The Cordova daily times., 1917-11-02
GRAF II KAISER HAS NEW PEACE
 PROPOSAL
(By United Press)


 ginal one struck in the summer of 1914.
 The fall of Riga marked the down ward swing. The collapse of Russia leaves the way clear. Only by the cleverest work on the part of the re- mainder of the allies can the blow be parried, for it is now practically cer- tain that what Wilhelm II and his junkers aim at is nothing less than enlisting, by a crafty stroke, the pub lie opinion in allied nations to bring about what they desire.
 And what they desire, in one word, is peace,
 Such is the meaning of the Russian debacle.
 On it's face the proposition appears not only supremely impudent, but inn possible. In reality it may be very simple. The Intellectuals in Russia feared this thing before the Czar Nj cholas abdicated his throne. For moment it seemed that the new de- mocracy might ward off the danger Then chaos came and opened wide the door, leaving the great empire or republic - absolutely at the mercy of her enemies and incidentally brought to the allies as a whole the greatest danger they have had to face since the start of the war.
 Before Christmas the kaiser is al most sure to pose again as the one great apostle of peace. He will try to bring about the end of the war at the expense of Russia, and the Bal kans. Of that l am convinced after what 1 heard in Russia and amongst Scandinavian neutrals. His offer of peace will be the most velvety thing ever seen, the cunningest piece of Machiavelism that was ever put forth to trap less wary souls.
 The next few weeks will see Prussia reaping in Russia the harvest for which she has been preparing inten- sively for years, and more especially since 1914. This country of 170,000,- 900 people is now threatened with complete open subjugation to her southern neighbor of 70,000,000, who subjugation for scores of years. When the kaiser has Russia just where he wants her, his peace bid will come.
 The bid to be expected will fall upon the world about like this
 What an awful, awful thing this warl" the kaiser will say. q have never wanted it. From the very first it has made my heart bleed to see the flower of the worlds youth march away to battle, to become cannon fod- der. Why, oh, why, cant we get to- gether and stop all this slaughter! | grieve for the French and the British and the Italians who have died in this horrible war. And poor Belgium and Serbia and Roumania! How deeply pity them.
 Some courageous figure, strength ened by Almighty God and armed with a sense of righteous duty, must offer himself as a sacrifice. am that man Speaking for my noble people, am l willing to give up conquests. won by the steelhard will to victory of my brave soldiers to pave the road to peace. l will even give indemnities.
 In short, the kaiser is likely to offer toS yield - on paper and apparently practically everything that England France, Italy, America ana the rest are fighting for in order to put an end to a war which slowly, but surely. IS strangling the life out of :he central empires. He is likely to put his peace proposals in such a pious anl sancti monious light that the great public oi the world may be, for time, abso lu,eH taken in.
 He is counting on the public failing tt recognize that Germany has Bul, garia and Turkey absolutely under her ,t thumb; that Austria has become a vaseal state; that Germany will dc mand all her colonies hack in return for getting out of France and Belgium.
 Such a peace would mean that Ser bia and Roumania would come out of the war entirely at the mercy of the central powers. Any treaties signed by the present German government would not be worth the paper upon which they were written. and a"world | made safe for democracy" and all such 1 phrases would still be as sounding brass. And last of all, Russia is un, der the German thumb. Summed up, Germany would come out of the wal mightier than ever, her prestige high CT. When she threatened the world would tremble. Her navy would be intact and new merchant fleet ad