The Washington times., 1917-07-16
U.S.OFF|CIALS
HOPEFUL But
SKEPTICALON
BERLIN CRISIS
American Legations in Holland
and Scand nayia Warn
Against Too Much Optimism
About HoIIWeg'S Fall.
By DAVID LAWRENCE.

By DAVID LAWRENCE.
tcopyright. 1871. New York Evening Post Co
Skepticism, together with a note
Of warning lest the United States
become oversanguine about the sig
nifcance of the change in chancel-
lors in Germany, comes to Washing
ton from the American legations in
Holland, Denmark, and Switzerland,
countries near enough to the central
empires to get not only the German
newspaper comment, but frst-hand
information from travellers.
The net impression which such in
formation as has reached Washing
ton about the resignation of DR.. Won
Bethmann-Hollweg and the selection
Of DR.. Georg Michaelis makes upon
American officials is one of doubt and
perplexity.
Anxious For Peace.
It is wrong to say that officials
here do net want to see anything en-
eouraging in the happenings in Ber-
lin, because this might conceIvably
mean q slowing-up of war prepare
tions. The average official is Just as
anxious to see the war come to an
end as the average man, but until the
characterization of Germany" as
Lloyd George calls 1t, is a welI-sub-
stantiated fact, the inclination Of the
persons responsible for the effective
prosecutIon m tbe ~ Is - - 90
wsrd MIR undt1,I,t"LaS
Th. r..I g., - -...
ou-, oIsci.is a. 80 ma UIr
sno,,,b - -. S,ss apSOIe
peninRs in Germanv hecsuss tbsv
are unacquainted at this distance
with the political lines and divisions
in Germany itself.
P,-. c.,.-.,,-....
e. -,
0S hearu tneretore
are purely generallzations based
upon analogous periods in the poll
tics of other belIiKerent countrie. of
Europe.
England Franco Russia and Italy
each has had its political unbeayai
Cabinets have risen ana fallen Inso-
far as the resignation of DR.. Won
Bethmann-H -HillweR is symptomatic of
unrest or internal dissatisfacuon- II
Is therefore viewed as the beginning
of that process of disinteg-ation
which German bureaucracy must in
evitably suffer from within before
the outside world will feel that the
world has been made safe for democ-
IScy' INSOFAR as the appoiS tment OF
buraa,,eS.,
JnnLhssr ~ ~. - r-toe,s an. m
.ten a. oon.,5nrs5 ~ S,ho1. - '.io
certain 10 pIsoduce fnrther unrast .nd
further change in the nsrtv alI.1
nents in the Reicbstar
Eh.,. =
nhelner the chanse In chancellors
sIen prove 10 nave oeeE
II y uliIiii poI laht ~ the oeNeIOp-
IIiN Va iiiGn az POiiSE' the nap
20 u tite 4aSt rev Gays neNerthe-
- U-SI-, ieaI aspect
% iitt '.tIat .SI. sOn 0Sti'uue S' toward the
.,@a,Sc.n, IT, - u'sLiIIsseu . as IN
HoIi,i.i TL !. NJ news
-, 80 trIcI,I. -. - o. .LLiS
ss,t-.f oo,,.,rS.s - % .,IE.I IN t.l loush
- osaStoI- 50 e'ISt aelion OF
- - T.. ..,L,,.tiS,Ie an lhelr
VIII. ~ .v1-sssTra a, IsS. nc
yords tho IrnnIics,io, - ~. ,es az
80 =, I..t G.-r1a,,,. - Lot'- -
e. r,dsr,t,nd ybo, 81. -, .L
vorId meant bv its indic,r,.r, -,
r,IIItarIsu1 and tunk bssrdor, 80 ~,
nesce was by SO much brougbt n.srer
20 hand
Se DAaPp0ihteo'
And II hopes were raised on Thurs !
day, Friday. and Saturday by the
knowledge that Germany was passing I
through crisis unQuestionably re-
lAung TO the war and its issues, so
was there some disappointment when
press dispatches described DR.. /
Michaelis as being "a typical Prus- |
sian"
No one here knows whether he is |
or not and the mere fact that officials I
are loath to express themselves as
dispirited or depressed by that char
Is an Indication OF their |
hope that the new chancellor may
not live up to his reputation. but will |
be the entering wedge for liberalism. |