Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-01-24
May Ask Berlin
to Demand Kaiser


''for the kaiser to stop where he is"
IF Napoleon had been allowed to die
of cancer in America. the Napoleonic
legend perhaps would have feebler
wings" he declares.
The Petit Parisien goes to the other
extreme, saying: ''The right of asylum
is only entitled to respect if the person
sheltered is himself worthy of respect.
and such is not the case here. Honor
cannot be involved if it favors one who
has forfeited honor in which Holland,
sheltering behind legal technicalities,
avoids the question of guilt, which is
no longer in doubt throughout the
world"
Text of the Reply
The text of the Dutch reply to the
demand for the former kaiser, received
yesterday, follows:
by verbal note, dated January Is,
1920, given to the envoy of the queen
at Paris, the powers, referring to Ar
demand that the government of Holland
give into their hands William of Ho-
henzollern, former emperor of Germany,
so that he may be tried.
Supporting this demand they OBJ
serve that if the former emperor had
remained in Germany the German Gov
ernment would, under the terms of Ar
ticle DDS of the treaty of peace, have
been obliged TO deliver him.
in citing as premeditated violations
of international treaties, as we'll as a
systematic disregard of the most sacred
rules of the rights of man a number of
acts committed during the war by Ger
man authority, the powers place the
| Of
the former emperor.
'"They express the opinion that Hol =
| land would not fulfil her international
duty if she refused to associate herself
with them, within the limit of her
ability, to pursue or at least not to
impede, the punishment of crimes com
mitted.
They emphasize the special char
acter of their demands. which contem
plate not a judicial accusation but al
act of high international policy anC
they make an appeal to Hollands re.
spect of law and love of justice not tC
cover with her moral authority viola
ton by Germany of the essential prin
cplcs of the solidarity of nations.
THE queen has the honor to observe
first, that obligations which for Ger,
many could have resulted from Articl,
22S of the treaty of peace cannot serv,
to determine the duty of Holland, whicl
is not party to the treaty.
1.-The government of the queen
moved by impreScriptible reasons, can
hot view the question raised by the de
mand of the powers except from th'
point of view of its own duty. 1t wa!
absolutely unconnected with the oriGil
of the war and has maintained. an,
not without difficulty, its neutrality t.
the end II finds itself then face to
face with facts of the war in Il position
different from that of the powers.
1T rejects with energy all suspicion
of wishing 20 cover with its sovereign
right and its moral authority viola
ticns of the csS ential principles of tn
solidarity of nations; but it canno
: recognize an international duty to as
sociatc itself with this act of high in
ternational policy of the powers,
"If in the future there should be in
stituted by the Society of Nations a
international jurisdiction competent t
Judge in case of war deeds, qualified a
crimes and submitted to its juridictio
by statute antedating the acts com
mitted, it would be fit for Holland to as
sociatc herself with the new regime.
Always Refuge for Nanquisied
THE government of the queen can
not admit in the present case any otne
duty than that imposed upon it by th
laws of the kingdom and national tradi
ton.
Nov. neither the constituent laws c
the kingdom. which are based upo
principles of law universally recognized
, nor n respectable secular tradition whic
= n has made this country always a groun
of refuge for the vanquished in inter
national conflicts. permit the govern
, ment of Holland to defer to the desir
J of the powers by Withdrawing from th
former emperor the benefit Of its law
and this tradition.
"Justicc and national honor, of whic
respect is sacred duty, oppose thil
The Netherlands people, moved by sent
; ments to which in history the worl
r has done justice, could not betray I'll
= faith of those who have contided then
) selves to their free institutions.
; THE government of the queen
! pleased to believe that the powers wi
J recognize the good grounds of the
= considerations, which rise above al
consideration of personalities an
a which seem to it so peremptory that thC
> could not reasonably give rise TO wror
: | intprDrctutiOnS' ~