The Cordova daily times., 1920-08-04
GERMANS BLAME. OFFICIALS FOR
 WEAKNESSES.


 and to act democratically," writes Gustav Noske, former minister of de- fense of Germany and still regarded as the strong man" of the moderate Socialist party, in an article just pub iished.
 Some time must be allowed to pass before it attains the same measure of citizens-consciousnes and democratic se1f-confidence to which some other nations were educated a century ago or longer and which with those nations have gradually become flesh and blood.
 "The average German, regardless of what party he belongs to, still planes primarily the ministers and other men in leading positions for his own faults and weaknesses as we'll as for the many evil consequences of four years of war. Instead of realizing that he must be the master of his fate and forge his own destinies, the average German still shifts the responsibility to those who were or are in office.
 But from this one must not deduce the right to scold the German people or to consider it's political capabilities inferior to those of other peoples It is the product of a peculiarly formed political development which allowed democratic manhood in Germany to grow only slowly and mature so late.
 "The German was up to very recent times not self-confdent independent citizen of a state, but subject of princes and authority. This is true notably of the north and northeast of Germany, and it has it's definite polit- ica1 and economic causes. Upon hard soil, in rough climate, the Branden burghers and Prussians were con- pelled for centuries to fight stubborn battle for existence. Again and again the country was the scene of devas- tating wars. Only through the stub- born exertion of all energies by polit- ical direction and considerably mili- tary strength could an important state entity be developed which during the last century attained considerable cul- trFal and economic mower
 ''The great mistake of the leading castes was that they preserved a half absolutist political and military sys- tenn after the necessity for it had ceased to exist.
 "In the industrially highly developed Germany of the last few decades, also, the mass of the people was kept from direct participation in the conduct of state affairs. It-is true that the reich stag electoral system had a demo- cratic character, since every man of 25 years of age was allowed to vote. The national representation itself, however, was greatly restricted in it's powers by the bureaucratic govern ment and the kaiser The diets of the various states were elected for the most part under antiquated systems. The main evil, however, was that for the direction of the nations business and for the administration of commun- ities, states, and the empire itself, only carefully selected and mentally trained men were chosen, most of whom were of conservative political faith.
 Equality of all citizens of the state stood on paper, but it did not exist in practice, even after, in 1890, the law was nullifed which placed the Social istic body of workers under excep- tional and discriminatory regulations. Only in very rare cases could liberal get into a governmental office, with the exception only of the three south German state.
 Socialists were excluded as a mat ter of principle: Up to the outbreak of the war, no postal, railway, or police official could openly declare himself a member of the Socialist party. Prompt reprimand would have been his fate Tn the army and navy, dem ocratic sentiment was even more se- verely banned. The principle that the promotion of the soldier should be gov erned solely by his military ability was a purely theoretical conception. No man known as @ Democrat would have become an officer had he made the attempt to get a commission. Until the outbreak of the war all min- isters of war considered as a natural