The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE SATURDAY, JANUARY 18, 1919. THE SITUATION IN GERMANY.

Taihape Daily Times, 18 January 1919, Page 4

The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE

SATURDAY, JANUARY 18, 1919. THE SITUATION IN GERMANY.

(With wbicn is incorporated Th® Tai* hape Post cad WalGmil-jo Naw«).

Tlio degree of perverseness to which mankind can be trained is fully demonstrated and exemplified in the German nation. It is generally understood that one’s actions arc prompted by cither honourable or dishonourable motives, by justice and rectitude, or by subtlety, scheming, corruption and might regardless of right. The world’s progress is procoeding~by one of the two methods; those two were rivals for many years until, four years ago when their courses met and the systems clashed. For decades the cult of intrigue and might was intensively inculcated throughout the whole of the German Empire, and when it crossed the path of and became inimical to progress by justice, honesty and righteousness it was evident that a human catastrophe of unprecedented magnitude, disaster, death and wretchedness would result, and eventualities fully proved" 'the correctness of the forecast. German psychology was completely defeated by a superior mental philosophy; deception and intrigue was triumphed over by truth and justice until Gormans begged for a cessation of the struggle. They asked for an armistice, which was granted, the terms of which they were glad to accept/ but the Ignominious failure of the processes of their perverse psychology does not appear to have made them one whit wiser as to its valuelessness in combating that of their enemies. So steeped arc their souls in their doctrine in connection with the

living principle in man that immediately the terms of armistice wore signed all their efforts released from war were put to evading by cunning and deception the compact for peace just entered into. For two months Gormans have persisted in trying to avoid the terms of the armistice "and they have gone to considerable pains to prevent its conditions being complied with. The practice of the German cult has again crossed the path of the Allied way and the second clash therewith has resulted in still harder terms, and a larger and more hitter pill has been compounded by Foch and his commercial and political advisers for th Germans to swallow. The two months originally allowed ‘for Germany to comply with armistice terms expired a week ago, and instead of German practice of dishonesty, deception and cunning being rewarded it is receiving the punishment it lias justly earned; wisdom and prudence as understood by Germans are evidently qualities entirely the opposite to what are practiced by the Allies, for with the sura total of their boasted superman wisdom and effort the German nation is sinking deeper into difficulty. New armistice terms or resumption of war became necessary owing to German insincerity; a now armistice had to be accepted; Germans have brought upon themselves degradation, have increased the burden and the length of the period for which it will have ‘ to be borne. It is only now that the mass of supermen are realising that their glorious army was completely conquered, and that Gcriimny is in verity a subjugated nation. The new armistice gives Marshal Foch and his generals much greater freedom, and a power to take initiative measures wherever and whenever they consider circumstances demand it. German warships, including submarines, in course of construction arc not to he fiinishod, and leading German ports are to be occupied for the purpose of policing and to assist’ tn victualling to stay the wave of starvation that is sweeping over the country. THo occupation of German ports will also facilitate the transport of an Allied army to Poland to save the people of that "brave land from falling under the bloody regime of Russian Bolshevism. Germans now officially know that their commercial fleet will be taken by the Allies as compensation for ships submarined and destroyed by methods entirely contrary to internatinoal and humane law. As the new armistice conditions are largely penal as a result of Gorman obstruction to the carrying out of the terms of the original armistice they will be enforced with greater rigour, Germans are to have it forcibly impressed upon them that armistice terms must be obeyed and carried out to the full moaning of every clause thereof, and there is now strong “Evidence that they have commenced to understand that subtlety and deception do not Pay. The immense Gorman gold reserve of approximately one hundred

millions sterling is to be passed over to the Allies, the Bolshevik uprising probably rendering "huch a seizure advisable. The Ebert Government seems to have a much clearer and closer estimate of Allied intentions about enforcing armistice terms, hud it is more prudently striving to re-ostabiTsh a stable Government, and the election of a new Parliament is now in progress. Meanwhile, the Bolsheviks are a grave source of trouble, the position generally giving considerable cause foxalarm; it is a wave of death and destruction that is passing not over Germany and Russia alone, but over the whole world. Bolshevism, However much people may assume blindness to the fact is a menace that has to be dealt wife by bare hands just as much in Australasia as in Russia or Germany. The latter country has still the power to chock it, and with prompt arrest and imprisonment of leaders the German uprising is being apparently suppressed in Prussia. In other states •a definite stage has Heen reached) as to 'future government; in Wurtcmburg a .dcmocratic-republican-socialist coalition, has secured a working majority in tbs Constituent Assembly; in Bavaria there is a bourgeois majority over independents and socialists; and although it seems certain that representative governments in all states will be elected it by no means indicates that trouble is ended. It docs mean, however, that by the will of the people expressed at the ballot, a government

will bo established that Is responsible to the Allies for the carrying out of the armistice terms, and to whom the Allied demand for indemnities can be presented. If at any time that Government is harassed by Bolshevism it can be legitimately assisted by Allied force in support of Allied interests. The conditions regardig the seizure of the German commercial fleet to replace tonnage sunk in the war, and the payment of indemnities arc of paramount importance to New Zealand farmers, as it will most favourably mitigate the shipping trouble, and it should considerably affect the cost of living, which seems to be the root of the Bolshevik cancer in this country. It is only at this stage that German elections are operating to clear away the impenetrable darkness obscuring the future, as to the aftermath of the war.