Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-06-19
N0N M0LTKE DEAD;
ORGANIZED GERMAN
FORCES FOR WAR
Former Chief of Staff
Stricken During Service
for Won der Goltz
QUIT COMMAND IN 1914

AMSTERDAM, June 10. - Lieutenant
General Heimuth Won Moitke, Chief OF
the Supplementary General STAFF Of the
army, died Of apoplexy yesterday during a
service Of mourning in the Reichstag for
the late Field Marshal Won der Goltz, says
= Berlin telegram received last night
Lieutenant General Won Moltke, who
was 90 years old, was a nephew of the
late Field Marshal Won Moltke the great
strategist, who directed the victorious move
ments of the German armies when they
achieved their triumph II. the Franco-Prus-
sian War OF 1s70-71. At the time of his
unole's death. in 1891, he was a major, but
in 1889 he was made a general. three years
later lieutenant general and in 1902 CHIEF
OF the General STAFF, in which last named
once he has been credited with having per-
fscted the splendid organization of the Ger
man army.
During the fail of 1914 announcements of
General Won Moltke's Illness were followed
by reports that he had been superseded as
Chief of the General STAFF. These, however,
proved unfounded, but In December of that
year he retired from the post, his failing
health, It was said, preventing his return
to the front He was succeeded by the
present head Of the General Staff General
Won Falkenhayn. In the January following
he was appointed Chief Of the Supplement
sary General STAFF.
When the Kaiser elevated Won Moltke to
the position of chief of staff many, both in
teh army and in civil life. made harsh
criticism. They said Won Moltke owed his
advance primarily to the Emperor's passion
for the picturesque and his desire to have
the magic name of Moltke at the head OF
the Drains department" of the German
army.
But Won Moltke's critics had their eyes
opened at the first "Kaiser maneuvers" held
before he had been chief of the general
stan for 10 months. The great autumn
campaign had been distinguished by opera
tons that the oft-quoted Marshal of France
would have called magnificent, but not
war" The Kaiser had passion for thrill
ing cavalry charges over bare fields, which
made splendid moving pictures, but which
cost the lives of divisions in real war with
the taunts Of his critics ringing in his ears
that he was Kaiser staff chief" Won
Moltke's first innovation was to obliterate
ruthiessly the picturesque from the
maneuvers. He gave the troops gruelling.
practical operattons-night fighting, forced
marches and all those exercises that have
made the German army formidable.
The previous chief of staff Count
Echlieffen had attempted TO opposce the
Emperor's will and substitute real war"
for the picturesque and had ben finally
forced to leave the General Staff Won
Moltke. with a will of STEEL succeeded where
he had failed, and his growth in the esteem
of the army was rapid thereafter. 1t was
through his insistence that $250,000, 900
was spent on the army during the year be-
fore the war.
At the time Won MoltSe was retired as
chief of the General Staff. the German
newspapers made guarded comments on the
appointment of Won Falkenhayn, and said
that there had been a disagreement between
Won Moltke and the Emperor.