Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-05-15
GERMANY MAY YIELD
U. S. TERMS IN PART

Continued from Page ono
! Germany will by no means fully meet
| the demands Of the United States. The
| chief proposal expected from Germany
| Is a renewal Of the proposition that the
| United states bring about an abandon
| ment Of the German submarine program
! by inducing Great Britain to give up its
attempt to keep food out of Germany.
Berlin, Il Is declared, believes that such
an answer ON the part of Germany should
| satisfy all the arguments OF the United
| States. It can be stated emphatlcally
| that the Administration will not enter
| tain the expected German proposal
Officials devoted to the so-called "big
| army and big navy" movements openly
assert that Germany must contemptu-
| ously reject the American demands. They
say the President erred In not leaving
! an optional clause in his note.
others do not take this pesslmlstic
view. Among them are the men who
have been closely following the overseas
development They say that Germany
has II In her power, if Il Wills, to settle
the rights OF its position for all time.
Their view is that, because OF the init
mate friendly relations between the two
countries, Germany can be expected to
exhaust every means to prevent an open
rupture. and point out that the prece-
dents America has established will fit
well into Germany's plans, II this is its
desire.
Here is the solution that these officials
suggest
Germany can accept the concrete Amer
lean suggestion. IT can announce that in
the interests of friendship, and because
1t feels II Is right. Germany will suspend
indefinitely the submarine warfare against
all passenger-carrying vessels. Then 1t
will demand that all issues raised by the
United States be submitted to a compe-
MT urli frat 10, T.,4I
Germany can point out. Is on record as
declaring first that there can be no last
word between friends" and secondly, /
that there can be no justification in re- /
fusing mediation and arbitration when |
that course Is honorably open" on that |
record, these officials believe, the United |
states VIII bn compelled TO consider arb- |
tratlon, should Germany ask 1t.
THE ARBITRATION THEORY.
In submitting the whole submarine war
fare problem. insofar as it affects neu-
trails rights to arbitration. most inter
national experts think Germany will have
tho advantage. They say the German
position has been that nearly every pas
senGer liner bound for British ports has
her holds jammed with war munitions
and that to insure this contrabands
safety. women and children preferred,
are carried 1t has been felt that these
passengers made the vessels safe, or as
man close to the German Embassy to-
day put 1t:
Germany has been accused of placing
noncombatants. especially women and
children, In the front ranks to protect
her troops This we deny. But we have
claimed, and we do claim, that the Allies
have made 1t point to get as many
women and children as they could above
decks on ammunition carrying boats be-
lievlng that their presence deferred our
submarine commanders from acting. If
ever we are given the opportunity of DEM
onstrating this before a neutral body we
have unlimited evidence to prove that our
claims are true"
With the United States submitting her
claims to an arbitration court, Germany
would have chance. 1t was pointed out,
to try to prove this or anything else that
she believes, to attempt to Justify her
submarine raids and to introduce evil
dence in support of her contention that
the Lusitania actually went down from
an Internal explosion not from the dam
age caused by the impact of the solitary
torpedo that reached her side.
All President Wilson demands is the as
surance. and its fulilment OF Americans
safety. whether travelling on belligerent
or neutral passenger vessels Germany |
those officials here who hope for n peace
ful solution say can easily acquiesce in |
this, by indefinitely postponlng further
submarine operations pendlng complete
adjustment of all other points at issue
the two nations. These officials
believe that. in the arbitration sugges-
ton, Germany has n trump card with
which 1t may be able to save the sltua-
ton at home
KAISER TO CONSULT ALLIES.
1t is conceded that Germany will at
least 80 through the form of consulting
it's allies, Austria and Turkey, before re-
plying to the United States. Austria Is
very friendly to the United States and
the Vatican is powerful with its chance-
cry. and Ambassador Morganthau has In
iuence with the leaders of the Young
Turks in Constantinople. Because of this
I is believed these two nations will advise
l conciliatory attitude toward America.
This fact, coupled with the knowledge ]
that outside of the purely military Off !
cials the majority of Germans in author ]
ty do not want any more enemies ar |
rayed against the Fatherland, has mate l
rally lessened the tension in official ]
This is especially noticeable today, '
whether because of the naturally opti-
nistic American attitude or whether be- I
ause II is realized that Germany must g
NOW by now that the entire country '
GEMS solidly behind President Wilson. J
We're there division It is pointed out that j
Germany might act on the assumption .
hat the President could not get unanl-
nous support for an aggressive policy,
ut with unanimity everywhere in evil
ence. even from the most powerful of
he newspapers that have been upholdIng
he German cause. any reply the Kaiser
makes, II is agreed, must meet and not
eg the issues involved.