Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1918-11-02

being made and the map OF Europe
Is undergoing Kaleidoscope changes
Marshal Foch, when he began his
srcat offensive on July Is last, started
the push that has set empires tumb-
ling about the heads OF their heredit-
airy rulers. Continued successes OF
allied arms on the western front has
been followed by sequence of events
which Is rapidly forcing the world
war to n glorious finish. Cessation OF
hostilities thru an armistice may come
within n week or may be delayed UNI
Gil spring. The time depends alto
gcthor on Gcrrlany--not the Hohen-
zollcrns of Germany but the people.
Should the internal crisis In the en-
pire result as now seems probable,
kaiser William viii! be forced to alb
dicate and peace will come speedily.
II on the other hand the war party
Ia able TO weather the political storm
he kaiser ard his crowd may succeed
i'm withdrawing their armies to the
strongly fortified positions along the
border or to the Rhine and delay the
end Of hostilities and invite conditions
which already have destroyed two
powerful empires and placed two
others in IL state OF hclplcssness for
years to come.
bulgaria cut loose from her alliance
with Germany while the quitting was
good Turkey rI"ycd a waiting game
but played too long. General Allenby
pat tie Tuhk army in Syria out Of
ousine:s, another British force in
Mcsopotamia completed similar
coup, and there was nothing left for
be Ottoman empire but unconditional
Surrender. Austria also chung to her
prussian alliance until - fatal day and
the dual monarchy is no more. There
is not enough left Of the AustriaHun-
garian empire to support the houses Of
Hapsburg and very few subjects re-
/naining to be ruled by it. Bohemia
Has set up an Independent state. and
hungary has done likewise and forced
acquicsccnse Of the emperor. The
CzechoSiavs in the north outside OF
bohemia either will join Bohemia or
co.lbinc with other states independ-
fcntly. Territory lying along the east
ern shores of the Adriatic and occu-
pied largely by Italians will be re-
stored to | Ny. 10 whom II as right
fully belongs as .Als3ce7 Lorraine be-
longs to France. The JuSo- Saws in
the south arc severinG the ties which
bound them to the Rapsburgs. These
deietions. forced and voluntary, leave
little of the, once powerful empire.
There remains; only that region near
the German border occupied by So
called Arotrians. who arc largely Ger
man and majority OF whom have
combined 70 form the German state
Of AUSTRIA with the ultimate and
doubtless proper mergement into \the
German CIR pre- in~view. The moment
he Austrc- Hungarian armies are in
formed Of the collapse of the dual
monarchy at home, there will be no
fight left in them. There does not APP
pear to he much combattiveness left
as it is.
The military and political leaders
of the allies are in no hurry to &C
ccpt Austrias plea Of an armistice.
A complete military victory was on
the way and appeared to be the short
est route to the entire elimination of
the Austro- Hungarian army. The de-
lay necessary in arranging terms OF
an armistice while Austria still had
something to haggle over thus has
been obviated. and when the allied
terms are forced upon Austria they
Will embody complete surrender and
leave the war council at Versailles
free to say what the final terms of
peace will be. AS conditions were
prior to the debacle, the allies had no
assurance there was any one author
lied to speak for Austria or to fulfil
it's part of any armistice agreement
If no armistice is formulated Austria
will be out of the reckoning from a
military standpoint. Emperor Karl
has, one slight hope, and that is to
make peace with the Czccho- Slovaks
and the Jugo- Slavs and erect on tho
ruins of the dual monarchy quad
ripple monarchy with self government
for it's three federal states. This would
appear to be hopeless dream and
the ancient empire seems to have
crumhled. It's disintegration marks
the passing of one Of the great powers
Of history, and at the same tin.e one
of the most brutal and tyrannical.
Thirty millions of its 1ubject peoples
suddenly have become freemen. This
development certainly was not among
the plans Of the Prussian and Aus
trian kaisers when they started a
world war on slight pretext-the as
sassination Of crown prince and his
consort by Serbian who was either
crank or the hireling Of the kaisers
themselves.
I'm taking measure of successes on
the battle field, the balance has swung
in favor of the allies. In every peace
offensive prior to the present one Ger
many has argued for peace based on
achievements in the field, and has
pointed to allied territory occupied by
her armies as calling for a German
peace Belgium and Serbia and Rou-
mania and the occupied portion Of
France were cited as examples Of the
prowess of German arms The collapse
of Russia, which was mot due to
enemy Victories on the field of battle,