Arizona republican., 1917-08-22

was to be considered as common prop erty of the German empire and was not annexed to any one German state. It's government is by an imperial vice. roy with a kind of cabinet consisting of one secretary of state, civil and under secretaries and department heads, assisted by a legislative body of two members, one elected by popular vote and the other consisting of mem bers partly elected by municipal bodies, universities, churches and so perial government. The Viceroy and his cabinet are appointed by the em- peror in his capacity of the sovereign of the reichsland.
 Until the 31st of May, 1911, the reichsland had no constitution of it's own, the form of government being regulated by the reichstag and federal council (bundesraD in about the same way as the territories of the United States are ruled by congress and president. In 1911 Alsace-Lorraine re- ceived a constitution which gave them representation in the federal council, representation in the reichstag having already been granted as early as 1871. The sympathy of Alsace-Lorraine for France has been increased by the policy of several of the German vice. roys, Won Manteuffel, Prince Hohen- lohe, Prince Munster and Count Wedel, who had, in their administrations, all ternated severe measures with great leniency and had not improved con- italy south German, was undoubtely irritated by the tone and manner of the north German officials.
 Great industries had been developed by the imperial government, especially textile and coal mining, and the in dustrial population centering in Null hausen was hotly and thoroughly social democratic The upper or well do classes were tied to France by family connections and by religion. The bourgeois remained mildly anti-Ger- man-more properly speaking, anti governmental similar reasons, and the working men were opposed to the government on social and economic grounds The farming population, no- troubling much about the policies but being affected by the campaign of the nationalisti2 press, were in sympathy with France. So the atmosphere was well prepared for the coming storm.
 Zabern or, in French, Saverne, is a little town of between eight and nine thousand inhabitants, beautifully situ- ated at the foot of the Vosges noun canal. Its garrison comprised the staff and two battalions of infantry regi- ment No. 91 commanded by Won Reuter-, and among it's officers was a Lieutenant von Forstner, a young man only twenty years old, whose boyish appearance had excited the school children and boys working in nearby iron factories to ridicule him.
 It became known that this young of ficer, while instructing his men, had insulted the French flag and had called the Alsatian recruits "wackes," a nick name meaning ''squarehead," and fre- quently used by the people of Alsace- Lorraine in a jocular way, but hotly resented by them if used toward them by others. It was further re- ported that he had promised his men reward of ten marks if one of them, in case of trouble, should bring down a social democrat.
 Forstner had told his men to beware, and warned them against listening to French foreign agents, whom the Ger mans claimed were inducing French soldiers to desert in order to join the French legion.
 It is probable that Forstner in talking to his men of the French foreign legion used language offensive to French ears
 He admitted that he had used the word "wackes" in defiance of an order of the commanding general and for this he had been punished with several days confinement in military prison. Lieutenant Forstner, who was ordered to instruct his squad about the regu- lations ;n case of trouble with the civilian population claimed that he he'd only added to the usual instruc-