The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-11-16
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
IN 70 R M A TION
Blu RE AU
FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Director.
Washington, D. C.
THE GERMAN COLONIES.
Washington, D. c.

J to her certainty, German writer OF
| influence stated that the empire
| needed more colonies in Africa, and
| that they must be the prize of victory.
Victory has shifted to the side of the
| allies, and the German need for col
! onies is likely to continue an unsup-
piled want. But the German writer's
| statement is being echoed insistently
| in the allied nations. Many Britons
| and Frenchmen now also regard the
German colonies as the prize OF vic
| tory.
The fate of these colonies will be
one of the big problems of war settle
ment. Practically all of the German
| foreign possessions, which are in ag-
gregate nearly five times the size of
! Germany, are now held by Great
| Britain, France, Belgium and Japan.
| The retention of this territory by the
| allied powers is expected to be one of
| the points Upon which much stress
will be laid in peace conferences to
| come.
| Assuming that the colonies now held
| are not to be returned, the question
| arises as to how they are to be dis
| posed of. There is the scarcely prac-
tical idea of allowing African and
| Samoan natives to choose a preferred
form of government, which would
| really mean to choose a protecting
| nation. Then it has been urged by
| some that the colonies be held and
administered by a league of nations.
!
| cupied territory among France. Eng
| land, and Belgium, leaving Kiao-chau,
| the German settlement in China, to
| Japan. 1t is now being suggested in
! Europe that the United States also as
sumo control Of a part of the African
! land.
| Total loss of her colonies will be the
climax of Germany's eventful and dis
| appointing colonial history. While
| Germany was evolving from group
| of petty states into an empire, the
| more progressive European nations
were securing the best of still unap-
propriated territory. So that when
| Germany finally plunged into Afri-
can colonial enterprises in 1884, she
could get only tropical lands, most
! of which were unfit for settlement by
| white men. AS the avowed German
| purpose in acquiring colonies was to
obtain a place in the sun" for her
rapidly increasing surplus population,
| the lands claimed by Germany-Togo-
land, German East Africa, German
| Southwest Africa and the CAMERON
were useful mainly as a source of in
| come and foothold by which to grasp
| other more desirable land.
| The pan-German mind pictured a
| German Central Africa, stretching
| from coast to coast, not to mention a
| German India, and a German South
America. The African colonies were
present war; while the other acquisi-
| tions were to be placed on the map
| after the war had made the German
empire the power of Europe. These
| aircastle colonies were to be built up
| into German commemorative by emf
| grants who would be expected to carry
| the homeland traditions with them.
Colonial plans in the United States
| were never successful, because so
many of the German immigrants came
to this country to escape the rigors of
| the highest plane of life" But in
South America, where races do not
| fuse SO readily as in the United States,
| the German immigrant became a part
| of a German settlement and his
| Germanness was preserved intact.
| Solidarity of German interests in
| South America lulled Germany to the
| calm belief in South American admira-
! ton of all things German. This con-
| fidence was shaken by the attitude of
| the South American countries toward
| the war, and Germany fastened to lay
| stress upon the defense and extension
| of her African possessions. But too
| late to achieve any success.
| Solf, the colonial expert of Germany,
| explains at great length to the Ger
man people that the colonial policy of
| the empire has always been outlined
| on broad and generous principles.
| Other colonial powers have been sadly
| lacking in broadmindedness and lib
crafty, but Germany has dealt with
them patiently. desiring only what is
her own. Thus the colonial situation
| is summed up by the German mind for
| the enlightenment of the unprejudiced.
According to Mr.. Solf, the German
colonies have been SO developed that
Germany has gained less trade adj
vantage from them than any other
commercial nation. But, altruism be-
| ing the main characteristic of the gov
eminent this state OF affairs has gen.
erously been allowed to endure.
Mr.. Soils statements are not cor
roborated by writer's and statesmen of
other nations. England denounces
German rule in Africa in the name.of
the natives themselves. Hundreds of
| letters have been received by England
from the German subjects in Africa
begging Great Britain to free them
| from Germany.
Facts which Mr.. so1f careless1y
! g1ides over with a vague phrase show
! that thousands of natives have died
of the effects of overdoses of German
culture. The German mind could I'M
derstand the need for study of climate.
| drainage, and resources of its foreign
possessions. but the necessity of study
| ing the psychology of its primitive
| subjects was ignored. To the German,
| the natives were unfortunate people
who had missed being born in Ger
| many, and VINO ShOulQ therefore make
up for a. crude past by Immediately
| forgetting their barbaric customs and
becoming good Germans.
| But the natives did not fall in en-
| Enthusiastically with plans for their well
being which they did not at all under
| stand. Resentment and rebellion
| against unmeaning laws became COM
mon, especially in the Southwest Afri-
| can colonies. German colonial troops
| were soon fully occupied with an am
bilious campaign to subdue all natives
who resisted the blessings of German
| civilization. African methods of war
fare placed the colonial troops at
| tremendous disadvantage. Neverthe-
less, whole tribes of natives were prac-
tically wiped out by order of German
officials. who overlooked the fact that
the scanty population Of those par
| ticu1ar African colonies was more valu-
able than the oil or minerals of the