South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1921-09-16
GERMAN WORKERS
TIRED OF REVOLTS
Return 10 Good Old Stolidity
and Settle Down-Grumble
About Cost.
~ ALFXANpER NJ THONPsON.

~by ALEXANDER VI. ihONFSON.
BERLIN. Sept 1--we have had
revolutionary movements. dictated by
Moscow. we have had sectional
strikes. instigated By Moscow; we
have had disturbances at socialist
meetings. melted By Moscow" ad-
mitsed Herr Sassenbsch- But now,
onplacent ly added the eloquent labor
leader. the German workmen have
returned to the good old German
character, which does not Ike IN
rest"
Herr Leipart, the obviously in
teliecmaI successor TO Legion in the
general secretatyship Of German
trade unioniEn. cordially cOncurred
IN Herr .SaGsenback's view. which
has. moreover. been confirmed 20 me
IN a dozen talks with working men.
When the revolution came and
brought a socialist saddler (Herr
Ebert) 20 the presidency OF the re-
public they expected the millennium.
Their hopes were bitterly disappolnt-
ed. and under the influence OF the
Muscovites they variously mani
N(ested." But their spasmodic strikes
failed. their riots failed, and alasl
even Moscow failed; the very natural
result being that. as Herr Sassen-
bach says, they have now returned
70 the good old German character"
'We Must Work"
we had thought" said a smart
young workman 70 me at Spandau,
that when Ebert ga power came
socialism 20 power would come. But
it now seems that we must longer
walt. Ebert IS a good fellow and
does his best. but the war has made
III difficult for him TO carry out his
program. So we wait, and. 20 make
81 easier for him, we must work"
That Is "the good old German
character -pugnacious. Yet wonder
fully docile; hard to arouse, easy to
placate- VIII il uphold the republic ?
see the Hfe-size portrait Of the
kaiser still truculenly conspicuous in
the restaurants, and picture post
cards OF the Kronprinz in pathetic
poses IN the shop windows, and
wonder. This was not the way Of
France in 1870. When France scrap
ped Napoleon It also scrapped all
records and reminders of him. But
yyas woIlen sic, the Germans are not
Trench. NIGHT wahr? The good old
German charactec does not like IN
rest
There Is some placid gTumbling
about wages. The workers tell me
that their earnings have been multi
piled by ten and the cost OF living
by Il or 10. When 1 showed an en-
ployer the figures which, in support
OF this statement, had been given
TO me by a workman, with u char
acteristic expression OF exquisite ur-
banity he denied IL. The fact never
theless remains that butter, which
was sold at one mark 20 pfennigs
before the war. now costs IS marks
(normaIly So; milk has risen from
90 pfennigs per litre 20 three marks
so pfennigs, and though the rate Of
exchange makes things cheap for the
English visitor, the prices of COM
modities to German workmen must
be terrible.
Skilled Are Disconnected.
In comparison with England, Herr
ers are not as well paid. But the
standard OF the unskilled stands at
something like so per cent OF the
skilled mems minimum. Employers
tell me that the wages of the un-
skilled rose out OF all proportion TO
those OF the skilled workmen and
that the craftsmen are consequently
very disconnected
AS for discomfort. said Herr Sac
senbach. II continually address big
meetings. but it has never been men
toned 10 me-"
Trade unionisrn was not nearly as
strong In Germany before the war
as with US In 1914 the total mem
>Sership was two and one-half mil
Ions At the end Of the war IL
had dwindled 10 about half. Now fl
amounts to eight millions. When I
congratulated Herr Sassenbach on
this amazing increase be shrugged
his shoulders despondently. "All Is
not good fish" he said. that comes
20 the net. The newcomers include
n great proportion Of workers who
had previously refused 10 join the
ANl4NAE. ER0Ar-r ANU E4ttN e. - 2 p y
shouters and brawlers. men without
experience or responsibility who. by
their loudness. captured the power.
They have been the cause OF all our
troubles. But now the workmen are
returning 10 the good old German
character. They do not Ike unrest -
Fall In! Tor the First Fall FroIIc