The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1919-03-21
CLAIM NOT DEFEATED
Situation Without Doubt Critical But
There is No Change in Psy-
cholosy of General
Public.
BY Frank j. Taylor, United Press
Staff Correspondent.

BERLIN, Feb. 2S.-(by MALL
Three months careful study of Ger
many, following the signing Of the
armistice, forces the conviction that
neither war from without nor revolu-
ton from within has worked any
psychological metamorphosis of Ger
many as a nation, or of Germans as
individuals. Neither the strength nor
the weaknesses of the German people
evidences any transformation. The
minds which accept and apply the
terms of peace will differ but little
from those which steered the success
full course of the German empire up to
August, 1914.
The revolution has changed the
form of government. 1t has not
changed the governed. The war has
brought to Germany defeat. disaster
and restitution. 1t has not brought
despair nor humiliation A half dozen
speakers at the national assembly in
Weimar voiced the general feeling or
the people when they said, in effect:
1--WE have not been defeated mill
tarily. Hunger and the revolution
! forced us to quit. We accepted Presi-
/ dent Wilson's fourteen points and de-
modified voluntarily, according TO
the provisions of the armistice.'
The foreign Offices policies and the
attitude Of it's individual secretaries
are unchanged; It's personnel is prac-
Etically the same as before the revolu-
! ton, though the officials ell profess to
be democrats Now they claim they
opposed the war, especially employ
ment of "frightfulness.'
! Count Bernstorff is considered by
many well-informed Germans to be
the man who is really running the for
eign office, with his cousin. Count
Brockdorff- Rantzau, chief in name
only. The Germans feel that Brock
idorff-Rantzau's speech outlining the
nations foreign policy marked new
era in diplomacy because he stated
| frankly what the Germans consider
modest. These included retention of
the German colonies. a plebiscite for
| Alsace-I,orraine. repatriation of Ger.
man war prisoners and reparation for
damages only.
( Ostensfbly, the censorship was re-
moved with establishment of the pres
| ent government. Yet priority Of news
dissemination is still preserved as an
exclusive and monopolistic privilege
semi-official propaganda agency under
the old regime Foreign newspaper
correspondents dispatches are held
up six hours after the same INFORM
alton is obtained by Wolff This qua
rantees to that organization the op-
portunity of giving the world Its
first and therefore its strongest, i'm
preston of any internal German sit
uation
/ No German making the first pre-
tense at franMess will attempt TO
create the impression that the dis
astrous results of 1914-191S have Gre
ated any deep-seated aversion to mill
ltarism among the German people Men
and women, both in and out or govern
ment circles, talk very casually OF an
other war Of revenge against France
,if Alsace-L Lorraine is taken from Ger
many They refer to this possibility
as though it is to be accepted by
everyone as logical matter Of fact.
! Imperialistic, even monarchistic. ut
iterances during the national assembly
meetings have stirred up no opposi-
| ton from the delegates, except the
radicals. For instance, Count Posad-
owski, conservative leader. defended
| Bismarckism. He advocated re-estab-
fishing the old regime, which he call,
ed the most benevolent and adVan ICED
government in the world. The dele
gates. save for few radicals, listened
| blandly while Posadowsh declared
that a monarchy is the best form of
government.
In addition to the Wolff Bureaus
Influence on foreign propaganda,
there is now a new government de-
partment which is daily furnishing
the people with inspired opinion
through the press. The theme of this
! propaganda is: There has been no
revolution in Germany-just a new
form of government" With the excep-
ition of government organs, the press
refuses to take the national assembly
very seriously.
| A number OF the younger employees
who joined the government through
idealistic motives are switching to
the radicals, believing that real
revolution is coming when the indus
trial workers and soldiers councils
decide that their expectations are not
to be fulfilled These elements are
thoroughly organized and refuse to re-
jljnauish an iota of their power, though
a representative republic has been
established, because they apparently
mistrust the motives Of the coalition
leaders.
The situation in Germany, without
doubt, is critical as regards food, in
idustry and finance, but this does not
seem to have effected any radical
change in the psychology of the gen
eral public. Public opinion through
out the country does not fix the guilt
for the war upon Germany nor
upon the ousted ruling class. 1t does
mot acknowledge German military de
! feat. Germans believe they are in
'Ithe'r present position because-as
their propaganda tells them-thefl