The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1918-10-25

Il ever knew Inc IdcL InaI MT. |
Roosevelt had given Germany's fleet
twenty-four hours notice to steam
from Venezuelan waters didn't serge
to lessen the kaiser's admiration for
him.
/ heard him shower praise on
Roosevelt many times and l haven't |
the slightest doubt that he was quite
sincere.
After the war started, when Roose-
welt showed very plainly that no mat
ter what nice things the kaiser might
have thought and said of him, he GER
tainly didn't reciprocate the feeling, |
the kaiser was very much disappointed. |
I'm terribly disappointed In Mr..
Roosevelt" he declared. after the
way my wife and entertained him
when he was here as our guest, for
him to take the stand he has is very
ungentlemanly. | gave great review
for him-the greatest honor could be-
stow upon him and a thing which had
never been done for a private citizen.
He was not president then, you kno Y.
l used to admire him very much, bit
now / think the man has gone crazy
and lost his mind. never thought lie
would turn against us like that!" He
did not seem to realize that patriotic
American owed allegiance to his own
country.
In 1916 l asked him whether he had
heard that Mr.. Ford was on his way
over from America in a chartered ship
with a delegation.
who, Peace-Fordf" he inquired.
/ told the kaiser what had read of
the Ford expedition.
How can your country allow a man
| like that to do this thing-a man who
| has played no part in the politics of his
/ own country and is entirely ignorant
| of international affairs-a man who,
understand, was formerly In the BIZ
| cycle business and knows very little
/ outside of business matters2
II haven't the slightest doubt Mr..
| Ford Is a great business man." the
| kaiser went on, land l am sure he
means all right, but what mistake
it is to allow a man so ignorant of
world affairs to do ridiculous thing
like this"
/ told the kaiser that it had been
suggested In some of the American
papers that IL Ford really wanted tc
end the war, all he had to do was tt
pay Germany S100000.O00 and blu!
Belgium back.
zone hundred million dollars r. thu
kaiser repeated, and then after mo
ment's reflection, as though he hat
been turning over some figures in hi:
mind, "No, Davis, it will cost mucf
more than that to get Belgium back 7
1t occurred to me that if the kaisel
really meant what he said on that oc
casion. all his talk about "peace with
out annexation" was obviously a myth
and that the only hope of Belgium's
redemption lay in the military defeat
of Prussia. Subsequent developments
amply confirmed that view.
In the winter of 1915, we were talk
ing of the sentiment in America an6
the conversation turned to Won Berns
torff.
"Von Bernstorff has been doing very
good work in your country" the kaiser
commented.
"Well, your majesty" replied, ut i:
said in America that If he had not beer
such clever diplomat he would lonl
ago have been compelled to leave"
''From all 1 hear" the kaiser said
che hasn't had very easy time of ii
The American press as a whole ha.
been conspicuously anti-German, al
though 1 understand that one of you
! newspaper publishers has been friend
ly to us. Mr.. Hearst, for instance, ha!
helped our cause very much in you
country. He has been telling the trutl
about affairs, which is more than mos
of the other papers have been doing 7
Just before the king of Greece abdi
Gated, the kaiser referred to the att
tude of the American press again.
; "The way the American newspaper
and the press of the allied countries
generally are presenting the Grecial
situation TO the world is absolutel.
false and disgrace" he declared, bit
terly. ''They are entirely misrepre
senting the facts. Mr.. Hearst is tn,
only one, as far as can find, who ha
5 revealed the real conditions and toll
the truth about them. My, wonde
: what the people have to say now tina
Mr.. Hearst has finally exposed tn
whole thing!" 1t was only a shor
E time afterwards that the king abdicat
e ed and revealed Enthusiastically whicl
| papers had correctly interpreted tn
. trend of Grecian politics.
4 The kaiser spoke to me many time
about the writings of William Bayart
S Hale.
7 Have you been following Hale's ar
ticles?" he inquired. "What he i
5 writing about the war is excellent ant
D Is really the best material published
: He voices my sentiments exactly, ant
! 1t would be well for every American t,
A follow this writer's work.
t had to confess that there was on
t American at least who was not Onl,
: not following HaIe's writings. but hat
5 never heard of the writer, and tn
l kaiser seemed to be somewhat dis
: OlenSPd