The Chattanooga news. [volume] (Chattanooga, Tenn.) 1891-1939, 1918-11-25
ARMISTICE TO
Be EXTENDED
Feb | Probable Date-Pre.
Peace Conferences of IT.
most Importance.
ROB GERMANY OF TRUMP
No Hope Of Splitting Allied
Ranks-U. s. Plans Not
Mysterious,
ROB GERMANY OF TRUMP

(By John Edwin Nevin, !. N. 81
Washington, Nov. 25--Extension
of the. .armistice. hetween ,Qermany
and the United States and entente
nations until Feb. /, shortly will be
announced. This action is necessary
inasmuch as 1t now appears certain
that the initial sessions of the peace
conference will be delayed. The pre-
liminary conference. for which Presi-
dent Wilson Is going abroad next
week, will of necessity be Of the
utmost Importance. They are ex-
pected to result in general agree
ment between the four great nations
that must dictate the terms of peace
the United States. Great Britain,
France and Italy-so Nhat there will
be no friction at the actual peace
conference. And these preliminary
conferences, which will begin about
the middle of December, will rob
Germany of her greatest trump card
the hope that the ranks of the
allies will be split and enable Ger
many to trade instead Of accepting
dictated peace.
Finishing Touches.
With Secretary Of State Lansing
and Secretary to the President Tu-
multy back in Washington today,
finishing touches we're being, put upon
the presidents program. Whether
there will be an early announcement
Of the American peace delegation,
however, was a subject on which off,
Gals refused all information. The
presidents closest advisers have
urged him not to announce his COL
leagues on the peace conference, al
ways providing that he actually in
tends to head the delegation, until
he addresses congress when 1t as
sembles next week. AS a result of
this declaration, a shorter time be-
fore making public the personnel of
the party, the date of their sailing,
the less time there will be for in
terested parties to bring influence to
have themselves attached to the off,
cial party.
Resent mystery" Rumor.
Officials today were inclined to re-
sent suggestions that the adminls-
tration Is injecting mystery into its
plans for the coming peace confer
ence. Nothing could be further from
the truth, they say. Attention was
called to the attitude that Germany
all along has adopted in dealing with
her opponents. She has consistently
tried to array France against Eng
land and England against the United
States, and vice versa. And today
that attitude is even more apparent
than 1t was during the progress Of
the war. The only hope that Ger
many has of saving anything from
the wreck of her ambitions, adminis-
tration leaders declared today, Will
be in securing a disagreement be-
tween the big Four" Of the peace
conference. 1t was because he real
lied this fact that Premier Clemen-
ceau sent his invitation to President
Wilson ito sit by my side and
thresh out the problems Of peace.
Premier Lloyd George also concurred
in the invitation for the selfsame
reason. And the president, 1t can
be stated on the very highest au-
thority, Is in full sympathy with the
proposition for a complete informal
exchange of views and arranging
complete informal agreement on the
big points at issue, between the
leaders of thought before the actual
peace conference commences.
No Secret Diplomacy.
With the leaders a unit regarding
the steps necessary to insure to the
world a lasting peace, the work OF
the peace conference will be greatly
simplified. And the machinery to
secure such an agreement is ready
at hand. The interallied conference
has not met since 1t completed the
terms OF the armistice. At that ses-
sion, Col. E. M. House sat as Presi-
ing will be shortly after the middle
Of December. Then the president
will sit in person and he will be able
to elucidate his views for the benefit
of the other members.
Meeting In the closely guarded
headquarters in the palace at Ver-
sailles. the "big four will be able to
exchange opinions and draft their
program wfthotk any outside inter-