The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1918-11-25
Alsace-L Lorraine.

All France rejoiced yesterday with
Paris, and the world reioiced with
France, as its great capital put on gala
dress to do honor TO the long suffering
inhabitants Of Alsace Lorraine. Famil.
lar as many of us are with the sur
roundings, we can visualize the main fea-
lures of spectacle the like of which
does not come once in a century and re-
garded in its larger meanings, has come
only once in the history Of mankind.
All Paris is afoot The streets are be-.
tagged from end to end. Soldiers line
the route. The air throbs with the mu-
sic of military bands. Beneath a flying
escort OF airplanes, 10000 paraders take
their way, each wearing pine sprigs from
Alsace and medal bearing the arms OF
Strassburg and Metz The procession has
its beginning at the Arc de Triomphe.
It moves down the Champs Elysees to
the Place la Concorde, and there on a
great platform President Poincare, sur
rounded by Frances highest officers of
state, delivers an address which is at
once transmitted in print by 1000 ear
rier pigeons to all parts of the republic.
The recovery of Alsace- Lorraine is
one OF the great results of the war and
a notable event in world history. The
province fell 20 Germany as spoiIs to the
victor, but its annexation was never
anything but a theft; the stealers ad-
mitted that fact by their dealings with
the territory after It had been annexed,
and the subjected populations proclaimed
1t by their never varying resistance to
German domination.
For some time after 1871 Alsace- I,or-
raine was held as Reichsland, governed
by the chancellor of the empire and
therefore automatically by his agents,
all of whom were Germans. IL did not
gain the benefits Of ordinary law I'M
til 1874, when il was permitted to send
fifteen representatives TO the Reich
stag All these men went to Berlin en-.
powered by their constituencies to pro.
test against the annexation and, having
their message, they quilted the
German Parliament in a body. Later,
the battle was renewed by successors
who sought political autonomy under
Teuton rule, but without acknowledg-
ing that rule as legitimate.
But during the elections Of 1881 Man
teuffel's demand for "a loyal and open
Of the union of Alsace-I .or-
-aine with Germany" ruined the auton-
1mist party and brought back the
'Protesters." The territory was after
ward given delegate to represent it in
he federal council, but without the
right to vote. Alsace-Lorraine was de-
,rived Of self-government and had no
real voice in the Bundesrat until 1911.
Think of what these three depart
nents, 1000 square miles in extent, with
. population of 100000, had to en-
lure before the allied armies came to
heir rescue. Vicissitudes there were in
he long agony, but the Hun never re.
ed'his grip, and worked both openly
md insidiously to turn the people from
heir allegiance. All newspapers sus-
,ected of that allegiance wers suppressed
md journals coming from France were
eized at the frontier.
The administration, first at Berlin,
hen at Strassburg, worked systemat.
cally to exclude the French language
rom the schools, from official proceed
ngs and from public institutions, in
luding the railroads. Painters were for
hidden to use ii for signs and printers
o put it into posters. In 1887, after a
ull vote had been given for the pro-
esting candidates, the government pros
cuted people for carrying about with
hem anything blue, white and red"
nd brought members of the Patriotic |
aague TO trial for high treason,
Yet in spite of fines and imprson-
nents, Alsace- Lorraine remained irrec-
All the while the nation
rom which she had been forcibly sep
rated grew in the determination to |
ave her back The hopes of recovering
he three lost departments shaped |
RANGES policies on more than one oc.
aston. II was that which moved Del |
asse when foreign minister to make |
ossible the entente cordiale with Eng
and and led ultimately to the triple |
ntente between Russia, France and |
ireat Britain. In this way, as in many
theirs, the Hun fashioned the instru-
rents for his own undoing.
To-day whole people rejoices as it
'ipes out from the map the handiwork
{ the Teuton photographer and writes
/ the old way @Haut -Rhin" for upper
Isace, "Bas -Rhin" for lower Alsace, and
Moselle" for Lorraine The return of
to France is sign that
Germany will never again monkey"
18th the worlds buzz. Her.