Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1918-11-08
CHAPTER Viii.
The Kaiser's Confidence Of Victory.

About twelve years ago l attended
the German military maneuvers at
: Liegnitz, in Silesia, having been In
vited by some journalistic friends OF
mine to accompany them in the motor
allowed the press. The military repre-
sentatives of England, France, Amer
lea and other countries were there
with the kaiSer's staff to witness the
display of Germany's military power.
Apparently they were very much lI2-
pressed, for l heard afterwards that
one of the French officers who had
been present had written a book in
which he said: with such an army.
Germany could annex France in SIX
mOnthsI'
I happened to mention this fact It
the kaiser shortly afterwards and Ms
significant comment was:
"Six months I should hope so. Il
wouldn't take that long!"
The confident belief that when "Del
Tag'-"the day"-fnally arrived, Ger
many would crush her enemies and &C
complish her object within a few
months at tie outside was held MOI
only by the 5aiser but by the people
generally &nd their conduct when the
war broke out clearly disclosed 1t.
When Gcrmany's man power was
no one in Germany believe"
it would be very long before the%
would II! be back and every effort wa
made to make their few weeks Of &C
tive service as little irksome as pos
Sible "Liebesgaben," gifts OF love.
consisting of clothing and food OF
= every description, were forwarded to
them by their relatives and friends IN
the most lavish manner, although, OF
course, at that time the German COM
missary was able to satisfy all the SOL
dicrs' requirements.
One of my patients told me that she
had sent seventeen hundred pounds OF
sausages to one regiment within
week, and when I asked her why she
had been so generous she replied that
her chauffeur was q member of the
regiment!
The extent to which the country's
resources were squandered in those
early months is evidenced by the fact
that the soldiers had such an excess
~ iil-fitting wooden wearing apparel
THAT they used many Of the knitted ar
tices as earpieces and covers for their
horses. No one had the slightest idea
that the time might come when the
whole nation would be clothed in pa
per!
At this late day it can hardly be
necessary to establish how thoroughly
prepared the Germans were for the
war, but an incident which occurred in
the early days of the conflict may not
be out of place to show the self-satis-
fled and confident attitude which all
the Germans assumed.
= Two officers sitting at table in an
out-of-door cafe shortly after the war
began overheard one of several ladies'
who were passing remark: Look at
those officers sitting there drinking
Why are they not at the front fight
ing?" One of the officers got up and,
approaching the ladies, said: Our
work was completed months ago. We
worked from early morning till late at
ulSul vi pans h1AASAA OoA ShAAAAS' 49,
now carrying out. 1t is our time to
rest"
The resistance that France would be
able to 1ut up was always very lightly
estimated, and if the intervention OF
England was at all taken into consid-
Grafton, the comparatively small army
she could place in the field was re-
L-,+ 4 IN tho huP1ynt nnrn-
pared with the well-trained German
horde that was ready to sweep across
the border. How could England's SO,OOO
men cone with Won Kluck'S 5OO,OOO or
the hastily modified French armies re-
sist the thoroughly prepared, equipped
ard well-disciplined German warriors!
Il is really not to be wondered at
that the Germans firmly believed that
they would bring the allies to their
knees within a comparatively few
weeks and that the conquering Ger
man armies would celebrate Sedan
day, September 2, in Paris. What ac-
tually happened is, of course, too well
known here to require recital, but l
know that the Germans were kept in
dDSUlulC VI lAiC =ihisAA 'SiooS
resistance the allies were able to put
up in those critical days of August and
September, 1914, and to this day the
majority of Germans have not heard
of the battle of the Marnei
Just after the English passed their
CONSUMPTION law was called to see
the kaiser at the great army headquar-
tiers, which at that time were at Pless.
Although the war had then lasted two
or three times as long as the Germans
had expected, the kaiser masked the
depression he must have felt by put
ting on bold front.
GLOW foolish for England to start |
CONSUMPTION now," he declared. "She |
thinks she can accomplish in q few |
months what it has taken Germany
hundred years to attain. Armies and
officers cannot be developed over night.
We have never stopped preparing since
the days of Frederick the Great!"
Eyes, your majesty, but the North
ern states in our Civil war put in con-
scription two years after the begin
ming of the war;" suggested.
"But just look how long your war
lasted" the kaiser replied quickly.
"This war won't last that long. The |
allies will feel what the power of Ger
,,onv is long before English cOnScrip- !