Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-03-05
Six Months in
Hell and Back"
German Socialists Vieps After
Six Months Traucl Through
out the Empire.
ny IGNATiUs KINAsT.
Copyright. international News Bureau.

Under the present circumstances. III IS
very fact, their too efficient and
thorough trade unions and political or
CARNATIONS are detrimental ard COM
plcte disadvantage IN the way Of a
successful expression OF an;Igovcrn-
!ncnt feelings. The -.lers. through
fear or favor. are in control or dom
nation Of their leaders. An individual
eminent works without tho express
sanction OF the centralized bureau AT
Berlin.
Cold-Fcctcd German LEADERS.
Whenever there looms 4 menace such
as this. the head Of the trade union
bureau. who is usually neither heroic
nor courageous--and perhaps an IDIOT
or Il coward-hastens to suppress such
Il movement, always fearing ;hat the
authorities vii! hold him personally re-
&nonsible for the unlawful act tina,
might be committee by the workers 1t
81 distant Industrial center. He is only
q trade union hu.caucrat, and = ,ner.
expert IN detail. Occasionally he is a
Goon dcbatcr. and even that Gualiiica-
tion Is !. dctrimcnt 10 the cause oil the
worker. who is ready for democracy
through blood letting"
This also applies 10 the German So
cialtst party.
>
through their becoming members or
the Reichstag are mostly men OF sinai!
mental cal!ber-pTovincial, devoid OF
knowledge Of other peoples. but well
VcEsed IN the old Socialist dogma. which
1 they wish to guard zcalously and
!ea!ousIy against any attempt to revise
- ihey are more talka,ive than
heroic. and unless through heroic
measures. revolutions cannot feed on
talk alone
Heroic. but Too Prudent.
mere are OF course. heroic mem
He!chsiaS, but these are too prudent
TO accomplish anything.
me German Socialist party discipline
- staged after the fashion OF our prus
sian military discipline. ana its in
Ioierance would put into shame the de-
voices OF old churches.
But, aside from the three SocioI,.,
!aciiohs' there are other Influences in
Germany that viii help TO bring about
situations That would become mcnacing
10 our rulers.
Ger:nun Political Chnsm..
lhe'e are many chasms in the Ger
man political life day thnt viii 80,
7 ga? To Gay, become widened. Thia de-.
lection IN the German system or rov-
| o'hHhcht Is primarily between the land
| owners and the industrialis,s. Tho
I 'c! man landowners are the ,nilitarist
/ frr
IN immediate peace, without anpey,
ton. "h''eAa-
interviewed many persons be,o,,.
ing TO this class. and was surnrisnd
TO learn that they valued an in,rs-
/ "iate peace so much that in order n
oo'aih II at once they even advocat
| restoring Helgium and Serbia and Norm
france These men told me. with re.
markable similarity of reasoning. that
"hother year or so of this war would
destroy Germany completely
IL was during these conversations
that | learned how Germany had bleJ
white during the last three years or SO
of war.
Germany was a highly organized
country powerfully centralized gov
eminent was able to put into effective
use all It's resources at one move
therefore. Germany had cxerted her ut
most resources early in the war. trust
ing that victorious ending of the war
would outweigh the great sacrifices
Ihese men argue that while England