The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1917-02-12
Germans Want Peace.

Copenhagen, Via London. Feb. Ii
Little hope or expectation prevails In
Berlin that war with the United States
Is avoidable or that moaus vivendi
reconciling the policies of the two gov
ernments can no found.
There now H. a desire on the part OF
the authorities and q vast bulk of the
people to avoid actual hostilities in
any way consistent with thc' general
lines of the present submarine policy,
but only in such n way. Accordingly.
instructions were given, so tho AS
sociated Press has been reliably In
formed, to submarine commanders
before they started on their February
mission 10 take the safe side. when
ever neutral vessels. particularly
American. were in question Enemy
| merchantmen. when recognized as
such. Were ordered 10 be sunk al sight,
but neutral merchantmen wer, to be
warned when such action. in their
Judgment, was consistent with the OBJ
| lcct of the campaign and the safety
| or their own ships.
|
II was realized however, after the
prompt and roHolutc stand taken by
Presidents Wilson, that these orders
| could only he palliative and only de-
| fer not void. an ultimate break. Also,
! that If President Wilson stood hy his
| announcement that the desr,Cion OF
| American lives or ships would be re-
Gardcd as an act of hostility. Il casus
b"lli must come sooner or later proh-
ably sooner on account of the number
or Americans on enemy ships. More
| over, there was the discretionary ma
| ture of the instructions to submarine
commanders, who were informed that
while the careful course towards neu-
trails was recommended and desired,
thcy would no longer be subjected to
punishment for departing from their
former procedure of warning, If they
found this advisable.
| II Is considered that the only pos
sibility of the. avoidance of hostilities
would result from a modification of
its standpoint by one or the other side,
and so far as could be Judged from
the positive declarations of DR.. Alfred
Zimmerman. the German minister of
foreign affairs, ana other officials be-
fore the Associated Press correspond
cnts departure from Berlin, there was
no probability that Germany would
give way this time or abandon the
ruthless campaign now started.
From a neutral cable office it now
Is possible to tell the story OF the de-
velopment of the present crisis on
which the most rigid censorship has
been applied in Germany.
How Crisis Came.
To the observer in Berlin the ap-
proach of the crisis had been plainly
and definitely evident since the re-
lection of Germany's peace overtures.
Information as to Germany's definite
decision to start a sharpened subma-
rine warfare and even in the form II
would take. namely. n blockade of
specified regions (though the idea OF a
prohibited zone was later substituted
for that OF a BLOCKADE" at tho re :,
quest of the naval authorities, who an
ticipated possible formal objections
under the blockade regulationsp was
received by the Associated Press al
most on the morrow of Ambassador
Gerard's speech on German American
good relations. delivered at the par-
nuet OF the American association of
commerce and trade, early in January.
n week later it was stated that n
full decision on the situation had been
reached and that the campaign would
not be launched until after further
consultations with Germany's allies
and the receipt OF certain information
from Count Won Bernstorff and Count
Tarnowski Won Tarnow. respectively
!German and Austro- Hungarian am
bassadors to the United States, Of
; their concept Of armed merchantmen