The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-08-09
HUGHES OR WILSON
 GIVES BIG PROBLEM
 TO GERMAN EDITORS

Many of the leaing newspapers of Germany and Austria are printing prominent editorials and news articles warning their readers not to be too confident that the election of MT Hughes as President will mean a change of policy in favor of Germany on the part of this government. One of the leading German papers la ments that MT. Hughes is distress lngly like the University professor J and Die Zeit of Vienna says that since Roosevelt came out for Hughes "en- thusiasm has distinctly cooled down among the German-Americans, Ger mans and Austrians.' so far as MT Hughes is concerned.
 As .oisoosed to this view George won 6kal,, former managing editor of the . New Yorker Statts-Zeitung, in an arr kicle in the Madgeburg Zeitung Is en- thusiastic in praise of the Republican candidate. and makes prediction that I Secretary of State Lansing is to be aeposed and made "the scapegoat for President Wilson's misdemeanors." The translations from German and ' Austrian newspapers referred to are official. They were made for the British Intelligence Office in London Rnd arrived here yesterday in the mails. In the same mail came a copy of an intercepted letter written to a German official in Berlin by one of file best known German scholars in tle United States, in which the W@rfter informed the Berlin official t(at "once the role of world arbitra- st{r' has engrossed his, (President Will s%n's) attention, he will bend all of ' hXa efforts in that direction regardless o} minor issues"
 The Intercepted Letter.
 In this intercepted letter the writer r4fers to a prominent German-Ameri- cAn, whose name in the translation is .speiled s'Kolbli.. The person referred sto is undoubtedly Alphonse K. Koel- ble, president of the United German 4 Societies of New York. The letter as ,ficially translated in London reads s follows: R
 Cambridge, Mass, May 12-I
 take the liberty of sending your
 excellency some notes as to the
 conditions behind the scenes of the American drama. Everything depends upon just appreciation 1t of the real factors at work, and 1t
 cannot be denied that during the
 last six weeks the German-Amer-
 lean cause has suffered most
 unexpected slump" have made confidential inquiries in all the
 larger cities, and am astonished aFI f1o tx~1f of Arfo
 which show that Commandment cans of all classes are suddenly $ endeavoring to accentuate their
 American tendencies while avoid Ing anything which might be con-
 1trued as t'unneutrar' or favoring Germany. This is even the case
 in the cities of the Middle West.
 The patriotic wave has swept all
 the weaker clements along with
 1t and even the so-called leaders
 Of the German-American party as e g.. the president of the National
 Union in New York, Kolbi. CD and many. others are beginning to
 draw away from the German in
 the land. They are against war
 with Germany, but in Americas
 not Germans, interest Outwardly
 this attitude is not marked, as the
 German-speaking periodicals rep- resent thes mall circles and fac-
 ttons only, and they have less, sup
 port today than even two months
 ago,
 On the other hand, the, action of the British in Ireland has un-
 doubtedly aided the German
 cause. Circles, which . few
 weeks ago were enthusiastically
 pro-British are now against Eng
 land. Only the New Englanders
 stand firm, and here in Boston < the case knows no limits. As
 far as the country is concerned,
 however it is a fact that Ger
 nnany's sure and yet tolerant poll icy has prevailed in spite of Wash ihgton. It is impossible to say
 how this affects the peace ques-
 ton as opinion is so divided in
 the matter. Progress of Pacffists.
 My impression is that the Ger
 man official world here overesti-
 mated Wilson's desires herein.
 for he saw very plainly that ef- i. forts in this direction could only
 do harm in Influential circles.
 He knew that he could only ig- j nore this if perfectly sure of suc-
 cess in Europe. As a matter of fact, Wilson's advisers were un-
 certain whether his election
 chances would improve or di-
 minish according to his attitude
 toward peace. During the last
 fortnight. however, in conse-
 quence of Mexico, Ireland and the
 submarine question, the pacifiists
 have come out stronger. than ever. They are even supported by third, and new, party-Lo-
 gam Ford d-McLellan--so that Will
 sons prospective role as peace
 maker is more plausible than
 ever. It is a fortunate circum-
 stance that Root is his opponent
 in this matter. as opposition can
 only strengthen Wilson's decis- ion as soon as his zeal is awaken ! ed.
 From my personal knowledge
 of the man I am convinced that
 the widespread fear as to Will
 son's marked pro-British tenden-
 cies is quite unfounded, especial
 ly in so far as his peacemaking
 ideas are concerned. Up to the
 present he has been mere party
 man, but once the role of world
 arbitrator" has engrossed his at-
 tention, he will bend all his eff
 forts in that direction regardless
 of minor issues. He will re-
 main strictly neutral for aesthet- 1. ic. rather than for moral or po-