Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1916-05-16
WILL NOT GET
| TANGLED Up IN
THE BIG WAR
Not Expected Denmark, Norway
or Sweden Will Get Into
the Great Struggle.
THEIR POSITION HAS
ALWAYS BEEN DELICATE

Copenhagen, Denmark, May ia
though no official statement has bee
made as to the detailed deliberation
of the conference of Scandinavian prt
miers and foreign ministers recent
held here, the meeting itself seem
to have wrought noticeable feelin:
of relief in the three neutral nations
OF the North and there is withou
doubt just a little more confidence
that these countries will be able t.
fight their way through the difficulties
of the war without being drawn into
the hostilities.
The position OF the Scandinavian
cOuntries-Denmark, Norway and
Sweden-has been more or less a
delicate one ever since the war began
With each day that the fighting con
tinues the problems OF commerce and
diplomacy multiply. But despite pres.
sure Of every sort, first from one bel
Iigerent and then another, the north
crn states have MANAGED to maintain
a neutrality of which they are proud
and which they believe the non-com.
Eatant world fully appreciates.
Some Tough Problems.
| For more than a year each of the
three countries had been dealing in
dividually with the problems of war.
There had been no thorough exchange
Of views since the gathering of the
Scandinavian kings at Malmo in De-
cember 1914, when the neutrality of
.reasiness, attributable to lack of
cc"nsel, when King Gustave o. SWed:
e.: suggested TIE conference held here
a few weeks ago.
The tangible result of this three
days sitting of the higher Cabinet
officers of Scandinavia, was new
| declaration to the world of continu-
ed neutrality, 'loyal and impartial"
on the part Of the three peoples,
| agreed in concert of opinion" This
| conference, with its free discussion
| of policies and interests, and it's re-
| newed expression of northern agree
ment, was deemed especially desir-
! able at this time in view of the COM
! ing activities of spring and summer.
Officials OF the three governments
feel that difficult and complex as has
been the situation in the past, they
have h. e: yet IT.. to deal with ths real crisis
1t is realized here That before peace
Ilpossibly can bring ah End to hospili-
ties, the situation on one side Tor the
other must be far more desperate than
it is tody. In the extremities of this
inevitable desperation the Scandinav-
ian people are asking If acts far more
ruthless than any heretofore attempt
ed will not be committed against neu-
trails in a wild attempt to stay the
impending crash of defeat,
Wrong Reports.
Every SO often there spreads over
Scandinavia the report that Germany
intends eventually to seize" Den.
mark. OF course these reports sell
dom get beyond word of mOuth-trav-
elers returning from Germany assure
their friends they heard the news
from reliable sources-and conse-
| quently they do not call for official
or other denials. The plausible eX-
cuse given for such contemplated &C
ton by Germany is desire to con-
troll absolutely the deep-water ent.
rance to the Baltic and to gain pos
session of the precious Danish butter,
eggs and bacon so much needed in
Germany and shipped now in such
! great quantities to Great Britain.
| On the other hand there comes
just as often, from Sweden or Nor
way, the report that England, with
PROLONGED stress of war, would
eventually shut off all supplies from
one sure method of stopping leaks
10 Germany and Austria. England has
trade agreements with Norway and
Denmark, however, which seem to be
working An a satisfactory manner.
. An effort was made some time ago
10 negotiate such an agreement with
: Sweden, but the Swedish government
thought the proposition from Great
Britain "too one-sided." Sweden felt
that she had particular claims fol
consideration from England inasmuch
as Sweden constitutes the great high
way to Russia in wartime. England
and Sweden now deal with each other
On an informal and not officially rec
| OkulLcu give anu tdhO Ud6Ao' ~ t/AS
: land allows certain amount OF i'm
: rorts into Sweden, Sweden allows
the passage of an equal amount o.
goods from England to Russia.
Reports Worthless.
The wholly unauthenticated rumors
as to the sinister intentions OF the
opposing belligerents are. set aside Of
course as worthless. They would be
completely dismissed if it were no,
! for the ever increasing fear that there
may be two or three years more OF
| fighting. The complications that
these years would bring about, the
| effect of the long drawn out struggle
upon the belligerents and the con
slant Entertainments upon neutral
rights are looked forward to with
anything but quietude. This idea was
expressed here during the conference
, by Gunnar Knudsen, the Norwegian
prime minister when he said:
j ut would be useless for us to blind
ourselves to the fact that the outlook
! for the neutral states grows darker
and darker with every day that pass.
es. We, in Scandinavia, hope to con
tinue to play the part Of Onlookers.
i We cannot overlook the fact, however
that the British blockade is becoming
Il moro and moro ~ hfndranCe to