiz, 1917.

ON the 25th of March 1917, General Don Miguel Primo de Rivera, military governor of Cadiz, delivered an address on 'The Recovery of Gibraltar,' at the Royal Academy of Sciences and Arts in that city. A few days afterwards, he was summoned to Madrid by the Minister of War, and discharged from his office. The Spanish

Government, perhaps, conceived his theme to be inopportune and his utterances indiscreet. In 1915, Señor Dato, then Prime Minister, had opened, with the greatest reserve, pourparlers with England and France about Gibraltar and Tangiers; and, though no definite conclusion was reached, hopes were entertained in Spain of their renewal at some later date. Probably also, since the recovery advocated by General Primo de Rivera was to be through friendly negotiation with England, the Spanish Cabinet feared to arouse Germany's suspicions.

General Primo de Rivera's academic address did not, in reality, give any cause for offence. He touched upon a very ticklish question, and one which the Spaniards consider a sore wound to their pride, but he did it in terms of much courtesy to England, voicing, at the same time, the universal feeling of his countrymen. As to the opportunity for bringing the affair of Gibraltar before the public, and calling the attention of the Spanish Government to it, he believed that no better could be found. The peace of Europe is going to be settled, according to him, in a conference or congress of nations. If Spain, as a neutral, is denied a voice in that parlia ment, she will surely find one of the belligerents whom she has represented during the conflict, to take up her