The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1919-05-13

of birds out in The palace park the
silence is supreme.
An American newspaperman scrib-
bles something on q sheet OF paper
and shly shoves it to his neighbor
who reads:
Gust occurred to me Lusitania was
sunk exactly four years ago today.
| One, two, three, tolls a struggling
steeple bell. The man in the presid-
ing chair, Georges Clemenceau, rises
! with calm, deliberate dignity and an
| nounced:
"The session is open.
Again this foe of phrases astounds
the diplomatic world stepped in super
fluous verbiage For that is all he
says by way of ealing history's most
momentous gathering to order. First
it is almost like a shock to many OF
the veteran statesmen; then all seem
to heave a sigh of relief. His direct
ness and simplicity were reminiscent
of the way he opened the first session
of the supreme war council, in the
darkest hour of the conflict, when
Foch was made allied generalissimo.
The man who wasted no words in the
war would not squander sophistries
in making peace.
Germany's Delegates Enter.
In flash all eyes switched from
Frances "Tiger" to the door, flung
wide open by two liveried attendants.
One by one the names of Germany's
delegates were announced as they
entered. The last one in Clemncau
began in French:
Gentlemen, plenipotentiaries OF
the German empire:
"It is neither the time nor the place
for superflous words.
Then the venerable prime minister
of France laid down the law to the
| German representatives. 1--WE have
come to settle our account was one
Of his crisp sentences. His speech had
in it touch of grimness and here and
there it contained q subtle" emphasis
of the fact that the Germans must not
think they can bargain with the
victors; that the treaty in its essen
tials is, as far as the Allies are con-
| cerned, final.
! He told them almost in so many
words to put their complaints in
writing" and gave them 10 days in
which to make up their minds, prom
ising every facility and the courtesy
that is the privilege Of civilized ma
:, tions". Their observations, he said
must be written in French and
English.
! AS soon as he had finished, the
French premier handed khaki-bound
. copy of the treaty to M. Dutasta
, secretary-general of the conference
who in turn, presented it to Count
Won Brockdorff- ff-Rantzeau, assuring
him he and his colleagues could have
as many more as would be needed.
u Through window near where the
newspaper men sat could be seen a
steeple clock. It's fingers pointed to
exactly 13 minutes after when NJ.
Dutasta handed the document to
Rantzau.
! That all, pale, sharp-featured aris-
4 tocrat lost no time in replying to NJ
Clemenceau. A shadow had seemed to
/ fall across his face when the premier
said the Germans could make no oral
observations Upon a matching of wits
in debate he and his colleagues pre-
sumably had pinned fond hopes. Some
of the counts fellow-delegates had
exchanged disappointed glances when
the tiger" in his decisive way shat
tered those hopes.
/ Count Brockdorff must have decided
in that moment to speak out then and
there all of the guiding thoughts
which he and his peace work partner
Count Won Bernstorff, had been "out-
lining" between themselves in Berlin
for many weeks. His speech was a
long one. 1t was curious mixture
of bitterness, defiance and assurances
of Germany's repentant and concilia-
tory mood.
In the body of his first and last coral
observations" Brockdorff revealed the
basis on which Germany plans to build
the whole structure of all her argu-
ments for notifications; that by &C.
cepting the Wilsonian IA points she
| an9 har advarsa riaS entered into