Evening star., 1920-02-05
KAISER URGED PEACE ON GAR
WITH ROOSEVELT MEDIATOR
Letter in 1905 Advised "Nicky'' to Make
Best of Bad Job and End War
With Japan.

In letter from the German kaiser
to the Russian czar dated June 3, 1905.
| the kaiser advised "Nicky' to make
| the best of bad job and conclude
peace with Japan The kaiser pro
poses President Roosevelt as media
tor.
At that time President Roosevelt
had already acted. June he con-
ferred with the Japanese minister
Takahira. at the White House on the
| possibility of opening negotiations
, for peace. on June he conferred
with the Russian ambassador. Count
Cassini. on June President RooSe-
| welt sent an identical note to both
Russia and Japan, proposing the open
| ing of peace negotiations. This was
/ accepted on June 10 and the confer
once at Portsmouth began August 3.
| The letter is one of those copied in
! the archives of the soviet government
at Moscow by Isaac Don Levine.
! Time for Peace Has Come
! BERLIN. June 3. 1905.-Dearest
| Nicky: The kind lines which you en-
! trusted to Micha's care and were
touched me. How l have been feel
| ing for and thinking of you all these
last months. I need not say, Also OF
every phase of Admiral Roshestwen-
sky's progress. The great stake
| which he represented in your hand
/
He did everything in his powers to
i come up to your wishes. but provi-
dence willed il otherwise and he met
defeat bravely serving his master to
| the last, Ny fullest sympathy is with
/ him and you.
| From the purely military strate
gical point of view the defeat in the
Straits of Korea ends the chances for
a decided turn of the scales in your
! favor; the Japanese are now free to
! Of
cruits. ammunition, etc, into Manchu-
ria for the siege of Vladivostok.
; which will hardly be able to resist
very long without fleet to support
| it. The army of Lenewitsch will need
| at least three or four fresh army
corps to bring it up to its former eff
| ficiency. and even then 1t is difficult
to foretell what the consequences will
be and whether another large battle
| will promise more success than the
! former did. Formally, it is, of course.
1 possible. even under these adverse
| circum stances, to continue the war for
/ any amount of time. But then on the
other hand the human part must not
be overlooked. Your country has sent
| thousands of it's sons to the front.
| where they died, or were taken i'll and
were left cripples for the rest of their
| lives. Now as l wrote to you in my
1 last 1etter-Feb. 6-the war is very
unpopular and the people see their
sons and fathers reluctantly, even
!Unwillingly. leave their homes to fight
! for cause they not only not es-
pouse. but abhor, Is it compatible
| with the responsibility of a ruler to
| continue to force a whole nation
| against its declared will to send it's
sons to be killed by hecatombs only
| for his sake? Only for his way of
! conception of national honor? After
| the people by their behavior have
| clearly shown their disapproval of a
| continuance of war? Will not, in time
[ to come. the life blood of all uselessly
/ sacrificed thousands be laid at the
rulers door. and will he not once be
! called upon by Him, the ruler and
! master of all kings and men. to an
swer for those who were placed un-
der his control by the Creator. who
| entrusted their welfare to him?
Suggests Concluding Peace.
National honor is a very good
| thing in itself. but only in the case
| that the whole of the nation itself is
determined to uphold it with all the
| means possible. But when q nation.
ways show that it has enough ant