Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1919-06-10
PROTEST OF THE GERMANS
Document that IIlumlnateS the Real
Meaning Of Peace Treaty.
WHY ALLIED TERMS ARE UNBEATABLE

Overthrown Empire is willing to Meet
Every Requirement Within the
Range of Possibility, Its spokesmsn
Say; but Cannot Attain the Impossi-
BILE.
Execution of peace treaty by the
Versailles conference is declared to be
more than the German people can
bear" by Count Won Brockdorff- Rant
Eau, head of the German peace dele
cation, in his note to the associated
governments. made public by the
state department. He further asserts:l
1.-The more deeply we penetrate into
the spirit Of this treaty the more
convinced we become of the impossi-
bility of carrying 1t out"
The text of the note, dated May 20,
and addressed to Premier Clemenceau,
president of the peace conference, fol-
lows:
Mr.. President I have the honor to
transmit to you herewith the obse.va-
tions of the German delegation on the
draft treaty of peace We came to
Versailles in the expectation of re-
ceiving a peace proposal based on the
agreed principles. We were firmly re-
solved to do everything in our power
with view Of fulfilling the grave OBJ
legations which we had undertaken.
We hoped for the peace of justice
which had been promised to us. We
were aghast when we read in docu-
ments the demands made upon us, the
victorious violence Of our enemies. The
more deeply we penetrate into the
spirit Of this treaty, the more con-
vinced we became of the impossibility
Of carrying it out. The exactions of
this treaty are more than the German
people can bear.
Territory Lost.
with a view to the reestablishment
Of the Polish State we must renounce
indisputably German territory, nearly
the whole Of the Province Of west
Prussia, which Is preponderantly Ger
German to the core; we must let the
ancient Hanse town be transformed
into a free state under Polish suzer-
ainty. We must agree that East Prus-
sia shall be amputated from the body
of the state, condemned to a lingering
death, and robbed of its northern por-
ton. including Memel, which is purely
German. We must renounce Upper
Silesia for the benefit Of Poland and
Tzecho- Slovakia. although 1t has been
in close political connection with Ger
many for more than 750 years, is in
stinct with German life and forms the
very foundation Of industrial life
throughout east Germany.
"Preponderantly German circles
(Kreise) must be ceded to Belgium
without sufficient guarantees that the
plebiscite which Is only to take place
afterward, will be Independent. The
purely German district of the Saar
must be detached from our empire
and the way must be paved for Its
subsequent annexation to France, al
though we owe her debts in coal only
not in men.
For fifteen years Rhenish territory
must be occupied, and after these Is
years the Allies have the power to re-
fuse the restoration Of the country; in
the interval the Allies can take every
measure to serve the economic and
moral links with the mother country
and finally to misrepresent the wishes
of the indigenous population
War Expenses.
"Althouzh the exaction of the cost
of the war has been expressly re-
nounced, as yet Germany, thus cut in
pieces and weakened, must declare
herself ready in principle to bear all
the war expenses of her enemies
which would exceed many times over
the total amount Of German state and
private assets. Meanwhile her enc
mics demand in excess Of the agreed
conditions reparation for damage suf-
fered by their civil population and In
this connection Germany must also
go bail for her allies. The sum to be
paid is to be fixed by our enemies un-
literally and to admit of subsequent
modification and increases. No limit
is fixed save the capacity Of the Ger
man people for payment, determined
not by their standard of life. but sole
ly by their capacity to meet the de-
mands of their enemies by their labor.
The German people would thus be con-
demned to perpetual slave labor.
I'm spite Of the exorbitant demands,
the reconstruction Of our economic
life Is at the same time rendered i'm
possible. We must surrender our mer-
chant fleet We are to renounce all
foreign securities We are to hand
over to our enemies our property in
all German enterprises abroad, even
in the countries Of our allies. Even
after the conclusion Of peace the
enemy states are to have the right Of
confiscating all German property. No
German trader in their countries will
be protected from these war measures.
We must completely renounce our
colonies, and not even German mis-
sionaries shall have the right TO fol-
low their calling therein. We must
thus renounce the realization Of all
our aims in the sphere of politics,
economics. and ideas
Sovereignty Abolished.
Even in international affairs we
are to give up the right to self deter
mination. The international repara-
ton commission receives dictatorial
powers over the whole life Of our peo-
pie in economic and cultural matters.
It's authority extends far beyond that
which the empire, the German Federal
Council and the Reichstag combined
ever possessed within the territory of
the empire. This. commission has un-
limited control over the economic life
Of the state. of communities, and Of
individuals. Furthsr, the entire edu-
cational and sanitary system depends