1939-05-10 — Page 30

THE HONGKONG TELEGRAPH, WEDNESDAY, MAY 10, 1939,

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Pensions

HONGKONG IS

years ago.

becoming

A

NEWS-MAP

Paris

FRANCE

NORTH SEA

Berlin

SAXONY

Prague

Genoa

ISCAN

STATE

BOHEMIA

USTRIA

OF THE

CHURCH

OF THE WEEK

NORTH

SEA

DENMARK

SWEDE

BALTIC

POLAND

HUNGARY,

CROATIA

Danube

BOSNIA

The Holy Roman Empire in the 16th century.

FRANCE

Berlin

POLAND

ESWITHA

AUSTRI

Budapest

ITALY

"Roms

JUGOSLAVIA

Hitler's Empire to-day.

"HOLY ROMAN

EMPIRE"-of 1939

N

OW, as the shape of Europe threatens to change once more

you may consider whether Hitler is dreaming of a new Holy Roman Empire.

by

ADiplomatic Correspondent

Holland and

south-eastern Europe and keep it holy in foreign States,"

Looking back on Austria and Czecho-Slovakia, that proclama- tion sounds like serving notice on the world of what was to come. Colony of pensioners. When Legislative Council meets For the first time he has in- in 962, lasted in various forms The excuse for publishing it

You note that it atates that to-morrow it will be asked to agree cluded within the frontlers of right up to 1806.

was the 200th anniversary of the the old Empire created a feeling to a supplementary appropriation the Reich a race other than Ger- which will boost the total pensions man.

Its frontiers changed from death of Prince Eugene of Savoy, of close relationship with Ger Until Hitler's nald to former civil servants

troops time to time, yet the important who, with the help of the King man civilisation. Perhaps only their dependants this year to 33,-

and marched into Prague most peo- thing to remember is that it did of Poland, repulsed the Turks Hitler knowa; but does. that 176,000, which is exactly double the ple thought that his ambitions provide a political and social from the walls of Vienna in mean the States that made up amount paid by taxpayers four were limited to bringing within organisation that served the 1683.

the old Empire are to be regard- the Reich people of German race. purpose of rule for nearly 1,000 Eugene, according to the pro- ed as a legitimate field for Ger- Where is it going to end? To-morrow it may be Hun- years. Judge its success by the clamation, "despised and perse- man expansion? Obviously, if penalons are to go ongarians, Croatians,.or Poles. fact that it worked.

cuted," left the French Court to If so, then Increasing at this abnormal rate, the Perhaps we all missed the By the middle of the sixteenth become a "soldier of the Reich." Switzerland are in the line of time is rapidly approaching when significance of an incident that century the Empire stretched Then, says the proclamation, danger, and the notion gives be able to samances will no longer happened in 1934, when Hitler's from Hungary in the cast to Hol- after Prince Eugene, with the point to the repeated rumour of

In ten years we have paid out followers sent a

and land in the west. As well as help of the Duke of Marlborough, an attack some day on those two-

o had overcome the French in the countries. $20,252,708 to support former civil sceptro of the Holy Roman Em Czecho-Slovakia, it included Purvants on retirement. Half of pire to Nuremburg from Achen part of Northern Italy, Switzer- war of the Spanish succession, this total has been paid out in the for the Nazi Party Congress. land, Savoy, and a part of Bur- "the German Reich was free,

Concentrated Power Inst three and half years,

and owed its freedom to the Then it was given out publicly gundy in France. tremendously has the cost expanded that the removal was due to the

be WHAT need not soldier-general and statesman, since 1935-36. In twelve years

From 1556 to 1806 this Em Eugene of Savoy, the Reich Field

doubted is that Hitler fact that the original, crown and pire was a loose confederation of Marshal, whose name had long the old Germanised Holy Roman regards himself as the heir to sceptre were confided to Nurem- the different Princes of Germany been in everybody's mouth." burg in 1424.

under the presidency of the

Empire, and as the shadow of Now for the pointer to Ger-Nazi Germany--lengthens over The crown-and-sceptre-were-House of Habsburg. The dif- man policy. The proclamation castern Europe it looks as if he When the Budget was before authentic copies of the symbols ferent States within the Empire continued: Council last September, the estimat- which were taken to Vienna for often quarrelled, ed deficit this year was $2,405,485. safe keeping during the Napo- fought.

sometimes

"Under the renowned general

is coming into his kingdom. Now, unless rovenuo has increased leonic wars. Only copies were

Do not forget that the first of those days, all of German Emperor of that older Roman. proportionately to expenditure, the deficit is nearer $6,000,000, more possible in 1934, but since then Italy, and Switzerland, gained idea and guaranteed our common did not take the title. He called Some of them such as Holland, stock fought for this Imperial Empire, with its centre in Rome, than half the Colony's surplus of Vienna has fallen into Hitler's their independence, but in the German civilisation for the fu- himself father or leader. Hitler

hands and the ancient crown mass the Empire hung together ture.... and sceptre.

the strain,

10

civil service pensions have in creased by three hundred per cent. Slace the Great War they have in- creased more than tenfold..

