The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1917-12-12
GERMAN BUSINESS RUINED.
MI 81 BEGIN ALL OVER AFTER
WAR.
Merchant Marine Destroyed and Col
ONES MISUNDERSTANDING Author
Draws Dread Picture.

ence of the Associated Press, --Sami.
occasionally German voice is raised
III plea or plant Indicating that
there are strata in GERMANY which
appreciate more than others that the
VISION ol DR.. Won Bethmann- Hollweg.
formerly German chancellor, was mar
row when he referred to the war man
as the only thing to be considered in
talking about peace, and that he fall
ed to look beyond the confines of Er-
rope itself
The Lepsic Neueste Nachricbten
Puphshes a resume Of the German sit
uation, written by a Hamburg bust.
ness man. The latter, il is true. uses
his argument in favor OF German
peace" presum. ly of the Fatherland
Party variety, t i'm making it he
writes in a manner not often encoun-
tered in the German press. He sava.
In view of the fact that England
has in the main achieved its war aims
we must not close our eyes. Even our
wonderful military situation in Eu-
rope does not alter this. Our mer.
chant marine, our commerce with the
world have been so thoroughly de.
Stroyed that we must literally begin
from the beginning again, and de-
cades of strenuous work will not suf-
fee to rebuild what has been Destroy
ed in these three years.
1T was not the worst that the Eng
lish during the first months of the
war destroyed our merchant marine
and our entire erade across seas and
possessed themselves largely Of our
colonies. They understood how 10
keep up this condition for three years,
to set more and more enemies upon
us; and during this period, with the
help of their allies, namely the Yam.
KEGS, to put themselves in our place,
actually to take possession of our for
eign trade and to rob us Of every DOS
sibility of reconstruction by the liqui-
dation of thousands of German busi-
ness houses and branches in nearly
all foreign countries.
THE heaviest blow of this kind was
the inducement of China and most Of
the South American countries to take
steps of this nature The German
business man, who after peace is de-
clared goes oat into the world, will.
find ruins everywhere, and if he at.
tempts to rebuild them ne will be
prevented by wall Of enmity. Not
even the return Of the colonies would
help us much for they used to handle
only little part of our world trade.
Let us understand clearly what
our foreign trade spells for our eco
) nomic existence. AS DR.. Helfrerich
recently showed. our foreign trade
would, under normal development
have surpassed that of England for
the first time this year. That spells
for import and export total over
: turn Of about 80, 600, 600. zoo marks. If
one reckons that this includes about
5000, 900 for wages, freights, pro-
) fits on undertakings and other in
Investments, then one sees that this rep
rcscnts a total c. pital of 100 900, 000,.
600 or about one-third of the German
national wealth.
Should Our opponents succeed in
binding our foreign trade permanent
ly so that we should be dependent in
the main OF Central Europe, our in
Gustry should have to shrink and our
entire economic life deaden. Our
working classes would be compelled
to cmigrate because Of lack of oppor-
tunity for work just, just as in the
'70's. The German empire would be
reduced to = second class power, in
short, England would have succeeded
in making OF us what we were before ,
1870 and that which it would galdly
like us to be again.
I'VE should be a European contin.
entail power without Importance at
sea and without any world position
with population devoted principally
to agriculture which could not pos
sibly think Of ever competing Sc
riously with the English world power
or the English trade. Froro this fate
no voluntary agreement Of Eng
lands, no paper understanding. can
protect us. The renowned freedom
OF the seas which England in its pres
ent position probably would gladly
accord us, would be entirely illus
ionary under the existing circum-
stances. and would do us little good"