The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-11-12
MEN, WOMEN
 AND THINGS

"The armistice has been signed" These words thrilled the world and here in America aroused us from our sleep early Monday morning
 It may be the ending of the war, or there is a slight possibility that it may flare up once more. There is this diff ferencet between the captitulations signed at Sedan by Napoleon II and his flight into Germany and the signing of the present truce.
 Then it was the Emperor of the French who did it, while at present it seems from what news Altering out of Ger many that the people in Berlin favor it, as well as those In the other great cities where revolutions seem to be in progress
 The spotlight which William the Ho. henzollern has monopolized for quarter of a century in the Vaterland has been turned upon the new chancellor Freder- lck Ebert. This fact alone ought to be enough to make Bismarck, the man of blood and iron" turn over in his grave at the mere thought that at last a ha ted socialist has been promoted to the place he once filled and used so ruthlessly to stamp out socialism.
 Now Ebert is the man of the hour in Germany and his. task is stupendous one. Will he weather the storm or will he go down as did Kerensky. or is the ship of state to be scuttled by a later Lenine or Trotsky? The right answer means not only much to Germany but to the whole world, for upon the govern ment set up in the empire depends the, settlement of the terms of the armistice.
 like the manifesto issued by Ebert For in it he gave out the fact that he was going to form a peoples government to bring about peace as quickly as possible'' and he addressed 1t to the citizens of Germany. That word may mean, however, much or little. Bear m mind that it was a prime favorite in the French revolution but that 1t bit hard into the reigning order and was used to cover up many cruelties. The Hohenzollern's fate was settled at Versailles. The Kaisers dynasty crum-
 bled with the smashing of his war ma chine. The empire of Napoleon III col lapsed at Sedan. The news Of the dis asrser reached Paris, the imperial govern hatnt. together with the national legisla- ture, simply disappeared, for the re- public was unanimously proclaimed, and a provisional government of national de- tense at once organized
 Now here Is the crux of the situation. Will the Germans under Ebert accept the terms of the armistice. having taken over the power of the Hohenzollerns, and grasped the privileges of the Reichstag, or will the nation proceed as did the French who refused to surrender be- cause Napoleon had been beaten at Se- dan, and like France go to work to try ana save the hour by organizing the ar.
 mics under the republic?
 The French went on fighting valiantly but hopelessly until in sheer desperation | they capitulated after the long seige of Paris. I, for one, do not believe that ! the Germans have the "guts" to follow the French precedent but will make terms before German cities are destroyed
 and Berlin itself is wiped off the map l for that is what further resistance will mean. It is a tremendously serious ques- ! tion, but am highly of the opinion tha: the allies to use our expressive slang
 have "Got Germany's goat" and that
 having hollered, in goat fashion, the fight l is over.
 hope that this is so for their sake and for the sake of huma nifty, for be 1t remembered that in the wake of the magnificent fight waged by the rem nant of despoiled France there followed i the commune which lit Paris sAp and caused it's streets to run with the blood of FreAchmen killed by the hands of other Frenchmen. It sank deep into the {! mortified mind of the world and still lin. gers as wretched nightmare after near 1 ly half of a century.
 |
 Sometime I want to write the story of Thiers who was put at the head of the state, for it is one of interest ana pertinent to the present crisis. only that
 now it Is Germany and not Franco which is going through the valley and the shadow of death and the future only can tell if a shepherd arose strong enough to save the nation.
 am confident that Germany Is tod near to Russia to take any chances or playing with theories and trying out the vagaries of irresponsible dreamers. ans
 that Ebert with his following will b'