Middletown transcript., 1915-06-19

II
Says the writer 1T is peculiarly
of the present war that there was nc
popular demand for it," Fearful lest
the strong popular protests, especially
of the Socialists, should prevent the
conflict, the German war party con-
cealed from the people the conciliatory
nature of Servia's reply.
If there were not plenty of proof
that this war was deliberately planned by
Germany, her indecent haste in precipi-
tating it, would Of itself suggest that
fact. Austria, (backed up always by
Germany gave Servia only 4S hours,
and the Powers "a, to deliberate!
England, France and Russia, hoping
to save the worlds peace, asked for a
little time-even begged Germany TO
delay even got Servia to humble her
self by yielding to unjust demands!
Russia nobly offered to step aside and
let France Germany and Italy decide the
question, England and Russia pledging
themselves to force Servia to abide bv
the action of this Conference. At this
supreme moment Austria and Germany
might have-should have--accepted
this fair offer, and thus have prevented
this fearful calamity, but instantly
upon the expiry of these 4S hours Aus
tria began mobilizing her armies.
Yet in the face of Austria's and Ger
many's repeated rebuffs, France, Ger
many and Russia continued to plead
for peace, for delay of any overt act,
but Germany as deceitfully quibbled
then as now she is doing in the matter
of her assassinatlons of our own citi-
zens.
With equal eloquence and force the
author asks "Was ever the peace of
The world shattered upon so slight a
preteXt? A little time, few days,
even few hours, might have sufficed
to preserve the world from present hor-
rors, but no time was granted A snap
judgment was to be taken by these
pettifogging diplomats. The peace of
the world was to be torpedoed by sub
marine diplomacy"
But even after all this, England.
France and Russia made repeated eff
forts to hold back this impending Kai-
ser-lich deluge of blood, pleading still for
conferences, exchanges of views ETC.,
but Germany refused because she
wanted war, and therefore threw every
possible obstacle in the way of peace
full solution of the really trifing affair
of private murder-an offence infn-
itely more petty than Germany's s official
slaughter on three separate occasions
of 119 Americans and her defiant iusti-
tication of those atrocious acts
In his Chapter on "Peace Parleys"
Mr.. Beck ends with these condemning
words: 1T will be noted that every
proposal to preserve peace had come
from the Triple Entente, and that every
such proposal had been met with an
uncompromising negative from Austria
and either that or obstructive bubbles
from Germany"
Mr.. Beck lays bare the diplomatic
jugglery of Germany and Austria
which hoodwinked their people with
garbled or suppressed facts, or down.
right lies.
He shows that Austria after Servia
had agreed to every insulting demand
sent the unjust ultimatum she knew
Servia must reject, the one that would
result in war; he shows how Ger
many's lying policy deceived the other
Powers and even her own ally, Italy
pictures Germany plotting to bring on
the war at a time when she knew no
other nation, save Belgium was ready;
shows the "petty fnesse with which
the chancellories of Berlin and Vienna
attempted to take a snap Judgment
upon the rest of Europe" their minis
ters purposely going away at that criti
cal time in order to balk all efforts at
peace, even the Kaiser making a pre-
tended visit to Norway "Thus in Berlin
| and Vienna by concerted action the re-
presentatives of England, France and
Russia were evaded until Servia's ulti-
matum had EXPIRED!
At the eleventh hour Austria had
agreed to peace overtures, and the pro-
posals were hopefully under way, when
the Kaiser deliberately broke them off.
In one of the many superb figures that
ornament his invincible argument, the
author says: Like Brennus with his
toe rictis the Kaiser threw his sword into
the trembling scales and defiantly turned
the balance against the peace of the
nations -precipitated the war by an
arrogant ultimatum which Russia could
not accept without fatal sacrifice to
her national honor.
Mr.. Beck's keen analysis of 1.-THE
Kaiser's character forms a vignette
picture worthy of Macaulay. He pitt
lessly exposes the hypocracy of the
Kaiser's pretended role of mediator"
wherein he cunningly tries to throw
upon Russia the blame for the awful
war he was doing his best to bring on
"This much is certain that the Kaiser.
with full knowledge that Austria had
consented to renew its conferences with
Russia, and that a ray of light had
broken through the lowering war clouds,
either on his own initiative, or Welding
| to the impOrtunities of his war cap,a-