Trench and camp. ([Admiral, Md.) 1917-1919, 1918-07-04

" your enemy's strength is the
. folly of overrating 1t. The
W@EAls have always taken the pre-
Netpn to prepare against every pos
ke eurprise, including not merely Q
G1ase attack, but new equipment
& Weapons and unexpected force.
~ Gonsaderable source OF power tcl
10y In the present war has been
81 fd2e which she has carefully cpl-
49, among other nations that she
MHlhezble. This idea summed up
fMe word "supermans', passed
q AM4 down the world for . good
before the war. And 30 people
I'D 70 accept IL as true without
dMg into the facts. Now, DO
& 1Nend for n moment 20 belitfae|
AZ achievements Of mod4gp Ger
NJ bat wish to point o7t that
achievements are NO H6ee the
% a supermen than e Q coral
md the result OF some amazing
efinssct.
BOOtlickefs
II A. indeed, owing 30 the faet|
A@ Germans are, In many respects.
ngd. that they have BEEN able
pmpligh much that the unGhtmk-
" xaetAke for sup0rmanniak. Their
~ DEBILITY, their obseQuSOuzneas,
NJ vOgship Of the meanest noble
10 tanks above them prove this.
aapa& other peoples-the Dngiish
d Scotch. the French, and Bel
k and Dutch. the Scandinavian,
aailh9 and Amerieans-such servil-
u VAe long ago outgrown. but It has
HBaaled among the Germans since
q e4Tlfest times. 1t was the basis
~ GoEe Of feudalism, and on Il the
ASg9e and the junkers and the mill
NJ Dfates have built their hopes.
vfdently, II you have a whole peo-
u who believe anything You say and
R}Mk Just what You tell them tOI
INK. 1t B comparatively easy to|
IKE that people obey your orders.
rom the earliest record which wei
EVA the Germans were fighters
k1duaily. as they overcame the de-
A6gtt Roman Empire they took ON
nae Of the Roman civilization and
Nv even established q new empire,
SAOngrel kind Of state, in which
ftztian ideals and old Roman and
barbarian German were mingled
@ the Germanic tribes fought
t0Mg each other and no permanent
axe could be established. But the
fnnl idea, whicA was the utmost
n German mind could evolve, pene-
bod them all and was transmitted
I'm father to son just a. . hereai-
- disease continues through many
t1ons.
A shs Northeast there lived n mix
&W o. A9iAt1cs-who were probably
@&6 In some way to the TartarB
~ Hans-of Slavy and of fragments
other Germanic tribes. These
Eo the Prussians, the least ciyi-
nd, the most sturdy and wa1ifke
@9 feudal OF modern Germans.
na&U BY war and partly by mar
ga. Prussia became the property
The HOhenxollerns-a family Of
5hh@e barons who made their way
Gn South Germany up into thej
eEkh. In the eighteenth centWfy
ID family produced Frederick the
TaA& remarkable as a ruler. and
|nG remarkable - a military COM
u&der. He was utterly without
.F9T1e; he invaded and robbed his
eiHhbors' lands; he broke his oath
D ahrank from no harshness at home
/ DorAdy abroad. But he discefned
l@t the Pruesians with their obse-
nfQms nature, and their love Of
,u6al routine, would make excellent
lldiers, and 50 he converted Prussia
10 the most rigid military state Of
IOdern times.
ROuts PrussianS
Whaa Frederick the Great died in |
569 he left the Prussian army as
le best in Europe; but within twenty
AArg. In the double battle of Jena
Id Auersta4dt, Napoleon utterly de-
,n4ed Il, sent the Pfussian king and
D court flying as fast as they could |
ON Berlin, set panic in the heart Of
k@fy Prussian and compelled that
Imgdom to make a humi1iating
zee. jena gives the best indication
tie Prussian militarist character:
/ Vtgt0ry it is ins0lent, Boosting,
nea1ess and cruel; in defeat 1t Isl
ae-stricken, 1t cringes, It whim-
ok8s U6AASV6 t01S tho Same SI8tt1
5Esist In It today.
Il took more than six years after
6nn for the Prussians to recover
leir morale. and. it was only when
apoleon had lost his armies and his
regtige in the SHOWS of Russia in
S12 that the Prussians dared to lift
b their heads again. The next year
fay, In coalition with Russians. Aus
aAns, Swedes and other Germans,
sAeated him at the battle Of Leipsig