New Britain herald., 1918-09-11
The Indemnity Idea.
New York Herald. )

There are those who, while agreeing that Germany must be sOundly beaten and adequately punished for the crimes of her leaders and soldiers are of the opinion that it will be out of the queS- tion to impose indemnities after the
 war. They argue that not only has Germany ruined other countries, but that she also has ruined herself and will net have the means with which to
 satisfy one tithe of the claims which
 can be justly preferred against her This is a suIc cC';"tGl view.
 One of Ctermany's Vaunts not so long ago was that while the Entente Allies
 were haaping up a load of external debt by the purchase of food and ma
 terials or a system of credits and by
 raising money abroad, the Fatherland
 was meeting from it's own internal
 wealth and resources nearly all that
 was needed for the prosecution of the
 war This is undoubtedly true. With
 the exception of the iron ore which has
 been imported from Sweden and the
 food and other necesSarieS winch It
 has been possible to obtain in ever
 lessening quantities through SWltZer-
 land, Holland and the Scandinavian
 states Germany's imports have been
 comparatively negligible and her for
 eign indebtedness is incOnsidcrable in
 comparison with that of the Entente
 Allies, especially Great Britain and
 France.
 Certainly the people of Germany
 have been heavily taxed and have been
 under compulsiOn to contribute largely
 to the war loans, but this has been n
 the main accomplished by means of a
 form of financial jugglery, by making
 the national and private funds, so to
 speak. do double and treble duty-by
 the conversion of one loan into an other and even by what has been akin
 to system of barter. But it must
 not be forgotten that Germany started the war with an enormous gold re-
 serve. including the indemnity paid by France after the war of 1870, and that the banks still retain their reserves, and in some cases have augmented them. Very little gold has gone out of the country, comparatively, while not a little has gone into it with the help of pro Germans in this and other countries before the United States en- tered the war.
 Ii is safe to assume that this gold will not be accessible when the Allies dictate peace One of the first things Germany will be called upon to do will be to repay the forced laVies made uDOn Belgium and towns in northern France and to redeem the notes" and l eDuriOus currency which the Germans l have issued wherever they have plant | ed themselves. Compensation for dam age done also will have to be made 5ts l far as possible in god, and the rest in l commuted payments, extended over a 1 period of years.
 Of course it will be necessary to in 1 SriN
 the payment of her obligations. One ! of these will be the mercantile fleet 1 now lying within Hamburg and other 1 ports including the colossal ships
 which have been constructed since the | wal. began-Vessels of from 35,00O to 1 5O.0OO tons with which Germany 1 hopes to racapture her foreign trade 1 There are, it is understood at least 1 half d dozen of these building or built, | and they will help ill restoring Belgium ] to her old commercial position, and | also will materially assist France, i which will have an enormous bill
 against Germany.
 But they will by no means cover the
 sum total of Germany's destruction
 and depredations, and it may be neces-
 sarv to take lien over her railways
 for a term of years, also part of the
 output of the mines and forests the i resources of which largely have en- i abled the country to carry on the wal, ! ind4Dende1t of materials from abroad , This is not vengeance; it is simple jus , tice. Gernany has been robbing the mines of Relgium and France for the i last four years and most probably will ! leave them dismantled and ruined
 while once rich forest lands are now
 succession of gaunt stumps. There