Bisbee daily review., 1916-12-20
SEES
 PEACE OPENING
Continued From Page One)
 Germans Pleased

German embassy officials were op-
 timistic because the British premier
 did not fiatly refuse to enter into a ] discussion. At the same time they ! deprecated the suggestion that def
 nite peace terms might be set forth
 in formal notes. The German view
 as reflected here is that nothing can
 be achieved by a public discussion of
 terms. for the reason that each set of belligerents is bound to ask more than
 it actually expects to receive
 May State Terms
 The German view is that it is not improbable that Germany may, should
 Great Britain ask it, be willing to
 make some preliminary statement of
 principle regarding the only barrier to
 the entente agreeing to send represen- tatives to conference.
 On the other hand great emphasis
 is placed upon the statement that if
 the entente should refuse confer ence Germany and her allies would re-
 gard i' as a refusal to talk of peace.
 Germany, it is said here, will Onswer any note Great Britain and her allies send, providing, of course, the com munication does not fiatly reject the teutOnic proposal to enter into nego. tiations. No secret was made of the fact that Germany will use every means known to diplomacy in her ef- fort to bring about a conference.
 Lloyd-George's declaration that to :.accpt the German proposals as con- tained in the note transmitted through the United States was to put our heads in a moose" was met in German quarters, by the statement that no set of belligerents would in any way en- danger itself by appearing at a con. ference to enter into direct negotia- tions. It was added that if the entente representatives did not like develop ments they could withdraw immediate ly, representatives of the central pow CTS reserving the same right.
 Regarding guarantees the entente will require for the future and the general subject of reparation, German diplomats were sure their government would at least be willing ro enter a discussion. Germany holds to the view that if one set of belligerents brings up the subject of reparation, the other may with propriety do so, and she would have claims from the armies in Poland. and East Prussia which have suffered from the armies of the entente. However. Germany is represented as perfectly willing to dis cuss in a conference any and all sub jects relating to reparation and it was pointed out that it was cheaper for any belligerents to make reparation than to continue the war at least until next fall when, it already has been an Germany again will offer to enter peace negotiations. should the express efforts fail
 The reiteration in LlOyd-George's speech of Bethmann-Hollweg's demand for guarantees for peace that should be permanent centered attention against what each party considers lhlsnl insure Such guarantees. Partial universal diarmament has been men toned at the German embassy here in dispatches from Berlin, while Lloyd George today hinted at the substitution of popular for secret diplomacy.
 The allies emphasis on reparation is regarded by American officials as one of the stumbling blocks in the negotiations at present, for it feared that Germany is in no mood to do more than abandon some of her mill tary con1uests. No clear statement has been made as to what is meant by but it is assumed that with Inc allies it looks forward to the re- storation of the devastated parts of France. Belgium. Poland and Serbia.
 The subject of guarantees for the mture is regarded by German officials here as being so instricaet as being of solution without lengthy consideration.
 Guarantees for the future and the British premier's remarks regarding Prussian militarism were considered