The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1918-03-28
RESPONSIBILITY
FOR WAR PLACED
ON GERMANY BY
own DIPLOMAT
Personal Memorandum of
Former German Ambas-
sador Made Public
MILITARISTs
MEMORABLE
Deliberately Destroyed
Possibility of a Peaceful
Settlement"
cBy Associated Press.l


London, March 2S.-The personal
memorandum of Prince Lichnowsky
revealing the inner workings OF Ger
much feeling in Germany against the
former ambassador OF Great Britain,
leaked out last summer through the
German general staff after the fall Of
Chancellor Won Bethmann- Hollweg.
This statement is made by the Social
list Vorwaerts, of Berlin, and is pub
Iished by The Times, which also re-
prints from The Vorwaerts the most
important points of the memoran-
dunn. In an editorial on the disclos-
ures by the prince, The Times says:
by q coincidence as strange as it
is opportune, passages Of the mem
orandum in which the former Ger
man ambassador fixes the guilt for
the war upon his own government,
reach us as the fiercest and bloodiest
conflict of the long struggle Is at it's
height. At the moment when man
kind is filled with anguish at the
carnage on the great battlefield, all
eyes will turn to his account Of the
policy which brought this visitation
upon the world.
He has not a shadow Of doubt
about the responsibility for the war.
Without hesitation he fastens it upon
Germany. The German militarists
were memorable. They would not
suffer Count Berchtold to give way.
When he fiinched they forced his
hand. .....
Ultimatum To Russia.
''They delivered an ultimatum to
Russia and the next day declared war
upon her although the Russian. en-
peror had pledged his word that
while the negotiations continued not
a man should march.
I've deliberately destroyed the
possibility Of peaceful settlement
is the former ambassadors considered
judgment. He cannot feel surprised
that the whole civilized world out
side Germany attributes to us sole
guilt for the world war. The whole
story which he records corroborates
this Judgment and cannot be recon
ciled with any other.
Herr Won Jagow met his warnings
about the probable effects of the
Potsdam policy upon British opinion
by assuring him Russia was not
ready and Germany must simply
risk it.. This belief as to Russian
unreadiness caused us to stimulate
Count Berchtold to the greatest pos
sible energy"
England Pacific.
Meanwhile the attitude of Eng
land was absolutely pacific and the
English press protested against the
political exploitation Of the Sarajevo
murders, but ii sternly reproved the
crime. It at once understood that
the unprecedented ultimatum which
under stimulation from Berlin,
Count Berchtold had launched at
Serbia meant war. Still Sir Edward
Grey as he then was, did not despair
and the former German ambassador
bears the strongest testimony to the
sincerity OF his unwearying efforts
to avert this war which the Germans
calumniously assert he provoked.
THE prince declares that it would
have been easy to find an acceptable
solution for the two relatively small
points left in dispute between Wien
ma and Belgrade and that given good
will everything could have been set
tied in one or two sittings of the
body proposed by Sir Edward.
"A hint from Berlin would have |
been enough to cause Count Berch- |
told's acuuiescence in the Serbian re- |
ply. What happened?
Pressed For War.
This hint was not given, on the !
contrary we pressed for war. Sir
besought Germany to make |
upon war. The Russian foreign |
minister. made urgent appeals and |
definite declarations and later the |
Russian emperor sent positively |
humble kilograms in vain. Berlin /
went on insisting that Serbia must /
be massacred'.
''At last Count Berchtold himself /
He had hitherto stayed the /
strong man on instructions from Ber- i
lin and ne decided to change his /
course Then Germany cut short all i
hopes of peace by herself declaring
war.
Prince LichnowsIzy speaks of the
perfidy' Of the policy he was used to
cloak but IL liz not chiefly upon senti-
mental or even upon moral grounds
that he condemned the German sys-
tenn. 1T is the folly rather than the
Of German state craft
which he reprobates. Ii is quite i
he insists, for Germany
10 trouble herself about Austria.
Austria Hungary might have been
burned into vassal of the German
empire without an alliance at all.
Germany could always keep her in
low by cultivating good relations
With Russia
But Prussian 'militarists' were
bent upon war which was essential
10 their own class interest.
When the ambassador visited
on his return from
London, he was told that in any case
there would have been war in 1916,
but then Russia would have been
ready and so 1t was better now In
he face Of the facts Lichnowsky is
not astonished that the rest OF the
world should look upon Germany
as IL does. He flnds Il
that the allies had vowed |
he destruction Of a system which is
4 permonent menace to Germany's
1eighbors, that they should be afraid /
10 spare the system, lest Germany had |
presently forced another defensive
war upon them; and that they should
ook upon Germany as still ruled by
/ caste Of feudal knights and tunkers.
"'Central Europe, he declared, Is
The struggle she has
will end In triumph for her
opponents and she VIII remain alone
with Austria and Hungary. Such is
The punishment he f0resees for her
Jolly and her perfidy in provoking the
n II