THE STATE OF GERMANY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18991, 12 October 1923, Page 8

THE STATE OF GERMANY

NEW ZEALAND STUDENT’S IMPRESSIONS. FLUCTUATIONS OF THE MARK. TERRIBLE DISTRESS RESULTS. • (From Ouh Own Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, October 11. Among the passengers who arrived by the Tairmi was Mr Stuart H. J. Wilson, of Dunedin. He is an expeditionary force man, and was awarded the three years’ N.Z.E.F. Scholarship. While in England he studied applied chemistry at Glasgow and Manchester Universities, and on the completion of his three years’ course spent a year on the Continent. In that time he took a four weeks’ vaoational course at Strasburg University, and then went on to Danzig, where for six months he carried on research work in the Technical College. This was followed by three months in Breslau. Mr _ Wilson saw a good deal of AlsaceLorraine, where, although German or a German dialect is spoken, the people are essentially Celtic in character and temperament, and prefer French rule, although they miss the German standard of efficiency. The potash mines have closed down as Germany is unable to buy owing to the high rate of exchange, and France docs not produce it for hor own use. Consequently a lot of unemployment has resulted. Speaking to a Times reporter, Mr Wilson said that at Breslau the inflation of the mark and the high cost of living are causing riots, and ho witnessed the riots when IC9 clothing and boot shops were plundered, and £700,000 worth of damage was done. The Prussian police dealt somewhat brutally with the people, using rifles, whore the British police would only have used batons. Tile fluctuations of the mark are the cause of terrible distress, and i‘ has almost got bevond the bounds of stabilisation. The Monarchists and the Communists are ready for civil war, but both are afraid to start it as public opinion would be against them. ’The danger is from the Rods, as it is estimated that there are 200,000 armed Monarchists, which number could soon be doubled. The power of the Social Democrats has decreased, because the general strike weapon is futile the workers not being in a position to hold out. 1 Mr Wilson says that the present is a good time for_ Empire students to visit Europe, as. owing to the exchange, travelling <tnd living ore cheat) to them. Hp speaks highly of the German technical schools, which, although provided still with nre-war equipment, and still ahead of the English technical schools in many respects, 'lypical of the German devotion to science, they are sending a number of chemists to China and South America to study.