The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1919-07-19
CHANGE IN AFRICAN TERRITORY
IMPORTANT EFFECT OF treaty
Rx FRANK a. sIMoNpS


The attention of the world has been
o concentrated upon European as
,ects of the Treaty Of Versailles, that
he provisions Of this document affect
ng Africa have provoked relatively
little comment, yet, In point OF fact.
he African detail Is not impossibly OK
more importance for the future than
Ill the territorial changes, SO far as
Germany herself Is concerned, on the
European map.
When the war came, Germany had
constructed on African soil, an empire
If more than a million square miles.
i've times the area of the German en-
pire in Europe, with a population OF
nearly thirteen millions. Nor did Ger
nan ambition pause at what had been
accomplished. Her two great colon
es Of tropical Africa, the Kamerun
md German East Africa, were to be
foundation stones in grandiose edt-
Ace, which was to span the Dark Con-
tinent. If there was to be a Mittel-
europa, as a result OF the victories OF
German arms on the European front
lers. there was just as surely to be
\ Mittel Africa, crossing the African
continent from the Atlantic to the
Eastern Ocean and in addition, Ger
man Southwest Africa was to advance
northward to Join this central terri
tory. while It also extended southwark
to include the union Of South Africa.
In German calculation Belgium was
to surrender her Congo. Did not Bern
hardi, long before the war IN his men,
orable volume suggest that the mere
possession Of this colony, might de-
prive Belgium Of her neutrality
France, already forced to yield half OF
her Congo, as Compensation for her
Moroccan acquisitions. was TO COM
plete the surrender Of this great CAL
ony. These French and Belgian ces-
sions would unite the Kamerun with
German East Africa. Moreover. the
Germans had constructed Q railroad
from the Indian Ocean to Lake Tan
Igsnyika, which was to be the back.
bone Of this ooeanAoocean empire.
Dreamed Of vas& Empire
! But this waa only ona OF the Ger
man dreams. When the war came,
and Turkey 3pdned theaka1ser, then the
Germans promised to the sultan the
return OF his rights In Egypt Britain
was to be evScted, Turkey was nomin-
ally to come back, but actually Ger
many was to ,succeed the British. In
was to be- assured, beyond the chal-
llenge of seapdwer, by pushing a
branch OF the Bagdad railway south
ward from Aleppo. A new railroad,
borrowing existing lines as far as the
edge of the desert was to extend
across the suez canal Joining Cairo
and Alexandria with Damascus and
Aleppo and thus with Constantinople
and Berlin.
And, once In Egypt, Germany dream
ed of following tho example of the
Arabs, and sweeping westward on the
Mediterranean shore until she reached
Tripoli. Tunis, Algeria, Morocco. Dor
rowing the mantle Of the prophet to
sover the ambitions Of the HohenZol-
lern. In the German mind, Africa,
with relatively small exceptions, was
to be German territory, French, Bel
gian, Italian and Portuguese colonies,
were to be seized and Germany was to
acquire an inexhaustible reservoir,
alike of men for future wars, and of
raw materials for future trade con-
ficts.
Looking backward now over more
than a quarter Of a century, one can
see how Germany has treasured and
fostered the African dream. One can
also see the successive disappoint,
ments. When Britain conquered the
Boer Republics all Germany felt a
sense of resentment, revealed in the
Kaiser's message to Kruger, since
one Of the chosen fields of German ex
pansion was thus preempted. When
France finally began to occupy Moroc
CO, after her great bargain with Bri
tain, following the Fashoda crises
German resentment was disclosed ir
three separate attempts to block the
absorption of the last remaining f1elc
open for German expansion.
And now Germany loses not alone
the dreams for the future, but the
reality of the moment when the wal
came. BY the treaty of peace she 1:
deprived of every foot of her African
holdings. More than this, to make as
surance doubly sure. she Is compelled
to surrender such claims as she hac
upon France for equal opportunities
in Morocco, claims based upon thu
successful manoeuvres Of her diplo
mats at Algeciras, and afterwards
during the Moroccan clashes, While
Britain acquires with the consent o
the world, the United States express
ly asserting, a protectorate in Egypt
which gives her that free hand sh'
has lacked hitherto.
Africa Closed to German.
Henceforth, then, Africa Is closed t
the German. He renounces his claims
in Morocco, commercial claims, no
territorial, although he has always
cherished the hope, expressed in thu
Agadir time quite forcibly, Of trans
forming them into territorial claims
He signs away his position in Egypt
He renounces his agreement will
Britain by which, when Portugal con
scented to part with her African es
tates, Germany was to acquire a larg'
fraction. AS France was compelled t.
retire from America, after Montcaln
had lost Quebec, Germany is now t.
leave Africa.
But the elimination Of Germany Il
only one Of the African changes whicl
will follow the present settlement. Ac
tually Germany cedes her colonies t,
the allies not to any one nation. Blu
the allies have already sketched tn
ultimate division of these territorie
in secret understandings and treaties
Thus France is to recover all of he
lost Congo lands, coded to Germany II