Sioux County pioneer. (Fort Yates, Sioux County, N.D.) 1914-1929, 1918-06-13
Great German-American Daily
Confesses Error Of Opinion
Held for Three Years.
LlCHNOWSKY PAPERS SHOW
ENGLAND DIDN'T FORCE WAR
Iication States Reasons for Ac.
ceptance of New Light on
Conflict.

Slowly but with increasing certainty.
as evidence accumulates, men of
doubtful minds have been awakened
to the truth about the responsibility
for the great world war. Among the
most recent OF all influential men to
acknowledge Il previous error in judg-
ment on this point, and to come out
in II ringing opinion that the Central
powers We're the real aggreSSOrS, is the
editor of the Germania-H erOld of Mil
wnukee. This prominent daily, with
Its affiliated weekly publications., has
for the past three years held to the
opinion. SO largely fOstered by Ger
man prOImgandists, that Great Britain,
through jealousy of Germany's grow
ing trade prominence, had deliberately
contrived to force the Central empires
into an intolerablc situation, as re-
suit Of which they had to fight their
way out from an "encircling ring of
enemies"
Germania-Heroid Sees Light.
That such was not the case is now
acknowledged by the Germania- HerOld
in an editorial which seems to bear
the stamp of entire candor and cure
full thought. With the idea of apology
and retracton in mind, after it's three
years OF error, the Herold says:
"It is our duty to make it. We. too,
We're among those who laid the blame
for the world WAR at the doors of
English statesmen. We, too, have
time and again repeated the asser-
ton that these English statesmen.
Jealous of Germany's success in the
world markets, attempted to 'encircle'
1t. We, too, have repeatedly stated
that Germany is entitled to place in
the sun. We did so in good faith.
For we then believed what the organs
of the German government proclaimed
and we believed at the beginning of
the war and years thereafter what
most Of the other German pupers re-
peatcd."
Reason for Change Of View.
The Germania-Her cites as it's
final and controlling reason for change
of opinion the compelling evidence af-
forded by Prince Liclnowslsy, the dis
tinguished German diplomat who, up
to the opening of the war, was the
Futherlnnd's ambassador to Great Bril-
tain. That to Lichnowsky, more than
To any one else except the heads of
the British and German foreign Of
fees, were known the facts on this
question there can be no doubt
Says the Herold:
"i'olitiken, the organ of the Swedish
socialists Of the extreme left, on
March Is published the historical
document by which this guilt is estab-
lshed. 1t was Il sO-cllled 'nemOran-
dunn by Prince Carl Max Won Lich-
nowsky, who before and at the time
of the commencement of the war was
the ambassador for the German empire
i'll London. The memorandum was
written eighteen months before 1t was
made public. A publication at this
time was not intended by the prince,
but upon his instance Il numlNr of
copies thereof were made. One of
these copies came to the hands of a
member of the Socialistic minority
party of the German reichstag. The
memorandum bears the heading: My
London Mission 1912 to 1914 and is
dated ut Kuchelna Nichnowsky's
summer residence), in August, 1916.
The .enuneness of the memorandum
is doubted by no one. Prince Lich-
nowsky himself has by his silence ad-
mitted it. The German government
likewise by its action in keeping the
prince prisoner in his castle in Sill
esia since the date of the publication
of the memorandum, and as appears
from late cable dispatches, has now
brought the charge of high treason
against the prince"
Cites Convincing Paragraphs.
The paper then cites convincing
paragraphs from the Lichnowsky pa.
pers, which it also arranged to print
In full:
"I. We (and by this, 1--WE" the
prince means the German govern.
ment) encouraged Count Berchtold to
attack Serbia, although no German
interests were ut stake and the dan.
ger of world war was known to us
Whether we knew the text of the ul.
timatum is entirely unconsequential.
Germany Rejected Peace Offer.
"2. In the days between the 23rd
and Both of July, 1914, when Herr
Sasonow expressly declared that Rus
STA would permit no attack upon
Serbia we rejected the British in
termediary offers, although Serbia un
der Russian and British pressure was
about to accept the entire ultimatum
and although an agreement in regard
to. the two controverted points coult
easily have been arrived ut and Coun
Berchtold himself was satisfied to b,
content with the answer by Serbia.
"3. On July 30. when Ooun