Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-01-07
DUAL GOVERNMENT
PLAN IS PROPOSED
Germany, 1t Is Declared, May
Demand It's Establishment
in Belgium.
VIEWS OF FLEMISH LEADER
DR.. Van Cauwelaert Tells Of In.
terview He Had With
King Albert.

THE HAGUE, January 6.-One OF tho
real guarantees" which rma may
seek III its peace terms is a scheme
Of dual government for Belgium. ac-
cording TO Or. Franz Won Cauwelaert.
mcmher Of the belgian Chamber. and
one Of the leaders of the Fiemish peo-
pie Of Belgium. lie has just returned
sian government at Havre. and has
told the Associated Press correspond-
ent Of an hours interview he had with
KIM Albert.
king Albert he says, follows the
Flemish question with the keenest in
terest. lie feels sincere sympathy with
Flemish rights. and has an earnest
desire that there shall be no language
abuses. and he has no prejudice against
our solution of the problem. Further,
no Fleming has ever expressed or en-
tertained the slightest distrust OF his
sovereign. who Is held by us in the
highest esteem. and is. indeed, very
popular with the entire nation. King
Albert is very conscientious, and
cherishcs a high idea Of the great
charge intrusted TO him with the
crown. lie takes = calm. well-con-
~ ~" VI boiitiNS III III ~ dlUl
is opposed TO everything in the nature
of an adventurous policy. That he ever
went to war was for him "A pure mat
ter of conscience and duty"
DR.. van Cauwelaert added that he
found King Albert enjoying good
health and in excellent spirits. Dis
GUESSING the German attitude toward
the Flemish movement, he said:
Administrative separation is one OF
the pet schemes Of the German oc-
cupants of Belgium at the moment.
IL is, indeed. one of the real guaran-
tees which, according to the Imperial
Chancellor. Germany will demand re-
speeding Belgium in it's peace terms.
! am sure that the m at first
fully intended 10 stick to BelEium:
they never would have thought of re-
storing her to independence but for
hard necessity. Regarding that as now
out OF the question:. however, the
would like to make Belgium weak by
this scheme of dual government, 'by
creating an internal antithesis, two
separate and conflicting parts neutral
izins one anothcr's strength. They
think. for instance. that IL the French
speaking half were inclined to loan
towards France, that very fact would
tend TO make the Flemish half lean to.
wards Germany.
EDUCATION DEPARTMENT.
DIVIDED INTO TWO SECTIONS
The Germans in Belgium are en-
deavoring TO Introduce such admins
trativc separation rs far as lies in their
power. The education department has
been split Into two sections, to deal
respectively with Walloon and Flemish
Belgium. with a separate set of off,
cials. Such n measure was by no means
II necessary accompaniment to the eX-
tension of the use of m I'm the
schools. but II fits in with the German
plan. The Ministry for the Interior
has not yet undergone a similar pro-
cess. but orders have been issued that
shall be the administrative
language III the regions concerned, and
Quoted in Flemish
a small Flemish group. ironically
dubbed the Flamallcmands,' Is Coop
Grating with the Germans in these
schemes. but the slight success of the
Flemish university recently established
by Governor-Gcncral Won Kissing at
Client shows how feeble it is. Every
art of cajolery. enticement and com.
pulsion were. for months, brought to
bear III Belgium. Holland and Germany
TO get together the required staff of
professors. The net result is u body Of
forty-SiN professors. more than half
Of whom have no qualifications en-
titlins them to seriously claim such n
title, and the rest are very mediocre
men. The faculty of law. for instance.
IS pitiful. The institution does not
merit the name Of university. Where
AS, ii should normally have had 500
to 900 students. | learn from a good
- n SEQ, ,Jn So. Lass. ,1,, q ,,,J-a -
studying there"
Or. van Cauweiaert discussed what
the Flemish people really want. He
said:
w want the complete development
OF all the possibilities of our people,
economically, intellectually and in every
respect, and that is not attainable
without the establishment OF full lam
guage communion between the higher
and the lower strata of the nation.
To that end our great aim is that
not only elementary education, rs now,
but every sort of higher education,
shall he available through the medium
Of Flemish. Further, we want a.bet-
~tcr-cquipped Flemish press. IL more ex-
tensive literature. Flemishizing the
public administration in Flanders. and
4 general Improvement of the social
conditions OF the people, ,a
VARIOUS POLITICAL
SCHEMES ADVOCATED
Discussing the various political
schemes advocated BY different groups
Of FieninGs during the war. DIR. van
Cauwelaert pointed out that the ex-
IRENE section, which stood for Il prac-
ticaliy independent state, really had
no basis Of existence, and was now
hardly Il factor, 1T proposed n Fla,
menland" with a Parliament and gov
OF its own. bound to tho rest
OF Belgium only by the crown, after
the pattern Of Austria-H Hungary. Ans
other group favors what is called d
ministrative separation OF the Flemfsh
and the Walloon or French-speakipx
parts OF Belgium. but 1t has only oh
taiued any significance since the ont 1