“FRATERNISATION.”

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 1763, 11 December 1917, Page 4

“FRATERNISATION.”

AS ORGANISED BY THE ENEMY,

One of the chief implements of Leninite pacificism was “fraternisation/’ Those of the Bolshevik leaders who are sincere—and no doubt there are.some such——were convinced that a satisfactory peace would be brought about if the Russian soldier could only get into personal contact with his opposite number, and talk to him about the virtues of democracy and the brotherhood of man. The persuasive force of such conversation would, they believed, be irresistible, and the German army would hurl Wilhelm from the Throne, abandon all thoughts of annexations and indemnities, and proclaim the rights of .'all subject nationalities to decide for themselves what their political conditions were to be. Accordingly (wrote the Petrograd correspondent of the London Daily Telegi’aph in September) the Russian soldiers w r ere ceaselessly exhorted to lose no opportunity of fraternising with the enemy, and, under the influence of these appeals and of the confused emotions engendered by the revolution, they tried the experiment on a very extensive scale. The results have been only too obvious. In the German trenches the simple Russian peasants were plied with liquor, to which they had long been strangers, and, under its influence, let out many important military secrets which they probably would have guarded had they been sober. On the other sid® of the line, Germans, on the pretext of desiring mementoes of merry meetings in the shape of pictures of their hosts, secured many photographs of gun positions and other military works. That fraternisation was encouraged by the enemy’s higher command with this object is apparent from an order which was recently captured on the front of General Linsingen’s army. It was issued shortly before Easter, and is as follows: —

“In view of the approaching holidays, judging from the example of former years it is expected that Russians will come out to us with presents. Their emissaries are to he well received and allowed to return to their own lines. Conversations may only be carried on by officers. Opportunities must be taken advantage of to point out to the Russians that those really guilty of the war are England' and France, that Germany and Austria have twice already made peace proposals which Russia wished to accept and only refused thanks to the influence of England. You must shout ‘Zeraliak’ (countryman) or ‘Toearistch’ (comrade). There has never been a case where this* has been done and no one has appeared from the Russian side. A white flag must be taken out and shown on meeting. In conversation, first of all the questions should be asked, ‘What Government do you belong to'?’ and ‘Where is your family?’ and so on. Do not touch tactical questions; when he has drunk a little he will begin to let things out.” This document shows a considerable knowledge of the Russian peasant. For instance, the question, “What is your Government?” (province) is the ope which two Russians of the peasant class nearly always address to one another at the outset when they meet for the first time.