The Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1912-1917, 1916-09-27
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

For the second time since the be-
ginning of the war the government of
Austria-Hungary has found it neces-
Sary to step in and contiScate the rub
Der supply. In announcing its step the
government declares that the army is
still plentifully supplied with auto
mobile tires and the like, but declares
| there exists a need for synthetic or
'regenerated" rubber that can be filed
only in this way. In consequence all
owners or prospective owners of solid
tires, outer tires or inner tubes, re-
CARELESS of their condition, must con-
tribute. Bicycles are almost the only
things exempted. Automobile and car
rlage owners are hardest hit. Vienna
and the larger cities of Austria still
have more plentiful supply of cars
than Germany, but these and the two
horse cabs equipped with pneumatic
tires, it is expected, will go. The per-
son who attempts to circumvent the
new regulation may be punished with
six months Imprisonment or fined 49,
600 krOnen if he fails to turn in every
bit of rubber tire material he possesses
on the day allotted. The first rubber
contlScatiOn was in November of last
year, and was more successful than
expected. SO much rubber was diScov-
cred that the military storehouses were
filled, and it was possible to turn back
some of the tires to private individuals.
The membership of the socialist la
Dor union of Berlin has been reduced
more than one-half as Il result of
the war. On January /, 1914, there
were 301 ,9S6 members, and the num-
Der had fallen to 144,259 on January
l, 1916, Il decline Of 81 per cent. For
the six months since elapsed figures
are not available, but it is probable
that further calls to the colOrS have
left not more than 40 per cent of the
members at home. The membership
totals given include, however, q large
number of female members, so that
the decrease of man members was con-
siderably greater than the percentages
indicate. The number of unemployed
has declined steadily. Money support
had been granted on January 1, 1915,
to 1884, but this total had dropped
on January l, 1916, to 2,457. The
greatest decreases in unemployment
were in the case of book printers,
WOOdWorkerS and metal workers. The
influence of the war on the unions
treasury is shown by the fact that
while there was a decrease of nearly
5,25O,00O marks in receipts, the treas
ury balance increased some 100000
marks in 1915 over 1914. This was, of
course, due to the reduced calls made
on the treasury.
The thousands of civilians informed
in Germany and England may be re-
leased and the difficult problem of con-
centration camps solved altogether if
a plan now under consideration is
adopted. The idea is to exchange ell
civilians on parole not to serve during
the war. For some time the German
and British authorities through the il
fermentation of American ambassador
at Berlin James w. Gerard, have
been working on a proposal to ex-
change all interned civilians above the
military age, forty-fve. 1t was recog
nized that this was only a halfway
measure as there are interned thou
sands of civilians below that age whom
neither government wishes to retain
and support at great expense, although
neither is willing to release them as
+I
While negotiations in regard to ex-
change Of the older men were hanging
fire it was discovered that German au-
thOritieS were willing to take into con-
sderation a proposal for a general ex-
change under parole. Great Britain's
attitude thus far has not been made
known, but it is felt that the simple
ity and completeness of the solution
may appeal to the British as it has to
the Germans.
Rotten eggs were thrown at the dead
bodies of the German airmen who lost
their lives when their Zeppelin caught
fire and fell to the ground in London.
Very many young people in Turkey
and Bulgaria have gone to Germany
to study. 1t seems likely that what
ever the final result of the war may
be, German culture will be a power in
the Balkans.
The allies are fond Of calling the
Germans Huns. But meanwhile they
carefully watch the Germans in order
to COPY their methods, from the use of
bread-cards to the building of airships
and submarines.
Through United States Ambassador
Frederic CORTLAND Penfeld young
Englishwoman named Ida Blackmore
has received a full pardon from EN-
peror Franz Joseph, after she had been
found guilty of uttering incendiary pro-
on the estate of Prince Hohenlohe and
was sentenced to eight months i'm
prisonment for having exclaimed that
1.-The Germans must be crushed !" Am
bassador Penfield was appealed to be-
cause he represents British interests
here during the war, and he put the
case up to the emperor.
Having failed to recruit the staff of
the DrODOSod Flemish university at