Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. GISBORNE, THURS., SEPT. 30, 1926. THE OLD GERMANY

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LII, Issue 17152, 30 September 1926, Page 6

Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. GISBORNE, THURS., SEPT. 30, 1926. THE OLD GERMANY

J he German Government as a shriven penitent is behaving badly. Her Chancellor claims that her admission to the League of Nations reinslates not only the republic, as on, an equality with other nations, whi«h it undoubtedly does do, but that ir is also a rehabilitation of her character, as displayed by her actions, under the Hohcnzollerns. Dr. 81 re soma an does not only make this claim, but he goes much further, he repudiates the admission of*Germany's war guilt, certified to by her selected representatives in the Treaty of Versailles, after full consideration, and some weeks' hesitation, at Berlin. If this admission of war guilt, insisted upon by the Allies,’was untrue, and can now be repudiated, it is obvious that any other condition or covenant contained in the Treaty can, if convenient, be broken or ignored, or any other statement of fact bo contradicted. M. Poincare was forced to resent both the claim and the vindication. If he, who had carried the chief burden during the war, as head of the French Government, could have forgotten the barbarities, outrages and unprovoked cruelties carried out by order of the Imperial staff, the French people have not forgotten. While it is .true flint the whole individuals of an aggressor nation are not responsible for the nation’s wrongdoings, they cannot, as subjects, escape the consequences. Addressing the, disabled soldiers at Versailles, M. Poincare spoke with moderation when he said "that war was declared upon us, and waged upon our .territory, and across the violated territory of a neutral state. Von also remember-that it was carried out under .the orders of the Imperial staff with pitiless cruelty." It will be better, perhaps, to repeat here what Dr. Strescmann has represented to the representatives at the German colonies reception, us his words must be taken as being what he is lending the German people to believe is right, is possible, and now attainable: “The German Government’s principal aims were: (l) The restoration of German sovereignly in Gorman territory. (2) The recognition of the right: of self-determination of all peoples. It might now bo said, in all confidence that Germany had the same right to possess colonies as any people. He added that Germany’s solemn admission to the League of Nations was equivalent to the withdrawal of war guilt accusations by the nations participating in the League.' ’ The Treaty of Versailles set out in unmistukeable terms Germany’s criminal responsibility for her unprovoked attack upon Belgium and France. The Germans did their best to save their national culpability from being thus branded for ever upon the Treaty. A fact does not cease to be a fact because its record, in perpetuity, is insisted upon. Mr. Lloyd George’s words may be recalled as proof not only of the Allies’ insistence of the admission of war guilt in the Treaty, but for its justification. Speaking on the terms of the Treaty to the fiSth (Welsh) Division at Amiens lie said:— “These terms are written in the blood of fallen heroes. The Germans had been reckoning,on this job for years, even working out the number of spikes per yard of barbed wire. We never dreamt of being in a position like this. In order to make it impossible to occur again, we have had to make these terms Severe. We must carry out the edict of Providence and see that the people who inflicted this shall never be in a position to do so again. The Germans say they will not sign. r lhe politicians say the san;c. We say ‘Gentlemen, you must sign. If you don't do so in Versailles, you shall do so in Berlin.’’’ And sign they did on June 28, 1010. But, as if to show the world their intention to evade in every way possible the obligations binding upon them by the treaty, before they.signed, and even under protection of the armistice, and while they were endeavoring to escape from the necessity of signing, on June 21st they scuttled their ships at Scapa Flow. Maximilian Harden, a German journalist of distinction, and at one time a personal friend of Prince Bismarck, did not shrink from tolling the German people the truth, even while he made bitter attacks upon Germany’s enemies. Ho may be quoted on this point: “The present terms are mild in comparison with those which the Germans themselves proposed to inflict, had they been successful, or in comparison with those they actually inflicted at Brest-Litovsk. The German nation does not yet understand what has happened, or why iho Empire has aroused such anger among the nations. Millions of Germans still believe in an encircling plot, to which Germany fell a sudden victim in 1911. Others, with equal stupidity, rely on the Marxian doctrine, and believe that capitalism was the cause of the war.’’ As a member of the League of Nations, Germany will bo brought to the lost as to her willingness to stand by .the Treaty of Versailles in another respect, ami that, one, which is much more important than the defence of her national morality. By the Treaty she has agreed “that if, and when she becomes a member of the League she will abide by the decisions of the Council with regard to her armaments. Her position in this respect differs from that of the position of original members. Under Article 8 of the Ooyenaiit original members, appear to have an option as to whether they will accept the plans for the! reduction of their armaments, formulated for them by the Council. If they do adopt such plans they must faithfully observe them. This option Germany does not possess. This will be one of “the unheard of injustices of the conditions of peace’’ which nevertheless, to save invasion, “the German Republic therefore declares that it, is ready to accept ami sign the conditions of peace imposed bv the Allied and associated Governments.’’ It should be noted that her admission to the League of Nations at

an parly date is by the Treaty only to bo effective "if she proves by her acts that she intends to fulfil the conditions of the Treaty. It is a remarkable proof of hcT loyal intention to fulfil those conditions, when, immediately upon her admission, she roundly disclaims her admitted war guilt, and claim'! back the, control of her lostcolonies. It .was never the intention of the Allies to divide the German colonies which had been captured during the war among the conquerors. A mandate confers responsibility—it does not vest possession, or profit, in the mandatory authority. The Peace Conference decided that the German colonies should bo entrusted .to great Powers, to bo administered in the name and on behalf of humanity. To give the lost colonies back to Germany would be a bctraval of the rights of humanity for which the great Powers are trustees.