The Cairo bulletin., 1912-01-14
SOCIALISTS ARE
VICTORIOUS IN
GERMAN VOTING
Fifteen Seats are AIRED in German
Reichstag in Election
Friday


remarkable gains ii the annua,
elections here today Fifteen seats
were gained and emo leh excitement
to satisfy the most eXacting was
created. The reflections two weeks
from today may cause the Socialists
to gain a majority.
The general elections were held
throughout the Germ IN Empire Fri
day to choose membe.s Of the Reich
stag Rarely has an election excited
more interest since the founding Of
modern Germany and rarely has
greater importance attached to the
resul..
The widespread dissatisfaction
over the policy of the govern mt in
the Morocco negotiations, diss't'
isfaction which left it apparently
without a single friend in the Reich
stag, and the great increase in the
costs Of the necesasries of life, which
hears nest heavily upon tho wage
workers and all persons of small in
comes, have Cneatcd situation in
which the most acute political pro-
phests find themselves at a loss to
predict the probable result at the
polls.
1t seems to - CO. coded that the
parties of the Left the liberal
group and the Socialists-Will make
gains, but ID ir probable extent is
uncertain.
The Reichstag just dissolved was
elected in January, 1907, and sat for
the FIVE year term provided in the
following the election of 1907, as
follows:
Right conservatives, Free con-
servaives, Agrarian associa
tions) ...,..113
Central catholics, Poles) ....129
Left National Liberalsl ...... SIS,
Ra'cals RI ...,,.,.......,.... 10G
Social y mccrats SOCIAL
lSts) ............... 40
Scattering (particularistic par
ties) ................ s
The great growth Of the rural dis
tricts has worked especially against
rhc Socialists. whore chef strength
in Germany, as elsewhere, is main
ly in tn great centers of popula-
ton. Five of Derlin's six delegates
TO the late Reichstag were Socialists,
as were all three of Hamburgs
delegates.
The original two parties OF fifty
and more years ago the royalists
since the erection of the modern
empire no less than forty parties
or these Thirteen had representata-
tiyes in the late Reichstag and
seven del gates moreover were
without any nominal party ale
glance. Dsregarding, however, all
hut the essential points Of variance
between these various parties, five
great groups can be named which
corDrehend fairly the concrete views
OF all but the particuaristic voters of
the cplDrie. These groups are the
Conservatives, Center. National
Liberals, Radicals tor Progressives)
and Socialists.
The conservatives are, above all,
government party and the repre-
sentatives of the great landed pro-
prietors of North Germany, especial
ly Prussia, their stronghold They
arc strongly r2onarchlstic, opposed
to every step that may lead to a more
direct participation OF the common
people in governmental affairs and
opposed to the general franchise IA
voring instead "a franchise based I'D
on the organic groups Of the people "
The Center or Catholic party il
the strongest parts numerically III
the Reichstag and has been the
strongest almost without exception
since 1874. From this it comes that
the Center has always held the de-
cislVe vote on all questions and the
government lfas always had to reck-