The Press. Thursday, December 14. 1916. Germany's Proposals for Peace.

Press, Volume LII, Issue 15773, 14 December 1916, Page 6

The Press. Thursday, December 14. 1916. Germany's Proposals for Peace.

There is one satisfactory feature about the iinctnous whine for peace on Germany's own terms—which has been emitted by the Chancellor in the Rcichstag. ft is a plain confession that Germany and her allies have now no hope of winning the war, and are anxious to £et out of it with as little damage as possible. Despite the bluff which the Chancellor's speech contains a.s to the military strength and "inex"haustibl;- resources"' of Germany, the fact that such proposals are made must strike a chill into the hearts of the people already feeling the pinch of privation, especially when they think of the coming winter and the Allies concentrating all their strength for a great increase in their offensive.

As for the unctuous and horribly offensive hypocrisy of the terms of "»e Chancellor's speech, and of the German Notes—especially that addressed to his Holiness the Pope—we can hardly trust ourselves to write about it. Germany, we arc asked to believe, is now a nation of saints, forced into this conflict, distressed beyond measure at the horrors of the war, and anxious for peace —not because she knows she is beaten, but "out of a deep moral and " religious sense of duty towards the "nation and towards humanity!" It is Germany who says this —Germany who forced on the war, even after her ally wanted to draw back, and who introduced into it horrors never so much as dreamed of before.; Germany the proud inventor of the use of poisonous gases, of Zeppelins which not only drop bombs on women, children, and old men, but scatter poisoned sweetmeats to further ensure, if possible, that the children shall not escape; Germany, whose ideal of naval prowess consists in the indiscriminate sinking of merchant ship©, neutral as well as belligerent, setting at defiance all rules of the -law of nations and all dictates of humanity regarding the innocent lives on board the ships. # This Germany stands up before the world with her hands dripping with the blood of Edith Cavell, of Captain Fryatt, of the civilian martyrs of Belgium and France, and professes a deep religious concern for the "unspeakable misery "of humanity,'' and for tho fact that the "spiritual and material progress "of the world is threatened with ruin." If anything could increase the repugnance and detestation which the civilised world' already feels for German barbarism, it must surely bo the nauseous hypocrisy and cant with which she is now seeking to cloak the horror and infamy of her crimes.

That there is a oertain svmount of cleverness in tho staige. management of this colossal piece of bluff may be conceded. The great durry of submarine "frightfulness" and the'rapid invasion of Roumania have no doubt been devised largely "with a • view to creating a situation favourable to bringing forward proposals for peace which might, it is hoped, appeal at any rate to some of the belligerents as a basis for dis-

cussion, or at least create an impression favourable to Germany in tho mind s of neutrals. The Kaiser knows, and tho Chancellor knows, how superficial aud how transient are the strength and security of which they boast. They see the tightening grip of the British blockade, the rigours of winter increasing the sufferings of the civil population, and thinning the bfcttle-front, long strung-out, which cannot bo held when the necessary reserves are no longer forthcoming. No wonder tho Reichstag was called together without any further delay. That the terms proposed by Germany will be seriously considered by the Allies is quite out of the question. It is doubtful whether tho Entente Powers will, at this stage, even consent to name their own terms of peace. If they do, it will bo coupled with the very plain declaration that if these, are not accepted now, much more vigorous conditions will bo exacted later on. We do not believe that Germany is yet reduced to the point of accepting the only terms to which the Allies can possibly agree. They have determined not only to end the war, but to exact reparation for tho wrongs which Germany has committed, and. above all, to make it impossible for her to resume this war, with all its inhuman atrocities, at a more convenient season. There is nothing Germany would like better than to go back to pre-war conditions, with full liberty to bide her time and build up her resources for a fresh attempt at world domination. She would give her soul, if it were not already sold and damned beyond redemption, for opportunity to lick her wounds, to nurse her hate, and sharpen her claws for a fresh attack on England, whose sea supremacy, she feels, has been the chief means of baulking her in the world-vic-tory she counted on gaining. Peace will como when Germany is beaten to her knees, ready to submit to the Allies' will, and not before. She has not yet reached that stage, and the war will go ou. For the Allies to consent to anything short of complete reparation for the past, and security for the future, would mean that the blood of all our sons has bton shed in vain,

and that we ourselves are traitors to those that arc to come after us.