GERMANY

Otago Witness, Issue 3655, 1 April 1924, Page 20

GERMANY

THE ELECTION CAMPAIGN. BERLIN, March 23.

Selection campaign is in full swing ocialists’ cry is “Defend the repub The Nationalists are frankly ap f for the restoration of tin cby, though they are not mention e llohcnzollerns.

The Bavarian Nationalists are pressing (lie claims of Von Tirpitz as Herr Ebert’s successor.

GERMAN CAPITAL ABROAD. PARIS, March 24

M. Andre Sayous, the well-known banker, say's that although the German capital abroad is officially estimated at 2,231.000,000 gold marks, the amount must he at. least 4,000,000,000. The Deutsche Bank alone had 26,000 American accounts

open in the middle ol 1922. M. Sayous personally estimates the German capital in foreign countries at 12,000,000,000 goid marks, of which bO per cent. is in America.

AMERICAN RELIEF VOTED. WASHINGTON, March 24. The House adopted a resolution to appropriate 10,000,000 dollars to purchase food for destitute women and children in Germany.

VERSAILLES TREATY DENOUNCED LONDON, March 24.

The Daily Mail’s Beilin correspondent says that the campaign for the German elections on May 4is m full swing. Hie programme of the Nationalist People s Party, the majority of the members ol which favour tearing up the Versailles Treaty, declares: “We lavour tearing to shreds the lying theory of Germany’s war guilt, breaking away from the dictatorship imposed by the Versailles Treaty, safeguarding German honour and dignity, and training our youth to bear arms. The Rhine is Germany's river, not Germany's frontier, and Germany’s selfdetermination cry must be ‘One people, one empire, one emperor. Other items in the programme are the abolition of the tyranny of Parliament, loyalty to the old German Hag, and the suppress on of Marxists and Jews. l tie Munich correspondent of The Times says: “Dr von Knilling, the Bavarian Premier, and Herr von Lersner. who was president of the German Peace Delegation at Versailles, weie the principal speakers at a mass demonstration of the Steel Helmet League of Front-line soldiers, held in Munich. The league is divided into 2500 groups, with over 1,000,000 members. The object of the meeting obviously was to persuade other Nationalist organisations to make common cause with the league, to w hich the majority of the Junkers belong, in the forthcoming elections, and to establish a '•programme which will be acceptable to all wings of the German Nationalists. Herr von t/ersner described the V ersailles Treaty as the most terrible weapon of oppression in the world’s history, tie declared that it was based on the infamous lie that Germany alone was responsible for the war. He said that Germany would go under unless the treaty was fundamentally revised. Germany s greatest weakness had been the disunion of the Nationalist organisations. If these could be united they would be able to go forward to victory. “Dr von iVnilling used similar language.” STATEMENT IN THE COMMONS. LONDON, March 26. In the House of Commons, in replying to Admiral Sir W. Hall, Mr A. Ponsonby (Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs) said that the Allies now proposed to resume the military control of Germany, to which they were entitled, but negotiations were at present in progress with the German Government with regard to future proceedings. MUNICH TREASON TRIAL. LONDON, March 28. The Daily Telegraph’s Berlin correspondent says that Marshal Ludendorff’s closing speech was an extraordinary piece of gasconade and self-revelation. He said he had experienced more than all the others present. “In me you see Tannenberg and other great battles, representative of the old army with its undying glory,” he said. “ What you do not see is mv life’s work for the future of the German people. History does not send men who have fought for their country to a fortress, but to Valhalla. Before all the world I say that- if the Nationalist movement does not prevail Germany must be lost forever. Faced with Versailles and threatened with enslavement to France, we shall be struck out of the list of nations. Hear this cry of a German, soul for freedom, and restore the men before you to the nation.”

The other accused made speeches glorifying what they had done, and abusing Herr Ebert and the Republic, which Herr Kirebel_ called “that fraud perpetrated on the nation by Jews, deserters, and paid traitors.”

Afterwards admirers mobbed the accused in the corridors, and the crowd outside shouted for Herr Hitler until he appeared at the window. They cheered Marshal Ludendorff as he drove home through the city.

LUDENDORFF ON TRTAL. BERLIN. March 28 The verdict in the Ludendorff trial will be announced on April 1.