The Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1912-1917, 1915-06-01
IN THE FATHERLAND
INTERESTING BITS OF NEWS
FROM THE GREAT GERMAN
EMPIRE.
WHAT'S DOING IN OLD HOME
Summary OF the Most Important Hap
penings In the Land of the Kaiser
Timely Items for the German
Readers.

the sinking of the Lusitania The
Tages Zeitung and other newspapers
state that the responsibility rests with
the British government, which, at
tempting to starve the peaceful civil
ian population of a big country, forced
Germany in self-defense to declare
British waters a war zone; with ship
owners who allowed passengers to
embark on an armed steamer carry
ing war material and neglected Ger
man warnings against entering the
war zone; and, finally, with the Eng
fish press, which ridiculed AmbaSsa-
dor Won Bernstorff's warnings, calling
them gigantic bluff, and thereby pre-
venting passengers from canceling
their passage. Heartfelt sympathy is
expressed by the German press and
public for the victims of the catas-
trophe and their relatives.
Notwithstanding the fact that the
empire is ruled by martial law, the
constitutional rights of members of
the reichstag cannot be abridged.
This is shown by declarations made
by Vice-Chancellor Delbrueck to the
budget committee of the reichstag in
answering queries of socialists touch
ing two of their members. Herr Haas
complained that action had been be-
gun in a military court against DR..
Karl Liebknecht for making state
ments of a political nature and that
his comrades had been forbidden to
speak to him under a penalty. The
vice-chancellor replied that such a
process was not legal and that the
government had interviewed immedi-
ately to have it discontinued.
Residents of the little Saxon village
of Bernsgrun who do not pay their
taxes will hereafter be able to get no
beer. This is the decree issued by
the city fathers, whose patience has
been exhausted in endeavoring to
make delinquents settle the bills
against them for state, municipal
school and church taxes. They OBJ
served that men who could not or did
lot pay taxes nevertheless appeared
to have money to spend in the sa-
looms. This is now to be ended. The
names of the delinquents will be post
ed in every saloon or other place
where liquor is sold openly, and no
beer or other drinks may be sold to
them as long as their back taxes re-
main unpaid.
Sir Edgar Speyer has sent a letter
to Premier Asquith resigning his
privy councilorship and requesting
also the revocation of his baronetcy.
The letter declares that Sir Edgar
was led to take this step after nine
months of charges of disloyalty by the
newspapers, which charges culminat-
ed in speeches against him by public
men, Sir Edgar Speyer was born in
1862, the son of Gustavus Speyer, the
banker. He was educated at Frank
fort-on-Main and later became partner
in his fathers three firms, Speyer
Bros. OF London, Speyer & Co. of New
York and l.. Speyer-Ellissen of Frank
fort-on-Main.
Never in the history of the health
resorts of Germany, especially those
in Bavaria, have prices been as low as
they promise to be this summer. In
the absence of the customary Glen
tele, it is regarded as likely that the
wives and relatives of army and navy
officials will come by thousands. But
because these in many cases cannot
afford the prices formerly paid, reduc-
tons ranging from rs and 33 per cent
to SO per cent have already been
agreed upon and announced. In most
cases the usual cure tax" is to be
abated altogether, and the charge for
baths is to be reduced.
Popular dissatisfaction with the
heavy burden the war has imposed on
neutral Holland is growing steadily
and finding almost daily expressions
especially among the workers. Re-
Gently several meetings of working
men and women, as well as of the I'M
employed, have been held in leading
Dutch industrial centers to protest
against the high cost of living caused
by the war.
Sir Edward Grey, the British for
eign secretary, has received dis
patch which says that typhus fever
is present in the following German
prison camps: Zossen, Aaltdamm,
Schneidemuehl, Gardelegen, Witten.
berg, Zerbst, Sagan, Cassel, Langen-
salza and Chemnitz.
A giant howitzer of new type
played an important part in assisting
the Austrians to smash the powerfully
fortified Russian position at Tarnow
The howitzer is of the same caliber
as the 42-centimeter guns. When the
Austrians occupied the Russian posi-
ton they found men dead without
wounds, rather far from the places
where the projectiles of the howitzer
exploded. The air pressure from these
tanglements away and the shell in ex-
ploding threw fragments Of castings
mile away.
The bureau for the conservation of
art works in the Bavarian government
has been helping impecunious artists
by setting them to work to renovate
the old mural paintings and architec-
f,,ral ornarno Dfc in q number of