The Monroe journal., 1920-03-30
GERMAN EMPIRE ENTIRELY
DEMORAIIZED BY CRIME
This taprccelented Nave Indicates
the CmnplCte Moral breakdown Of
the fatherlaId, Caused Chiefly by
Unemployment of SoldierS

the toiliiieie Moral breakdown of
the tatherland, Caused Chiefly by
Unemployment of soldiers.
I By A. W. PoRTERFIELD. in The
New York POST
IL IL were a tradition among the
more reliable German papers TO re-
gard the police court as the reporters
most legitimate field. there would be
no point in attempting to draw any
conclusion from the amount OF space
that is being devoted by them at pres
ent TO crime in all its phases. As
II is. a conclusion is forced upon the
reader; Germany is experiencing a
crime wave unequalled. possibly, in
her history since the close of the
Thirty Years War. Burglary and
murder are common occurrences.
IGhoulishness is ON the rampage.
From the tomb of Queen Louise 10
the new made grave of a fishwoman
In Hamburg from the electric light
bulbs OF cobbler's shop to the funds
of the state post office nothing is
leither sacred or safe. Thus the reyo-
luton was ushered in.
The wave has been confined to no
particular section of the country,
though ii is highest in the big cities,
around the ports and wherever there
is a considerable number of soldiers.
One item reads as follows: "A burg
larry has been committed even on the
Schneekoppe. the highest point in
Prussia. Thieves ascended the noun
tain during a snowstorm. broke into
the unoccupied building and stole all
the linen and wine that was TO be
found" For the week ending Feb
ruary 2Sth the Hamburg police re-
ported sixty-six cases in which lead
pipes had been stolen. Thieves arm
ed with hand grenades made a con-
certed raid on the cigarette stores of
Berlin. Tapestries valued at three
hundred thousand marks were taken
from the Bayarian castle at Herren-
chimesee. A farmer who had buried
sixty-three thousand marks in gold
in his garden during the war decided
recently to exhume his savings and
deposit them in bank. They had
been stolen. Four boys entered a
stable in The suburbs of Berlin. killed
he night watchman and took four
Belgian draught horses, which they
| had no trouble TO dispose of through
their agents"
Impressive as the number of crimes
! may be, ii Is their variety that gives
the completest clue TO Germany's ut
ter moral breakdown. Ii has become
difficult 10 gamble with success. for
the winner is in grave danger Ct hay
| ing his swag taken from him. One
man is wary about going on anpth-
er's bail lest he lose the deposit
Through a retroactive technicality."
Dinner parties are declined in the
fashionable section of Berlin out of
fear that wraps may be missing when
| II is time to 20 home. Huge guam
titles" of leather were cut from the
chairs of the great synagogue in
| Berlin. Rations delivered to the va
rious garrisons frequently disappear
in mysterious way. OF smuggling,
tax dodging and extortion there is
no end.
National monuments of the Hohen-
zollerns are being stripped of every
thing that Is valuable. The kaiser
Wilhelm Denkmal. the work OF Begas,
| facing the Royal Castle In Berlin,
was raided on February 27th. The
bronge bayonets and sabres and the
bronze wreath at the feet of the Nir-
gin were taken. But. worst of all,
the beautiful mausoleum of Queen
Louise in Charlottenburg. he work
of Rauch. was despoiled. The lid wa
removed from the Queens coffin and
every article of value removed. The
government has offered large re-
ward for Information leading to the
Identification of the ghouls. But rri-
vatc individuals who may be work g
on the case have been informed that
the "massive gold" wreath on tho
Queens sarcc ohagms was not massive
gold. bit gildcd silver. Commenting
on The Naw i'reie Presse Of
Vienna said: "Complete as Germany's
material collapse Is, ii cannot be so
bitter 10 heG as her moral collapse.
symbolized by this deed of devilish
| ~ " lays iit ohihSshS
fact that Germany is sick. slcker even
than she imagined: and. If the ply
sician is not soon found. her doom
Is set"
Ii is easy to explain this unprece-
dented crime wave in Germany. The
Hunger brings on strikes and strikes
increase hunger. II is impossible to
get out of Germany at any point but
the south, trains run with despairing
irregularity, and wrecks. virtually
unknown to the old empire, become
more common every day. Discharged
soldiers beg for aims, while those
who in actuality do not know whether
to consider themselves discharged or
not. as II turns out was the case with
the Baltic troops, have become ao-
customed to looking for loot. The
rabble, either unguided or misguided,
steal what they do not have. and as
sault when resisted. The middle
class ask for protection. or watch
for a chance The officials, mex
perienced in the management OF
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