The Butler weekly times and the Bates County record. (Butler, Mo.) 1918-1950, 1919-05-15
HUNS ARE DEFIANT
Declare That Germany Cannot and
# Will Not Sign the Peace
Treaty.

hi
Will Not Sign the Peace
Treaty.
Berlin, May Io.-Count Won Brock
dorff- Rantzau, dispatch from Ver
sailles says, has presented to Pre-
mier Clemenceau, chairman of til,
Peace Conference, a note declarinl
that the draft of the peace trxatl
contains demands which could 81
borne by no people. Manv of th,
demands, moreover, in the view. q
the German experts, are incapable p
accomplishment. MI.
A week of mourning" has beer
decreed by the government to siv,
expression to the sorrow and dc
preston called forth by the, an
nouncement of the peace terms. TIL;
week will begin Sunday. 3S
The decree provides that public
frivolity must be stopped for Il
period of eight days. Its provisions
affect the first-class theaters in ths
same manner as the popular cab
arets. Dancing, horse racing and
gambling will be suppressed for the
week, and the occasion probably will
be used to put definite end to thu
gambling frenzy which is holding
greater Berlin in its tentacles. 4
season of soul searching would seem
to be the most probable reaction to
the frivolity and gambling which has
been in progress. 4
Berlin, Thursday, May S.-The
people, though fairly stricken dumb
by the peace terms, are now recov-
ering sufficiently to declare that Ger
many cannot and will not sign the
compact, no matter what comes.
Strikes are increasing and Bolshc-
vism and the Spartacan uprising Of
the past two months, have, if any
thing, made Germans immune to the
possible horrors which are to be an
ticipated if they are again plunged
into war, according to the best opin-
ion here. .
There exists a small group of Ger
mans, chiefly conservatives, who pre-
ter to- see the entente occupy the
whole country than to have it Boi-
shevist.
The parliamentary leaders of all
factions who are in Berlin to attend
committee meetings admit they were
stunned by the severity of the pro-
posed peace terms. However, they
declined to discuss the Entente's
conditions or details or to forecast
the assembly's probable attitude.
Reports from the Versailles corre-
spondents emphasize the. feeling al
amazement and excitement which
prevailed in reading of the terms Of
the Peace treaty. All the corre-
spondents agree that no hasty de-
cision will be reached. A fortnight
is allowed the Germans for an an
swer, and this time will be used for
careful consideration of the demands
and the preparation of counter sug-
gestions, the correspondents say.
According to the Berlin Zeitung
Am Mittag, the delegation at Yer
sailles will carefully avoid any bar
gaining, but will present definite,
clear cut counter propositions, which
in part have already been prepared.
These counter proposals." the
newspaper declares editorially, will
be based on the fourteen points SO
disgracefully abandoned by Presi-
dent Wilson. If the German people
had to vote on these terms, as a |
whole there would not be in the |
whole empire single yes Force
without measure or limit-that used |
to be Wilson phrase; and the Will
son peace offered US yesterday falls
in this category, instead OF OH his
fourteen points
Berne, May o.-The German gov
ernment has telegraphed to the dele
gates at Versailles ordering them to
present to the Allied and associated
powers within the fifteen days al
lowed proposition demanding yer
bal discussions, dispatches from. Ber-
lin say. Il
The peace committee of the Ger
man national assembly at a meeting
Thursday discussed the peace terms.
President Fehrenbach of the assem-
bly, declared that the terms presented
10 Germany were more drastic than
the most pessimistic forecasts had
indicated and that the provisions
meant the perpetual enslavement of
the German people. He declared
that the treaty was dictated by hate.
Chancellor Scheidemann, Berlin
iispatches add, pointed out what he
:alled the contradictions between
President Wilson's principles and
The peace terms. He described the
terms as being death sentence for
he German people.
The committee adjourned after ap-
srovings tn announced intention Of
he government to obtain IAN ac-
;eptable peace" by negotiation.