Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-07-27

skirts of Zurich. a veteran Austro.
Swiss pacifist whose name has often
peen mentioned in connection with the
mysterious peace intrigues of the
catholic Reichstag Deputy E,rzberger
ana who can boast particularly init
mate relations with the court of vi
emma, held forth to me for hours about
the young Austrian Emperor's sterling
qualities and his sincere ambition to
bring about a general European peace
without anneXations and indemni.
ties"
NIellifiuous Poison
IF America and Austria could onl:
get together" insinuated this old
apostle of German peace, his clever
eyes sparkling behind his glasses and
leaning persuasively across the round
table Uttered with ponderous mon
asterlal volumes, II am sure they
could bring back peace to suffering
Europe. If President Wilson would
use his influence with the Entente
Governments to induce them to revise
their war aims, Emperor Charles
would force Germany to curb her
exaggerated ambitions am posi-
tive Emperor Charles would insist
in Berlin on the restoration of
Belgium to unrestricted independ.
ence. Not day longer would he
allow his armies to fight for the
realization of the Pan-German plans
of conquest in Belgium or France
You know''-and his eyes twinkled
uggestively-"that / am eXcellently
informed about the young Emperor's
ideas and opinions. He is a splendid
young man: his judgment is quite i'm
partial and his greatest ambition is to
be instrumental in bringing peace to
the world. The Empress, too, is the
best of women. but it is a mistake to
believe she influences her husband po-
lltlcally. No, she is too good a wife
to mix up in international politics
AlsaCeLorraine? Ah"-the aged pa
cifist's face fell-"that is a difficult
question.
Germany can hardly give up Al.
sace-Lorraine. It's too much to eX-
pect. Perhaps trif1ing frontier regu-
lation-but no. there shall be no an.
neXations. Even if Austria should
undertake another offensive against
Italy, and be successful, she would
annex nothing, virtually nothing. OF
course, Austria hopes to keep the
Italian mountain district of the 'Sette
Comuni' to insure her future strate.
gical position, but I don't call that an
annexation, do you?"
That is the kind of mellifluous
poison all the German pacifist agents
neutral or Austro- o-Hungarian-try to
induce unwary Americans to swallow.
1t is all so simple: Starting out from
the indubitable truth that exhausted
Austro-H Hungary passionately desires
peace, and that her young sovereign
if but to preserve his throne-is nerv-
ously anxious to confer it's calming
benefits as quickly as possible upon
his unruly peoples, they argue that
the Allies have but to address them
selves to the Hapsburg ruler in order
10 obtain Germany's assent to Fresi-
dent Wilson's conditions.
What they forget to add is that it
is absolutely beyond the youthful
monarch's power to make the German
Government give up even the least of
its ambitious plans, and that if the
Allies We're foolish enough to rely on
his influence in Berlin they would
pave the way for Teuton domination
of Europe.
FOresees German Debacle
Parting from the Austro- Swiss pa
cifist, l casually asked him what he
thought would happen if the German