New-York tribune., 1916-07-19
The German Appeal.

printed since the war began than the
volume of Colonel Feyler, the military
critic of the journal dc Geneve," in which
is anayzed the German state Of mind-the
official mind. as disclosed in the official
bulletins of the General Staff.
AS the Swiss commentator points out,
there was first the sublime confidence
which rested on the complete faith in the
army. Paris was to be reached in six
weeks. French, Belgian, British armies
were to be destroyed. Sedan and Waterloo
were TO be repeated.
In this tone the first German official re-
ports were framed. The resistance at
iiege was minimized- fall of the town
was announced long in advance of the fact.
Since it finally fell this inaccuracy was Of
no importance Decisive victories over the
French in Champagne, the British at St
Quentin, which never took place, were put
: rth-always based on the supreme conf
dence that the enemy would be defeated
and the details would be insignificant after
the fact
But if the fact cured the fiction in the
case of Liege, no fiction could cure the fact
as to the Battle of the Marne. According
" the German General staff suppressed
the Battle of the Marine. 1t never took
place. so far as the German public are con-
oerned. For ten days the official bulletins
were silent as to the army before Paris"
When the bulletins began again 1t was
on the subject of the new offensive at the
Aisne. after September 10. This in turn
merged itself into the advance to Calais.
Paris was forgotten, the Kaiser went to
Flanders and the advance to the Channel
was the only topic of official statements.
Again supreme confidence produced eX-
travagant forecast. The official bulletins
AGAIN announced as having occurred the
things German generals planned should
happen. But again the fact was different.
Calais did not fall, as Paris had not taller'
The Battles of Flanders were repetlton5
of the Battle of the Marne.
Thereafter Germany turned east. She
began her great drive into Russia. Yet onco
more the official faith led to bad official
forecast. and. what was worse, to the pub
LEGATION as fact of what German soldiers
hoped and expected would happen. Russia
was not only to be put out, but she was
nut out. German official, semi official and
oficious comment ten months ago affirmed
the Russian incident as closed. Petrograd
was asking for peace, because Petrograd
must ask for peace. But instead the Gar
replaced the Grand Duke and Russia DEM
onstrated her purpose, as she has later
demonstrated her power, to carry on"
Once more German public opinion was
modified, this time to the tune OF the
Balkan drive. Belgrade, Sofia, Constan-
tinople. Suez, Cairo-this was the route
of Teutonic conquest. Britain was to be
brought to her knees by attacks upon
Egypt and even upon India. The Egyp-
tian protectorate was described as Brit
aims 'heel of Achilles" as the crumblln%
cornerstone of the British imperial edihce'
Still more delusion. The road to Con-
stantinople was cleared, but after months
Suez is forgotten-there has been no drive
and there will be no drive by German or
ganized Moslems across De Lessepss ditch.
Instead the Russian is advancing from
Erzerum and Trebizond and German troops
il, the Balkans are going home to fight.
So last winter German official news
turned to fresh pastures. Verdun was to
be the end of France. France, exhausted
hetraved by Britain, deserted by Russia
weak in spirit, broken by losses, was to be
eliminated by one rude thrust. More than
this, once the thrust began, the German
press, official, semi-oficial, oficious, re-
sumed the old moral manGuvre. France
was to be destroyed. Germany had wllled
it. Therefore she was.
For the last time the fiction broke with
the fact. France was not exhausted.
Verdun did not fall, and France, still erect,
still determined, faced her ancient foe
with equal confidence and with new hope
born of the most splendid achievement In
her two thousand years of military his
tory.
And now, after two years, we have the
herman OFFICIAL NoTlU, NAS SONNi HHiN''N'
the Great and General Staff appealing to
the German people to trust it. 1t has no
more fctions to propagate. 1t stands on
the defensive on all fronts. On all fronts
its enemies make progress, slight IN the
West, material in the East. There is no
Disgusting the truth it cannot be abol-
ished. Germany is on the defensive.
Go back now over this list Of officially
nourished illusions and it is plain why the
German Government is now almost plain
lively appealing to popular confidence. 1t
promised Paris; it promised Calais; 1t
nromised Russian collapse; 1t promised
Suez and British surrender; 1t promised
verdun and French yielding. Six weeks
70 Paris andShen peace, after short cam
naion against Russia, Peace before snow