The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1921-05-31
GERMAN ARMY
IN SILESIA TO.
Be DISBANDED
Defense Organization In up
per Silesia To Disarm as
Soon as Inter-allied Author
ity is Re-established.
ALLIES Are INACTIVE
nv Associated p, ess.

OBERGLOGAU. Upper Silesia, May
31.-German defense organizations in
this city and in other towns west OF
the Oder river will disarm and dis
band as soon as inter-allied authority
has been re-established in Upper ST.
lesia. said General Won Hoefer. COM
mander of German guards in this city
yesterday He added that the allies
should be thankful the Germans had
organized these men and had main
tanned order instead of trying to dis
arm and disband the defense troops
at this critical time"
I'VE do not want to keep these men
under arms minute longer than
necessary" he went on. "but we must
protect ourselves"
General Won Hoefer lost his right
arm during the great war. and is con-
sidered the strongest German person
ality in Silesia. He is credited with
having established discipline among
the defense forces gathered along the
Oder. but many of the men he has
disarmed, and others who came here
from Germany were sent back.
Prevents Advance.
General Won Hoefer has repeatedly
prevented the Germans from starting
a general advance, rising one morn
ing at four O'Clock to send orders to
Germans already under way toward
the Oder to turn back. He has been
in close touch with the British control
officers in Upper Silesia and is said
to have had considerable influence
with allied officials.
The first defense organizations
formed here were composed Of rather
irresponsible young men from other
sections of Germany. Many of these
men were disarmed and sent back
home, while one corps that was found
guilty of plundering was forced to
give up its arms. Men who have been
unable to produce evidence that they
were Silesians have been withdrawn
from the organizations. Rigid disci.
pline has been established and opera
tions are being conducted in strictly
militan manner.
PARIS, May 31.-The exchange OF
views between London and Paris re-
garding a meeting of the allied su,
preme council to consider the Siles-
ian question has reached a sort of
dead center.
Mr.. Lloyd George. the British prime
minister, is insisting that the premiers
meet previous to the creation of an
expert mission to examine the Silesiar
problem, while Premier BRAND. of
France is persisting in the view that
the experts ought to take up the ques
tion and make a report before the SUI
preme council endeavors to solve the
problem.
Premier BRAND handed the British
ambassador here last evening a note
repeating the French argument and
dwelt upon the impossibility of the
premiers taking effective action pre-.
vious to the examination Of the ques
tion by experets.
French View.
The French view is that the pre-.
miers should not meet before June 16
France pointing out that when the
council convenes it will have not only
the Silesian issue, but the German dis
armament problem to settle unless
Bavaria meanwhile submits to the de-
mand from Berlin for the dissolution
of the Bavarian einwohnerwehr.
In the meantime, the French atti-
tude is that the penalties already ap.
piled to Germany shall not be raised
until Germany begins the efficient ex.
ecution of all the clauses of the treaty
of Versailles.