Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1920-03-13
HISTORY OF THE
EBERT GOVERNMENT
Continued from page i

.complish their legitimate claims to
The independent Socialists, includ-
ing a radical element favorable to
Bolshevism and. known as Sparta
.cides complicated +, Ebert's problem.
these radicals including Karl Leb-
knecht. and Rosa Luxemburg, were
freed from prison and the two mem
toned were subsequently assassinat-
ed.
The national assembly which elect
ed Ebert was formed for the purpose
Of adopting q constitution. Its docu-
ment which was approved last
August 2 provided that "the execu-
power of the upper chamber Of the
Reichstag was limited similar to the,
British House of Lords. There were
special protection for labor and
generally accepted rules of interna-
tional law were Incorporated in the
new instrument. Ebert took the
oath of Office on August t23 and two
days later the aNational Assembly
ceased to exist, it being superseded
by the new Reichstag.
Philip Scheidemann was the first
premier of Germany under Ebert.
Gustave Noske, formerly Minister Of
Rehabilitation and before that gov
ernor of Kiel, was named the first
minister Of army and navy. BY rea-
son Of his drastic enforcement OF
new regulations he became known as
IA dictator"
i The First Cabinet.
Other members Of the first Ebert
cabinet follows:
Minister Of interior, Herr Preus;
minister of justice. Herr Sendsberg.
minister Of commerce. err Muller;
minister Of labor, err Bauer: minis
ter Of foreign affairs, Count Won
Observation-Disclosures former German
minister to Denmark; under foreign
minister, Won Richthofen; minister OF
finance. Herr Schiffer3 minister of
postal and telegraphs, Herr Gels
berg: ministers without portfolio, DR..
Matthias Erzberger; armistice COM
missioner, former state secretary and
leader of the Centrist party; Eduard
David, president of the National AS
sembly and Herr Wissel.
& Many Changes.
The Ebert government underwent
many changes by eason Of political,
economic and popular demands. q
The first real crisis to threaten the
Ebert regime, however, arose over
1.-THE question of accepting the peace
ASUly ~ H.. LUCIts SUPERINTENDENT
and other leaders were opposed to
yielding to the Entente demands
Scheidemann resigned and q pro-
treaty cabinet including DR.. August
Mueller and ex-Labor Secretary Bau-
er, former socialist member OF the
Reichstag. was organized. Bauer in
a speech at Weimar before the Ma
fEonal Assembly denounced the treaty
in strong terms but announced the
4 ar~svA n4-A l-~t-a>- 49, l., III. A.|Et2
For weeks before the revolution
broke out in Berlin there was a
steady run on German banks. Ebert
then chancellor, had a conference In
Berlin on November 25,s8191S with
( seventy delegates from various parts
of Germany, said: Everything was
III ruin when we took charge. Now,
however. a Socialistie republic has
replaced the monarchy ana /power
workmen and soldiers The first aim
to be achieved, he said, was peace
and tho security of an economic
basis. Liberty, he maintained. was
worthless without food. and employ
ment and It was as a result of this
conference that the National Assem-.
bly, met last spring to devise a con-
Estitutional form or government.
Meanwhile the provisional govern,
tment had been in an almost constant
state of fiux. Ministers came and
went. Owing to scarcity of food
clothing and fuel, conditions in many
parts OF Germany were reported des-
1perate and there were many rumort
that Soviet government would super
lsede the Ebert regime.
President Ebert had the backine
of the moderntes of Germany almdsa
from the beginning. One reason 70,