South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1921-12-18
MILITARY LEADERS
OF GERMANY DREAM
Intense Desire to Retain Mill
tary Strength Marks
Spirit of Regime.

before the convening OF the Washington
conference
No body of men in Europe have
been more industrious, more vigil
ant. more cunning. since the armis-
tice than have the body OF German
military leaders. active or re
tired" in their endeavor to preserve
all that might serve as a foundation
for future strength.
Their evasions OF the Versailles
armament clauses. their parties and
thrusts against the efforts OF the
control organizations, have been un-
interruptedly pursued in spite Of al
lied notes and allied supervision on
the spot.
Present Regime Ignored.
OF the redoubtable list of COM
manders who have distinguished
themselves In civil warfare as we'll
as on active service one need only
recall such names as HOfer. Lettow-
Vorbeck, Won der Goltz. Wangen-
helm, Luttwitz and Reinhard to re-
alize which leaders would swiftly re-
gain their former prominence should
allied watchfulness be relaxed.
For these men the present regime
simply does not exist They stand
aloof from all ideas Of treaty full
illment. They do not accept the
changed map Of Europe.
But this array of disappointed
army chiefs, dangerous as its influ-
ence may become. is only part of the
danger that has to be considered.
The TeutOnic scientific mind is big
ger and more alert even than the
Teutonic military brain.
Factories are at work at high
pressure on potential war accoutre-
ment and material. I have heard
the conviction expressed by more
than one authority that the explos-
ion that devastated the Badische
Fabrik at Oppau would not have
occurred had no experimental work
connected with manufacture of en-
gines OF war, in some shape or form,
been INDUCED in there.
A New German Machine Gun.
Chemical research and even bac-
THEOLOGICAL experiments, with war as
the ultimate end in view, are being
carried out in universities and lab
oratories with that intensity and
thoroughness that marked pre-war
preparation Entirely new imple-
ments and methods of destruction
are being sought.
AS a striking instance of what has
already been done in direct expert
ment, it is known that the Germans
have perfected various new types of
machine guns. some of them double
or treble barreled, some worked by
electrical devices which obviate the.
necessity of gun crews.
AS described to me by an expert,
one of these machine guns. weighing
some % pounds and capable of
spreading two thousand rounds per
minute in a complete circle from
each Of its three barrels, could be
worked electrically by machine
gunner squatting, say, half a mile
from the gun. Think Of it-no crew
at the gun side. and 5000 shots
minute in any direction, or in three
directions at once!
Skeletons OF Former Units.
It is frequently supposed that, in
spite Of much chicane and not
little pugnacity from the German
general staff, the allied military rep
resentatives have succeeded in eff
fecting the genuine reduction of the
legitimate regular army, the Reich
swehr, to an establishment of 1OO,-
00O That is, however, a mistaken
notion
On the one hand, every conceiv-
able trick has been. and IS being. re-
sorted to. with a view to maintaining
an ample surplus establishment of
officers in commands and subordin-
ate STATS. BY means of shufflings
and attachments" the complement
of senior officers. particularly, is still
in excess OF actual requirements
A glance at the latest Reich
swehr lists suggests that the existing
regimental staffs might well serve
as divisional headquarters STATS, the
group of officers at the disposal of
the colonel commanding being mod
eled on an elastic scale to permit of
widespread training in staff duties.
The percentage Of seniors in charge
Of infantry companies is quite dis
propOrtiOnate.
Army Corps in Miniature.
a table Of comparison between the
old army corps and the new units
shows that the latter are consistent
~ modelled as miniatures of the for
mer. maintaining their ancient ira
ditions, drilling into their recruits
the history and example Of their
regimental predecessors.
They are stationed in practically
every instance IN the towns which
served as their pre-war garrisons. A
couple of companies of the 18th
Retchswehr corresponds 10 the IA
nous Leib regiment: squadrons of
mounted Reichswehr correspond to
various regiments OF Uhlans; and so
on.
In addition, I understand that this
method OF subterfuge has been ex-
tended by some of the federal states
to the PoIizei as we'll As an ex-
ample, a former regiment of Pomer-
anian grenadiers was indicated, the
rank and file OF which are now 10 be
found in the companies OF the Stet-
tin security police.
Still a Menace.
In sum, the present day Germany
presents no more striking feature
(apart from the rapid strides the
country is making toward economic
prosperity than the insistence with
which her professional soldiers op-
pose. step by step and week by week,
a reduction OF her military might.
II seems only yesterday that mil
lions OF Englishmen let fall the
threads OF their placid existence, and
with millions of brothers in arms
went into action with a stupendous
but straightforward task before
them. That task was the smashing
up, at all costs. even at the cost CT
the last human sacrifca Of The o.