The Washington herald., 1916-03-13
King Albert Used kaiser's
Peace Offer to Commit Allies
With This Threat He Won Fresh and More Extensive Guar
antees that Country Would Be Reimbursed for
All Damage Incident to War.

counterbalanced," my Informant pointed
out, by the moral blow to the entente
OF the detection of Belgium, for whom
Britain claims to be fighting Such a
sensational turn of events, II we had &C
cepted the offer. would appear to the
German people in the light OF a success.
especially II the Germans won a decision
in the East soon after the withdrawal.
The Germans calculated. perhaps rightly,
that the moral pressure of the whole
world would prevent France and Britain
from refusing US the right to take back
our country without having 1t torn to
pieces by the fighting that must come
| II the Germans are to be driven out"
Conferences Held in Flanders.
The gist of the suggestions" conveyed
| by the nuncio were at once conveyed by
NJ. de Broqueville the Belgian premier,
70 the British and French foreign offices.
Great activity followed in London and
Paris, and. on February s, Lord Curzon
left London to discuss the situation with
King Albert, the Belgian premier, Gen.
Joffre. and Sir Douglas Haig. This con-
! ference took place not at the provisional
capital here, but at the Belgian military
headquarters, a little town among the
dunes of Flanders. Lord CurZon was
chosen for the mission because he Is an
old friend of the king, and Alberts two
little girls have been conf1ded to Lord
/ Curzon's care in England.
What happened at this momentous
meeting cannot be learned. but from the
presence Of the British and French COM
manders-in-chief as well as Lord Cur
zon, the king, and a representative OF
| the French government, 1t may be in
| ferred that the military as well as po-
litical features of the proposed arrange
| Ill tu
understood in diplomatic circles in Paris
that the allied ENJOYS tried to get the
king to sign the pact of London pledging
Belgium not to make a separate peace,
| but that this was refused.
The Belgian attitude on this point is
that to join the allies would commit
Belgium to the entente, even after the
war. and justify Germany in regarding
| Belgium as an enemy. Belgium desires
only to be Unidentified and let alone, and
Is fighting only for her neutrality. The
peace congress, her king hopes, will set
| tie forever her status an inviolable
neutral committed to neither European
| alliance.
Ample Guarantees Given.
| The result of the conference in the last
| corner of Belgium remaining to the king
| and of negotiations which lasted a week
| longer between the allied powers, was
| the publication of a denial by the Bel
| gian government that Germany had Of
| fered peace, and the announcement by
the allies of a new pledge to Belgium
| This goes much further than any prev
| ious assurances. and the concluding para
graph is of great Importance. 1t reads:
THE allied and guaranteeing powers
| declare that, when the moment comes,
| the Belgian government will be called
| upon to take part in the peace negotia-
| lions. and that they will not end hos
| tilities until Belgium has been restored
to her political and economic indepen-
dence, and literally Unidentified for the
damage she has sustained. They will
lend their aid to Belgium to insure her
commercial and financial recovery"
| This pledge comes from Japan and
Italy, as well as the powers which
| guaranteed in 1899 the neutrality OF Bel
| GUM; it admits Belgium to the peace
| congress; it pledges an indemnity re-
| gardless of whether one can be collected
| from Germany, and also help to set the
| country on its commercial feet
| There seems very good reason to be-
| lieve, though, 1 have no direct authority
| for saying so, that this pledge was Sc
cured by King Albert on the strength
! of the offer which he tricked the Ger
| mans into making him by the changes
| in his government and the attitude OF
| the Belgium socialist leaders. If this
be true, little Belgium has won a diplo-
| matte victory over the Kaiser of no small
J IMPORTANCE