The Tabor independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1913-19??, 1918-12-05
The ZentrQle.
Grand Whi.Iock,
In ENerxhadx's Maaa.ine.

Il used 10 be one OF our most chef,sheu
si;prrst!tions, a part indeed or oui very
stock In trace, ia the old days OF muil:'-
r&l reform in America, that German cures
were Ideally governed. ] had aecepteu
all that was written about them and never
had any doubts until, myself making GER
tain studies in Germany, ] was told an tne
Rathaus in Dresden, when l innocehtiy
inquired what salary the mayor was paiu.
that my question was ipdlscreet. found
some police scandals in Berlin OF tue IA
miliar kind, and In another city some
peculation, but ] assured myself that
these incidents must be exceptional; ana,
determined to be orthodox In reform, went
on believing as before. But II there IL any
analogy between the methods employed IN
German cities and those that j observed
on the part of certain Geheimrate CpriVy
councillors) In Belgium, / think they
might much better be muck raked thah
our own.
suppose, now, that German methods
impressed us because they were foreign
and mysterious and we knew nothlns
about them. Any machine" In an Amerl-
ear city will gladly govern tho city, anu
govern IL with more or less efficiency, on
the same terms. We never put our Des'
foot forward. The slightest k~regularity'
the least mistake, is published from the
housetops and cried abroad, the welkfn
always ringing with denunciations OF
some one, and the atmosphere darKeneo
by the flying missiles OF the universal
and recriminatory accusation charge ana
indictment that IL always going on. NO
doubt It all has It's effect as a police
Measure and proves US to be a very viz
tuous people. either searching out our
own sins with a remorseless and impiac-
able conscience, or else searching out the
sins of our neighbors. - There was none
Of this IN German cities. and there was
N~~A .~4 A.I r. --- L. n
GUM. and 80 the zentraie had pretty
much their own way.
For u dark, subterranear systems OF
corruption there is no cure anywhere but
In the illuminating influence Of publicity.
and with conditions as they were In Bel
gium 1t was impossible to let in the spur!-
Tying. an%ttseptic light.
/ had supposed at first that the Zen
traIe was simply another expression of
h has been so widely extolled In the
English speaking world as German eff
cheney and genius for organization, but rs
time went on l learned more about them.
They were n mere adaptation OF the
German theory Of mechanical distr!bu-
ton OF product-militarism, socialism and
plutocracy working hand In hand. They
were in reality limited companies to which
the government Of occupation granted
monopolies. That Is, the Butter Zentraie
had a monopoly Of butter. the kartoffei.
zentraie had a monopoly OF potatoes,
when 1t could get any. inc so on as to
all sorts Of products.
The zentraIe multiplied; there was a
zentrals for everything. In the end. one
even for Jam.
Again and again we made representa-
tons as to the abuses to be attributed
to the Zentrale. There were In the Ger
man administration those who did not
hesitate privately to~recognize their evil.
and, In the limited circle where such
things were known, they became a car
dal, but nothing was done, and under the
civil administration nsw Zentrale were
constantly organized.