The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1921-05-20
Germany shorn of All Power.

American influence was the pre-
dominant factor in the whole course
of modern German history.
1. It was the weight of the gigan-
tic American military machine which
finally turned the tide in favor of tbs
Allies on the Western battle front.
2. The German revolution in No
vember, 1918, which led to the com
plete collapse of Germany, was at
tributed to President Wilson's dec
larations that America and the AL.
lied powers would not treat with the
Hohenzollern government in making
peace.
3. Secretary of State Hughes
note warning Germany to accept the
Allies final indemnity terms is held
mainly responsible forN Germany's
acceptance of the ultimatum.
Acceptance of the Allies ultima
tum by Germany, which pledges the
German national honor and all OF
the material resources of the confed-
Grated German States to pay the war
bill, is the most m6mentous event in
international history in recent years.
1t is, in effect, reaffirmation of
the treaty of Versailles, for Germany
not only promises to pay in full the
reparations demanded by the Allied
powers, but also to meet obligations
under the treaty that have so far
been evaded.
Under the terms of the ultimatum,
Germany's war making powers are
taken away from her. She will be
left with nothing but police force;
her war criminals will be punished
and for more than a quarter of a
century she will be pushed to the
limit of her commercial, industrial
and financial capacity TO meet her
financial obligations to the Allies.
BY accepting the ultimatum Ger
many confesses her ability to pay the
indemnity demanded. The war bill
must convince Germany that war
making is a bad financial invest
ment. The interallied reparations
commission fixed the present German
debt to the Allies at approximately
$33,75O. 000,00O
The German national debt is esti-
mated at nearly $40,000,0O0,0 900.
This combined obligation makes u
staggering total and it is safe to say
that it will be more than half CEN
fury before the German people cease
to feel the tax strain imposed upon
them by the aspirations of their war
lords.
London, May 1.-THE text of the
German reply as delivered to the
prime minister began as follows:
"Mr. Prime Minister: In ac-
cordance with instructions just re-
ceived l am commanded by my gov
eminent, in accordance with the de-
cision of the reichstag and with ref
erence to the resolutions of the al
lied powers of May 1921, in
the name of the new German govern
ment to declare the following:
1.-THE German government is fully
resolved, first, to carry out without
reserve or condition its obligations
as defined by the reparations COM
Second, to accept and carry out
without reserve or condition the
guarantees in respect of those obli-
cations prescribed by the reparations
Third, to carry out without re-
serve or delay the measures of mill
itary, navel and aerial disarmament,
notified to the German government
by the allied powers in their note of
January 20, 1921, those overdue to
be completed at once and the re-
by the prescribed date.
Fourth, to carry out without re-
serve or. delay the trial of war Grim
mails and to execute the other un-
portions of the treaty re-
'erred to in the first paragraph of the
allied government of May 5.
II ask the allied powers to take |
note Immediately of this declaration.
"(Signed) STEAMER"