Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1917-07-24
'sUPERMAN OF
GERMANY TODAY
RISE OF LuoENpoRFF, PRAcTl-
cALLv NOW DICTATOR OF
FATHERLANp.
POWER BEHIND THRONE
THRuouT GREAT EMPIRE
Facts Marshaled by Bal
timore Newspaper Writer 20 En-
tighten Folks on One "Worth Ten
MISUNDERSTANDING Popular, But
Ludendorff's Word Acted on.

The recent turn of affairs in Ger
many is bringing to the attention OF
the world the name of Ludendorff.
Up to the present the world has been
hearing mostly the name of linden
burg. In Germany, also, Hindenburs
has been the name mostly in the
mouths Of the people generally, but
among the well informed and the in
ner circles there the name Ludendorf1
has been regarded as the one of great
est Importance. Hindenburg has been
the populor idol, but Ludendorffs has
been the name that has won instant
and complete respect among military
officers, and he has risen to a power
in civil affairs entirely out of the
field of Hindenburg. and has been
talked of as the possible open dictator
of Germany.
In the Atlantic Monthly for June, II.
L. Mencken. an American, who went
as newspaper correspondent to Ger
many, pointed out the significance OF
the awful name of Ludendorff among
the knowing persons in Germany.
Mencken had not been long in Ger
many when. on the LIST of February OF
this year, the announcement of the
policy of ruthless submarine warfare
stirred deeply the American corre-
an unusually large gathering in tne
Hotel Adlon and loosened their tong
ues to an unusual interchange of in
IL. - S.r.kA
ordinary circumstances they were In
clined to keep to themselves.
"Ludendorff Worth Ten kaisers.' /.
The jig was up. the correspondents
declared. There would be no backing
down now, Wilson or no Wilson. The
military party had triumphed over the
moderates. But what chance did they
have in the face of Hindenburg-aild
Ludendorff ." Mencken quotes the
general trend of comment as running
"Ludendorf is worth six Bethmann-
Hollwegs, or ten kaisers or forty
Kaiser karls (of Austria). Once his
mind is made Np, he gets into bust
ness at once. Htndenburg IS the idol
OF the populace. but Luiendorf has
the brains. Hindenburg is an old man,
and a professional soldier by nature
and Junker to boot-he despises pol
ittcs and diplomacy and all that sort
OF thing. AL he asks for is an army
and an enemy. But Ludendorff has
what you may call capacious mind.
He has imagination. He grasps inner
signifcances He can see around cor
ners. Moreover. he enjoys planning,
plotting, figuring things out Yet more.
he is free of romance. Have YOU ever
heard OF him sobbing about the faith
eriand? Or letting off pious platitudes,
like Hindenburg2 OF course, you
haven't. He plays the game for its
own sake-and he plays it damnably
well. Ludendorff is the neglected fac
tor Of this war-the forgotten great
man. The world hears nothing about
ear II he thinks Germany can get
away with this U-boat war. and he IN
doubtedly doest-well. don't put me
down for any bets against It,"
Such was the kind of talk heard Feb.
/. 'All that day and the next con-
tinues Mencken, the name Of Luden-
dorff kept bo5bing up. And the next,
and the next, and the next. thinner
mann and Gerard were the leading ac-
tors in the weeks comedy. Apparently
unaided they fought the memorable
battle of Wflheimstrasse, but behind
these scenes there was always Luden-
dorff. and now and then his nand
would steal out thru rent in the
backdrop, and the traffic OF the stage
would be jerked into some new pos
ture."
Known TO the inner Circle.
ITO the populace, Of course, linden
burg remains the national hero ana
Deau ideal; now a!Hsos. the national
Messiah continued Mencken in the
article published two months ago. Ills
popularity. indeed, it would be 1mpos-
sible to exaggerate. Nothing Of the
sort has been seen in the United
States since the days Of Washington.
But the farther one gets from the peo-
pie and the nearer one approaches the
inner circle of German opinion, the
less one hears Of Hindenburg and the
more one hears of Ludendorn Two
years ago Hindenburg was given all
the credit for the astounding feat Of
arms at Tannenberg-the most ex-
traordinary victory, surely, of this war,
and perhops one Of the greatest Of all
time.
AI3ut nor one hears that ludendorff,