Assets over Liabilities,

Hongkong is now supporting over 1,100 people on pensions. Between them, they are drawing over $8,- 000,000 per annum.

crown

Then, two years later, the at- tention of German soldiers was drawn boldly to the fact that Austria once formed part of the Holy Roman Empire of the Ger- man nation.

11

"The common defensivo effort what matters is not the title but calls himself the Fuhrer, and A Sundered Reich

of a Reich aundered in countless the power that goes with it. WITH that as the back- States created a feeling of close In the real sense he is

ground, let us relationship with German civili- Sovereign, exercising dominion. examine again the proclamation eation.

over an area nearly as great as "The military achievements of was the Holy Roman Empire at posted up years ago in the Ger- man barracks, see if, perhaps, Prince Eugeno freed the way for the beginning of the eighteenth On the parade grounds a pro- there are more clues in it to the a new stream of settlers of Ger- century. penalons, the Hongkong Blue Book clamation was posted stating direction of German foreign man blood who still preserve

They do not spend the money in Hongkong, so that every cent paid out for pensions represents a dead) loss to the Colony.

Excluding those on dollar

shows that there are 52 people no that the ancient Holy Roman longer residing in the Colony who] Empire "was once our great are drawing pensions of over £1 Fatherland." day, Seventeen are. drawing per day, while eight are drawing pensions of over $1,000 per annum.

pensions in excess of £2

The world perhaps missed the meaning and the potentialitics of that proclamation. So con-

One former Government em-sider what that Empire was, and ployee has steadily drawn pension since 1877. Another tired in 1892-for health reasons His pension still goes on.

afrom that we may get a clue to re-what is in Hitler's mind, what

are the limits of his ambitions,

The position is admittedly difficult one. Obviously we must pay pensions. But it is just as

-4

Do you remember that in "Mein Kampf" Hitler years ago wrote that he was not interested in colonies beyond the seas but obvious that wo cannot afford to

amounts in those near at hand? enormous pay tho

Ho meant Austria, Czecho- representing nearly one-tenth of our total revenue that are now Slovakia, Croatia, and the other being mulet from the Treasury. countries bordering on the Relch Pensions and Military Contribu-that once went to make up the tions combined are taking over Holy Roman Empire. ono-quarter of the Hongkong's revenue. The result is that our local social services suffer.

Now that Empire, which be- gan with the crowning of Otto

comfort and well-being enjoyed by the civil servant, all the more reason why, after rotirement, his pension should circulate. In the Colony, instead of in other parts of the world.

It is manifcatly unfair to the Hongkong taxpayer that he should be asked to no extensively support people whose one ambition is to foave the Colony as soon as they are assured that the Colonial Government will pay them a salary for the rest of their lives.

During his residence in the The Colony to supporting him Colony, the civil servant enjoys in retirement: ho should support amenities that are far beyond the the Colony, reach of the ordinary commercial worker.

:1

Government la casting around for new means of raising taxation There can be no, objection to In order to meet, among other this. Rathor, It should be the alm increasing charges on the public of commercial houses to attain service, this frankenstein monstor the same degroo of well-being for of pensions. We would suggest their workers, to make their fot in that n pension that has to be Hongkong as. happy an làthe lot remitted overnens abould be one of the civil servant.

of the first victims of its own But there is, in this degres of growth,

policy.

German culture

GRIN AND BEAR IT

Cap. 1160 ky utted Posters Ryullada, Ban

He is making history repent In castern and itself-with a difference, and an

important one at that.

The difference is that the old

By Lichty Holy Roman Empire was a col-

"Lester Truffle, defendant-aged 41 arrested for alimony, 1936– arrested for. Uek alimony, 1037--arrested for back alimony, 1938 arrested for murder, 1989)”

lection of loose States' recog- nising the overlordship of the Emperor, and that was its weak-

nesa.

The new Empire of Hitler, on the other hand, is a highly cen- tralised State revolving on the axis of Berlin. "One people, one State, one leader" is more than a catchy slogan; it spolls concentrated power.

Then Came Napoleon

THERE is another dif

ference. The Habs- burg emperors thought first of the dynasty, the family. With. an unmarried emperor in Ber lin, that weakness, too, is. eliminated from the now Em- pire.

Yet the Holy Roman Empire porished in the plans of another conqueror who stalked through Europe as Hitler marches now. Napolion planned to annex the title, to make the Empire part of the "Napoleonic idea."

To

defeat his ambitions. Francis IL, proud Habsburg, resigned the Imperial dignity in 1806 and so ended the Empire: that lasted a thousand years.

Hitler says his empire wHE last a thousand years too.

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