Saturday news. (Watertown, S.D.) 19??-19??, 1919-04-24
GERMANY
Sign TREATY. r
Sioux City Journal.)

impatient waiting for the
ment of the terms to be imposed on
Germany, the approach of the time
when that nation Will be informed of
its destiny raises the question of
| worked out will be accepted, or
whether the allies and the nations as
ISOLATED with them Will be forced to
use coerciye measures to bring about
peace and an actual cessation OF the
war. The question upperrnost in all
minds is, viii Germany sign?
If the flood of assertions that nave
been pouring out of ermany are
believed, Germany viii not sign any
treaty which gives her the worst of
the deal. For weeks there have been
declarations of individuals and news
papers that Germany will resist any
attempt to humiliate her pride or de-
stroy her territorial or industrial in.
tegnity. h national assembly has
put itself on record that it demands "a
peace based on understanding and re.
conceitsation." This term was tenta,
lively defined under the Michaelis ad-
ministration as meaning a peace that
would give Germany the essentials of
victory. President Ebert welcomes
the declaration of the. infiexible will
of he German people" to insist on a.
treaty that will leave Germany whole.
He charges: the conditions sought to
be imposed to the spirit of hate and
revenge" which the allies are mani
Testing in dealing with Germany. Won
BernstorT asserts that Germany can
pay NO indemnity now. The Vor-
Waerts say that the sums which are
demanded as indemnity could not be
paid ever if the last sheet is taken
from our beds" Reviewing these ex-
pressions Count Liehnowsky declares
that nobody can recommence the war
against US These excerpts are iiias-
tratiye of the talk in Germany before
the treaty is presented 10 the plenipo-
tentiaries.
But what Germany talks and what
the conditions will compel Germany
TO do are entirely different. Aside
1IOlIl alllt TlACt iDttk4 AZ II SSS6ill1iLI lllicl
the present government show a bris-
Ting name and that it take a stand
which may gradually be relaxed after
the terms are presented, Germany
must choose between national suicide
and signing the peace agreement. If
she refuses, the blockade will remain
and in addition the supplies of food
which have been going in by agree
nfent OF the peace conference will be
stopped and Germany viii be CON
fronted with certain starvation. A
people already suffering from the lack
of nutrition are not in physical con-
dition to withstand a prolonged per
iod of scant food or no food at all.
The German supplies are exhausted
except nong the rich who have
boarded against the famine now exist
ing. Signing the treaty will clear the
way for lifting the blockade. This In
turn VIII permit the importing of food
stuffs and the relief of tbs masses
from the danger of starvation. Ger
man brains may oppose signing the,
terms, but German gstomachs will de-
mand the acceptance o;:kariy ter::.sa.
German industry is PROSTATE be-
cause h~crssapsssao raw materials upon
which the manufacturing plants MAJ
work So long as the blockade remains,
no materials can be secured. The peo-
pie, even if they were willing ID work.
can nave no employment until such.
materials ars imported. and this can
not be done until the blockade is lifted.
The more Intelligent classes Of Ger
man people realize this situation, They
believe employment will quiet the dis.
orders which now exist. Whether they
are right or wrong is immaterial. But
their influence viii be IN favor Of sign
ing the treaty atsas early a date as
possible.
German leaders understand that d
refusal to sign the treaty as prepared
by the peace council would not mean
reona hestilities she
armies and tire establishment Of
The u~sliigerent conditions which ex-
listed before die signing Of the Noven.
bsr arnlistice The allied armies would
imfas-fsa.a. III POSITIONS HI nc1upy
at this time. the Blockade would he
maintained. Poland would probably
be stgsngthalsN OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
and the ernlaf people would be
pennea iii to gtarre Il fght among
/ themselves until tiadr coal.
Etions became sd anarchIstic
IWna5Id hHsfnrra IA ~ ha1H