The Washington herald., 1920-01-25
GERMANS now
WILLTO WORK
Junkers Despair and Plot
But the Chiefs Are
T, Hopeful.
by JOHN LLOYD BALDERsToN.

that Germany was ''ueber allies"
Business men invariably adopt, In
talking with citizens of allied coun-
tries and especially with members Of
allied missions, a tone Of hopeless
peSsimism.
But to all this there is another side.
Among themselves. even before out
siders II they have dined and wined
well, the Gegman business men, the
manufacturer and big dealers. are
not so cast down as they would like
the world to think. Many Of them
believe Germany's "will to work" will
prevail over the difficulties made by
the haTd-hearted entente In this
story / propose to set down some of
the facts about the Industrial outlook
here as 1 have learned them through
a short personal investigation. and
questions addressed to allied officials
who have talked freely and met with
free responses from Germans whom
they know.
Junkers Losing wealth.
The Junker class, the old agrarians
VINO ran the country in former days
believes itself ruined. There Is no
camounage in their tale of misery.
They are losing most Of their wealth
Their political prerogatiyes are DIVINE
ding fast. Most of them have all
their wealth in land and livestock and
when the new capital tax Is imposed
they cannot pay in cash, but must
hand over part OF their estates to the
state. Land so seized is to be divided
into small allotments and sold on easy
terms to peasants: attempts made so
far to settle ex-soldiers and indus-
trial workers on farms, 1 was told
here. have proved unsuccessful.
The discontented Junkers are
mOnarchist to a man, but most of
them appear disgusted with the Hoh-
enZoflerns. and unable to suggest
a candidate for the throne. In the
office of Junker 1 saw today i'm
posing photographs of Hindenburg
and Ludendorff. covered with dec
prations. and under these two snap
shots of Scheidemann and Ebert in
bathing suits-fat. wet. foolish, and
bourgeois they seemed. Below was
the legend. "Einst and JetZt'-'Then
and Now!
But the Junkers are not taking
their extinction lying down. Most
Of the old army officers are with
them: they are carrying out a strong
nationalist propaganda in the coun>
try. and l am told with some sue
cess. Especially in East Prussia and
Bavaria their efforts infiamed the
peasants against the government and
in favor of the old order of things.
But il the backbone and brains OF
Germany can be trusted-the indus
trial and financial leaders-these
Junkers are fighting hopeless bat
tie. The heads of Industrial Ger
fnfa In, ha
great land magnates who looked
down on the big business men. pa
tronized them and sneered at them.
Germany's Fate Depends on In
dutry.
The fate Of Germany in these next
years depends upon her industry. The
entente in its own interest, il 1t WAITS
any indemnities at ALL must permit the
revival Of German economic life.
The analysis given below of the in
dustriaI position is / think sound: it
comes from sources in touch with
members of such firms as Thyssen.
Hugo SHINES. and KTupps-who have
beaten their swords into ploughshares
and are turning out locomotives and
agricultural implements.
The chief preoccupations at the mo-
ment of German industry are labor
troubles and the coal shortage. No
more serious strikes are expected this
winter. because the big unions ex-
pended most or all of their strike
funds in the great struggles last year.
BY next spring, when the strike funds
Eave been replenished, II is hoped
that even IL there are more walkouts
tic Industrial position will be such
that economic paralysis of the country
need not be feared.
Fewer Hours the Demand.
Not SO much the high wages de-
manded. as the fewer hours of work
alarm the great capitalists. They
are hopeful. however, that they can
educate the workers to the belief
that for Germany to recover every
German must work longer and
harder than the American or the
Frenchman-
To buy raw materials in the world
markets with the mark worth two
cents is indeed difficult. but business
enterprise has a compensation in the
, fact that labor is cheaper than in
any entente country. The German
worker costs his employer. in terms
OF real money value, not half as
much but one-ifth as much as the
French and British and one-tenth
as much as the American business
man has to pay.
Accordingly German enterprise
tends to turn to businesses which
require little raw material but much
labor.
Coal Shortage Affects Country.
All industries just now are badly
affected by the coal shortage. Some
German coal is going to France, how
much I shall not undertake to say,
having recently heard the claims Of
the French that they were getting
nothing but a little SCOT, and now
being told here that France is taking
almost all German mines. Somebody
is lying. and the odds are 1t is the
German But there is a serious coal
crisis here.
Certain great German firms, that
control coal mines as well as en-
gineering and steel plants, are using
theiF position to make enormously
rich contracts.
The government here at present ap-
pears to be completely dominated by
the great Industrial and financial in
terests. A secret advisory council
of the interests sits and passes on
what the government proposes to do.
II the council disapproves, II recon-
niends that the proposed action be
dropped, and Berliners tell you i'll
usually Is dropped.
situation Compared to o. 8.
Germsny finds herself in the posi-
tion we should be in after a reyo-
luton II a nominally Socialist gov
ernment were set up IN Washington.