The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1918-10-16
GERMAN PAPERS
 APPROVE REPLY
 TO PRES. WILSON
Say That Answer Was What Could Have Been
 Expected.

The Hague, Oct. 16-The Berlin morning papers comment at length on the German answer to President Will son. A majority of the papers na- turally support the government and l approve the note. The conservatives | and part of the National Liberals | however, consider the note as Ger l many's complete surrender.
 Vorwarts says that the answer was what could have been expected. The paper asserts that it's more than prob able that further military decisions will not come into consideration once the people have assembled around the conference table, and that a confer ence which assemblies to make war is impossible forever between civiliz- ed peoples. Vorwarts alleges that the answer signed by Dr. Solf is an an- swer from the German people, and that under Solfs signature millions of signatures of men and women could be added who want to end the war.
 The Tageblatt calls attention to the fact that the answer was approved by all the State Secretaries, by the high command, and the Federal Council, and also by a large majority of the Reichstag. Never before, it says, was a policy in Germany carried out with such cooperation.
 George Bernhard, in the Vossische Zeitung, remarks that many factors are responsible for the answer, and that it is the logical consequence of the first step which must have been foreseen by those responsible.
 He hopes that the government will now show what had been lacking since the commencement of the war "a strong policy-and says that with an international league of States, even enemy States will have the same in- terest as Germany herself, if possible, in thte building up of the German Empire, otherwise the Wilson assur- ances for a lasting peace would have no meaning. Bernhard concludes that it is the duty of the German people at present to stop and look closely in- to the prospects which open up with Wilson's ideas of peace negotiations, as the people now stand at the turn ing point of their fate.
 The form of agreement for attain ing an armiStice, Bernhard continues, is one to fill all Germans with deep sorrow. It is now, however, the duty of every one, he says, not to give way to this sorrow but to gather strength from it in order to prepare for the restoration of everything which the war has destroyed, and all must work together in building up. The Ger man people must see that their fate Sc iy @ coming negotiations a number of problems will be discussed which are very painful for German patriots who have not considered them as problems | until recently but as facts.
 without doubt the Alsace-Lorraine question has been made an interna- tional question by negotiations on Wilson's points," Bernhard proceeds. Tt has now passed the viewpoint of autonomy to which Prince Max held in his last Reichstag speech, to say | nothing of kuhlmann's never It cannot be denied that by uncondition- l al recognition of Wilson's points, in ternational discussion on precious parts of the Prussian Monarchy must be admitted. although not necessarily | definitely settled. But even the idea | that these question become interna- tional is painful to a degree"
 The Lokal-Anzeiger says no Ger man can read the answer to Wilson without being shaken to the depths | of his soul. Germany decelares her | self ready for peace after four years of suffering She will have to suffer long, however, the conference turns out, but the most painful thing of all Is that imperial territory is to be i internationally discussed. The paper says that responsibility for the note and its consequences fall on many shoulders, but firstly on the new gov
 ernment and that the wish to end
 the war before all Europe is destroy ed contributed to the desire for peace. "One advantage" says the Lokal-
 Anzeiger, 'is that the note is per
 fectly clear and cannot be misunder- stood Wilson can no longer refuse
 the offer of Oct. and we are con- vinced that he will now communicate
 with his allies and ask them to con
 clude an armistice and to send repre-
 sentatives for peace negotiations. The great question is what will London,
 Paris and Rome answer.
 The paper adds that the eighth and
 thirteenth Wilson points are the most
 important of all, and that it is now
 evident that the questions of Alsace-
 Lorraine and Poland will have to be
 settled by the application of Wilson's l principles.
 ''The most important part at pres
 ent," 1t adds, 'is evacuation. We were prepared for a conciliatory attitude,
 but not for unconditional evacuation. We believed that assurances would
 be demanded that the entente troops
 would not enter Belgium after the
 evacuation and that Belgium would
 remain neutral if the peace negotia- tions should collapse. We must hope
 that these conditions, which appear
 necessary for the protection of the Fatherland, will be demanded in the
 mixed commission, which is suggest
 ed in the note to Wilson"
 The paper pretends that this is to
 avoid the possibility of poor Belgium