GERMANY AND AMERICA.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXIX, Issue LXIX, 28 May 1915, Page 2

GERMANY AND AMERICA.

REBUKE TO COUNT BERNSTORFF.

i from San Francisco on April | 27, the correspondent of the Chiistchurch Press says:

A dignified rebuke has been administered by the United States to Germany in response to the latter's mem- ! orandum accusing this nation of violating the true spirit of neutrality in permitting the exportation of arms to ! the Allies, and m not insisting on the ; right to send food to Germany. TJe German memorandum was handed to ' the State Department by Ambassador ■ .Bernstorfi, who pursued the rather un Übuil course of communicating the Note to the American ja?ess before the Government saw ht to do so. lin« action bj Count Bernstorff has oravn d«wn on! his, head bitter criticism from the* American press. One paper calls the Note "offensive and arrogant," and another refers to it as a play to the gallery, while the Boston; Transcript asserts that its obvious purpose is "to interfere in American politics by exciting an element in our population to ■organised political opposition to our Government's course m a matter of foreign policy," adding that "Count Bernstorff has rendered himself offensive to both President andi people." The German position is that because Germany,, having been chased, from the Atlantic Ocean, is not able to import arms, or anything else from America, therefore- England and France1 should not be permitted to do so. Tlie American Government refuses absolutely-so accede to this position, ands in the Note of Secretary of State Bryan,-r*' vised by President Wilson, mst de Uvered to the Kaiser's Ambassador, shows how unneutral such conduct oh the part of this nation would be. First, however, the^ German representative is informed that the language used b~ him "is susceptible of being construed as impugning the good faith of the United States in the performance of its duties as* a neutral." Mr Bryan says he takes'it that ho such implication was intended, but that the Ambassador evidently is laboring under certain misapprehensions. "Tnote with regret," says the Note °f the. American ■ Secretary of State that in discussing the sale and im■Pprataon of arms by citizens oi the United Sfcates^ tor. the enemies of Germany, your excellency seems to be under the impression that it was-within the choice of- the United States, notwithstanding its professed, neutrality and its diligent efforts to maintain it m other particulars, to inhibit this I trade, andi that its failure to do so manifested an. unfair attitude towards Germany. This Government holds, as I believe your excellency is, aware, and as it is constrained, to hold in. view of tbe present undisputable doctrines of iiccepted international law,, that any j change of its own laws of. neutrality i dvr ™jS the progress of a. war which I Il oulA unequally the relations of ! the United States with the nations at | war, would be an unjustifiable deparj ture from the principles of strict neuj trality by which it has consistently j sought to direct its actions, and I rei spectfully -submit that none of the cirj cumstances urged in your excellency's [memorandum alters the principle involved."

And further: "The placing of an embargo on the trade in arms at the present time would constitute such a change, and. it would: be'a direct violation of neutrality of the United States. it will, 1 feel assured, be clear to your excellency that, holding this view, and considering itself in honor bound by it, it is out of the question for this Government to consider such a course." The first serious attempt of the Germans in this- country to inject their cause into and make it a part of party politics in the United States has resulted rather ignominipusly for them It occurred, in the mayoral election of Chicago,, a city tbat. has a. large population of Teuton blood—indeed greater than any other city in the world ex?s& ?£ rh\ and- Yienna> &is said. With the short-sighted idea of solidirym.^ this element in the population and having it cast its ballot as a unit tor the; Democratic candidate, Roherz M. feweitzer, who is of German parent, age, a circular was distributed at the close of the campaign,.urging the election ot "a German-American." The circular bore pictures of Emperor W;l----liam of Germany, and Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria-Hungary. Its authors unblushirigly wrote: "Let us on luesday next flash the message throughout the world that the second largest city in the United States has elected for its- Mayor a. German-Ameri-can, Robert M. Sweitzer. It will be a. wonderful encouragement to the friends of the German cause, and th" most effective rebuke to the anti-Ger-man agitation throughout the country." But the rebuke, as it turned out, was to the people vvaioxn the circular was designed to aid. Mr Sweitzer s opponent was elected by the largest plurality ever polled by a candidate, for the positign of Mayor of Cmcago, namely, 147,477 votes *,ut of I 6f0,000 cast, at the election. This notwithstanding that Chicago usually has a Democratic Mayor, the retiring official being of that political faith. The truth is that the circular killed whatever chance Sweitzer might have had of being elected.. It was signed by many leading, German and Austrian citizens, but even amongst the Teutons there were those who resented this attempt to dictate to them and make them vote in an American election o~ iuiropean issues.' Amongst the nou" German elements in the population, to quote a despatch to the New York limes from Chicago, "an intense wave of resentment arose. The voun°Americans from the Indiana border ol Chicago to the northern bordtr of Chicago at Lake Forest, turned out in force and voted down the Sweitzer-Gsrman-Austria ntieket."