Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1919-11-08

authority lowered the status Of the
general officers commanding the
home commands. Indeed, it was the
precise object of THAT law. which was
aimed primarily at them and all their
works. 1t is true that in the inter-
probation of the law relating to asso-
Citations and in the application of the
censorship, as well as in many mat
ters, it was a great disadvantage to
have a multiplicity of authorities, and
it must have led to considerable con-
fusion.
More and more, as the chancellor
yielded to party pressure. uncertainty
and confusion spread from Berlin to
the provinces. Independent action on
the part of the general officers COM
handing the home commands became
rarer and rarer. The law creating the
supreme military authority, which
might have done good. was intimate
ly fatal to us.
A further authority, with which
CHIC. had to deal as of equal status,
was the chief of the military cabinet,
who was responsible to the emperor
alone. He worked we'll and conscien-
tiously, forming his opinion Simply on
the reports of the staffs. He received
my views also in the case of the gen.
eral officers commanding armies and
the home commands.
Decorations Were Delayed.
Beyond this CHIC had nothing to
do with personal questions. save that
it was morally responsible for officers
of the general staff, and also for the
award of decorations. | should like
! to have seen at the head of the mill
tary cabinet men who had had real
personal experience of the fighting SO
that we could rely upon them to dc
justice to the corps of officers. AS il
was, this body worked too closely on
the lines of its peace time routine and
did not bring strong characters to the
front
In questions of decorations, too, the
| Importance of which must not be I'M
| derestimated, the chief of the mill
| tary cabinet had jurisdiction. Here
too, he relied upon the reports of the
army headquarter staffs. Unfortu-
nately, too long a time elapsed be-
| tween the recommendation and the
actual grant of decorations. 1t was
only after long and continuous pres
sure that CHIC. managed to secure
the grant of wounded badge.
The conduct of the war in the col
onies was in the hands of the colonia
secretary. In peace time he had no
maintained close touch with the gen.
eral staff on the subject of the con
duct of military operations in the col
onies. In 1904 General Count voI
Schlieffen only obtained the contro
of operations in South-Wes Africt
by a special order.
Colorcd Troops in Franco.
The colonial office had not pait
sufficient attention to the defensiv,
possibilities of the colonies. One can
not estimate too highly the benefits
France has reaped from her colonie
in the prosecution of the war, Es
4 pecially in the summer of 1918. sh
carried on the fighting largely b,
means of colored troops. We coult
never. of course, have done this, hu
we might have reaped greater advan
tage from our colonial possessions.
The band of German heroes in Eas
Africa succeeded in drawing off pow
erful enemy forces, which thus coult
not be used against Turkey. and ha'
to be replaced to some extent by othe
troops, thus weakening the western
front in the long run. l followed tn
campaigns in the colonies with inter
est. and was surprised that South
West Africa did not act with NOR
energy, 1t should not have fallen s