LUDENDORFF’S COLLAPSE

Evening Star, Issue 20057, 24 December 1928, Page 5

LUDENDORFF’S COLLAPSE

WARNING MESSAGE TO KAISER : 'One of the cardinal and most dra-, matic incidents of the war, which hitherto has remained more or less a, mystery, Ims at last been fully illuminated in Berlin by tho ‘Rhc*-; iseh Wcsti'aelische Zeitung.’ It is tne breaking of the “will to victory’" of Lndendord which brought the German Government the surprise of his peremptory demand for immediate armistice negotiations. 1 So far it has only been known that tins sudden simp, which is blamed by tlie German Democrats for the hopelessness of their country’s debacle, was in some way connected with what has beeii described as tlie “ nervous breakdown ” of Ludendorff. From the story’ of an eye-witness now published it appears that he was actually prostrated' by a lit. The writer, who was at that” time an oiiicer at headquarters, alter describing the strain imposed on Ludenclorff by four years of continuous labour with only ns many days of leave, proceeds:— About half-past four in tho afternoon of September. 28 some service matter which I felt to be already overtaken by events took, mq along the dim, silent,, carpeted corridors ol tiie Hotel Britaniqne in Spa, past the antcVooni of the Chief Quartermaster-Gen-eral. - Suddenly the door, torn violently open from within, gaped, and in its rectangle of light stood my friend G.R., with an empty water carafe in his" hand. “ Do you know wnere water is to be had at once, close at hand?” “ What, is the matter, Botho?” From the pale lips ot my friend the* answer came like a, clenched list: “in there! Ho is lying on the carpet, foaming at the mouth. He Ims had a kind of' paroxysm. It’s all up; don’t say anything this evening; 1 ’ll tel! you more.” The evening story thus described Ludendorlf’s attack: “Suddenly swelling like an avalanche came pouring out all the just embitterment which for years had accumulated in this apparently so imperturbable man. At first, tlie general quietly described the devouring consequences oi the last catastrophes' for the reserves at, tlie disposal of the chiel Command —seven divisions dispatched to tho Balkans to stop up the hole in the Bulgarian front, and as many on the wr.' -lo Italy. Add to that, open treachery among sections of the Bulgarians and despairing fatalism among Austrians. “Ever more poignant was the -description of events on our Iront, many of the hinges of which wore becoming .shaky. But at the same time Ludendorlf’s utterance became more violent and disquieting. The general began to speak of the lack of comprehension in tho rear for our position of breakdown, ot the new Parliamentary leaders, in the face oi our enemy’s will to destroy. Also of the egoism and shortsightedness oi individual, staffs. CRITICISM OF THE NAVY. ‘ “Tlie director ol an entire auny had complaints ,to make, mentioning the magnification of tlie most trilling successes, obstinate resistance even on quiet fronts to parting with reserves and consequent obstructing in an enormous degree., of a cleat oversight over the entire position. “A request here interpolated by General Von Qu that Ludendorff would have more regard to his health, now doubly important, was answered with a negative" wave of the hand. With particularly bitter words Ludendorff now spoke ot the extravagant demands of tho Chiel Naval Command, which, under the pretext ol a still possible submarine success, was drawing to itself the material necessary for building tanks. For two years- he had demanded tanks, ,' more tanks, always tanks, for the relief of our brave infantry in the trendies —nothing, or much too little, was done. “Just-as little was energetic action lo be expected from ; the Reichstag against defeatism in tlie roar. Even more shameless this pest was becoming, not only there, but. also behind the front. Every drastic measure against it was prevented by tlie Chief War Lord—the Kaiser—from considerations of humanity or for reasons or domestic politics. From this cause most of the divisions were only-cadres with gaping holes in their ranks. “ As with sweeps ot u gigantic brush the Quartermaster-General, contrary to his laconic habits, speaking with ever greater speed and loudness, sketched a picture of benumbing sharpness before the two ollicors sitting in front; of him in motionless horror. Even deeper was the impression made on them by the outbreak of unwonted complaint from this mouth. “Before their eyes this man of duty had become a creature ol despair. Suddenly the voice which had become so unusually loud died away; there was a convulsive clutch at the tight collar of tho coat. Then foam appeared on Ins lies, and in a slow, sliding motion the heavy body of a giant who had fallen for Germany 101 l athwart the room. “1 ran for water. We put the general on tlie sofa, moistened his forehead with water, and unbuttoned bis little jacket. With a look of amazement the now reviving soldier glanced at tho comrades bowed oyer him. Quicklv Ludendorff pulled himself- together': ‘That will pass, it must not go further.’ Then he straightened, himself out and seemed to have regained mastery of his powers, and with the words, ‘lf it can’t be otherwise,’ the Quartermaster-General seized the telephone receiver to get connected with the Kaiser. “ His fit seemed to have been surmounted—seemed —but was it really? For now the Quartermaster-General, hardly recovered from his grave physical collapse, put into execution what he himself in his memoirs described as difficult decisions.” The message for his Emperor was that “a sudden catastrophe of a large scope was not impossible,” and that it . was necessary ‘ for the immediate relief of tlie tottering front to send , direct to the President of.the United-. States with the utmost speed of a,, declaration of readiness for .peace on - the basis of Mr Wilson’s demands, which had already been contemplated for this extreme emergency.” But the Kaiser was taken aback by. . this unexpected communication, and - “it was necessary for the general repeatedly to emphasise’ the' actual possibility of a broad breach on one -or two sections of the front and to explain, with bitterly, drawn mouth, ~his helplessness for this eventuality. By tacit agreement; says the writer, all who had knowledge ot these events have hitherto kept silence, -but now “ unreserved truth has become the necessary basis of history.” /