Norwich bulletin., 1918-10-24

the only armistice he would feel juSu- fled in submitting for consideration would be one which should leave the United States and the powers associat- ed with her in a position to enforce any arrangements that may be entered into and to make renewal of hostili ties on the part of Germany impossi- ble.
 The president has, therefore, trans mitted his correspondence with the present German authorities to the governments with which the govern ment of the United States is associat- ed as a belligerent, with the sugges- tion that, if those governments are disposed to effect peace upon the
 terms and principles indicated, their military advisers and the military ad-
 visers of the United States be asked
 to submit to the governments aSSo-
 ciated against Germany the necessary
 terms of such an armistice as will
 fully protect the interests of the peo-
 ples involved and ensure to the asSo-
 ciated governments the unrestricted power to safeguard and enforce the
 details of the peace to which the Ger
 man government has agreed, provided they deem such an armistice possible 1 from the military point of view 1 Should such terms of ar1nistice be suggested, their acceptance by Ger many will afford the best concrete 1 evidence of her unequivocal accept ance of the. terms and principles of 1 peace from which the whole action ' proceeds.
 | "The president would deem himself ! lacking in candor did he not point out ! in the frankest possible terms the i reason why extraordinary safeguards must be demanded. Significant and | important as the constitutional changes seem to be which are spoken ! of by the German foreign secretary in l his note of the 20th of October, it does not appear that the principles of a 1 government responsible to the German | people has yet been fully worked out, 1 or that any guarantees either exist or [ are in contempla ton that the altera- i tions of principle and of practice now i partially agreed upon will be perma- ! nefit Moreover, it does not appear | that the heart of the present difficulty l has been reached. It may be that | future wars have been brought under the control of the German people, but the present war has not been, and il
 is with the present war that we are
 dealing. It is evident that the Ger.
 man people have no means of com
 manding the acquiescence of the mili-
 tary authorities of the empire in the
 popular will: that the power of tn,
 king of Prussia to control the polio!
 of the empire is unimpaired: that th' l, determining initiative still remains 2 with those who have hitherto been tn masters of Germany Feeling that tn,
 whole peace of the world depends nov on plain speaking and straightforward action, the president deems it his dut, to say, without any attempt to softer
 what may seem harsh words, that tn , nations of the world do not and can , not trust the word of those who hay
 hitherto been the masters of German . policy, and to point out once nor that in concluding peace and attempt ing to undo the infinite injuries and in
 justices of this war the government c the United States cannot deal wit any but veritable representatives c the German people who have been as . sured of a genuine constitutions !, standing as the real rulers of German! = If it must, deal with the military mas 2 ters and the mOnarchical autocr2t . of Germany now, or if it is likely f have to deal with them later in re
 gard to the international obligations (
 the German empire, it must demand o not peace negotiations, but surrende ii Nothing can be gained by leaving thi n essential thing unsaid.
 - Accept, sir, the renewed assurance = of my high consideration.
 ,r GSigned)
 -t ROBERT LANSING. .s ''Mr Frederick Oederiin,
 Charge d'Affaires of Switzerland, a interim, in charge of German ir terests in the United States"