The Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1912-1917, 1916-02-08
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 discussion of the budget in the
Prussian diet gave rise to disorderly
scenes, owing to Interruptions by DIR.
Karl Liebknecht and other Socialists,
and to conflicting opinions expressed
by members of different parties on
the question of reform of the electoral
law. Herr Hirsch, Socialist, in the
course of his speech, said: I'VE de-
mand the establishment of the COM
plete independence Of Belgium. If the
enemy governments are not yet ready
to listen to demands for peace their
attitude is in marked contrast to the
feeling expressed among the different
peoples who everywhere are demand
ing peace. We demand electoral re-
form on behalf of women and above
all secrecy of the ballot
The debate at the closing session Of
the German reichstag was notable for
the extreme outspoken criticism OF
the censorship, especially as it is ap-
piled to the socialist newspapers, as
we'll as to general news concerning
the war situation. I'VE can bear the
fresh breath of criticism, said Doctor
Stresemann, national liberal. THAT
things are not going well with us and
that England's blockade is effective is
known abroad so exactly that it is
needless to hide anything. The gov
eminent ought to send broadcast the
news, not in highly colored phrases,
that everything is going WELL but that
much is going i'll and that, therefore,
it is our duty to assume every burden
created by the situation"
Said Major General Turner Of the
British army: Let us call spade a
spade, and the kaiser a bloodthirsty
maniac, for if he is not that he is
something even worse. Atrocities
have been committed in all wars, but
in no war between civilized countries
have atrocities so bad been committed
as have been committed by the Ger
mans But the strongest point against
the German emperor in connection
with these atrocities is that they were
committed as part and parcel Of a
definite policy countenanced by him
and carried out with his authority by
bis officers and soldiers" Even some
Englishmen think this language is a
little too ardent.
Since the days OF Barbarossa, who
on crusade to the Holy Land passed
in review more than 100000 German
knights in Belgrade, no German en-
peror set foot in Belgrade's citadel I'M
til the German emperor arrived there
one day recently. The weather was
splendid and his majesty was greeted
by an Austro-Hungarian company of
honor and by the strains of military
music and the booming of cannon.
The emperor inspected the new rail-
road bridge passed in review the Ger
man troops and delivered iron crosses
to the men.
During a recent debate IN the Hun
garian landtag it was officially stated
| that from the beginning Of the war to
the first of November, 1915, 373 Ger
man doctors were wounded, SO killed
On battlefelds, TOT died from infec-
tious diseases and 215 were taken
prisoners. Among Austrian medical
officers, the wounded numbered only
315, but 971 died of infectious dis
| eases, 101 were killed while rendering
medical assistance on the firing line
and 331 were taken prisoners. The
| great number of casualties from in
| fictitious disease is due to the epidem-
| les of cholera and spotted typhus.
The oldest Austrian soldier is Jo-
seph Jabacher, Tyrolean farmer. He
recently celebrated his eighty-fifth
birthday in trench near ROvereto
| When Italy entered the war he offered
| himself as volunteer. He declared
| that he had fought against the Italians
| in 1859 and 1866 and could do so
again He was rejected on account
Of his age and returned to his village
| in the Puster valley, heartbroken. In
| July, when new call for troops was
| issued, he travelled to Innsbruck again
to present himself for enrolment
Four alleged German prisoners Of
war, who escaped from a detention
camp at Amherst, n. S., and were de-
| tanned at Calais, Me, after crossing the
border, were formally admitted to the
| United States a few days later. A
| board Of special inquiry decided they
were able to fulfill the immigration re-
| quirements. The men gave their
| names as Gustav HartWig, William
| Schroeder, George Kleinworth and
Hans Neu.
Before Christmas German society
made inquiries at the different fronts
| to ascertain what gifts would be most
| desired by the soldiers in the field
| The surprising result was that thou
sands of the fighters wanted pocket
book Many of the soldiers have lost
| the purses which they took along
when they went to war and those of
| others have gone to pieces. Their
need has now been supplied, because
| the mail carried hundreds of thou
| sands of new pocketbooks to the
trenches and most of them were not
empty.