New-York tribune., 1922-02-27
Germans Consider
Making ing Treaty an
Issue in Election
Choice of President MAY BE
Linked With Selections
for Parliament i'm Contest
Next June or September
BIZ w.rcfess to- the TRIBUNE


copyright, 1872. New York Tribune IucD
BERLIN, Feb. 2G. The German presi-
dental election Will be held some time
after June |, and may be delayed until
September. it WAS said to-day in poit-
ical circles. The exact date will be
fixed at conference between Chancellor
Wirth and leaders of all the parties IN
the Reichstag to be held early next
month. At that meeting Will be dis
cusscd the advisablity of forcing q
general parliamentary election at the
same time, 50 that the people can be
called upon to decide for or against
the Treaty OF Versailles. Wirth feels
that his present position is untenable,
and he wants to 90 to the polls for a
general ratification Of his policies
The settlement OF the recent political
crisis, when the life of the Wirth Cab
met was saved only by a narrow mar
gin, is regarded as Offering only mere
breathing spell to the present Admin
istration. In well informed quarters
~ 10 dAb Ilidl OiSoOlQAlOIl vi Ilt INtlNuS
tag may come very soon, because of the
obstacles to pence which are being
raised BY the German peoples party
The governments taxation program
has been virtually wrecked by the deci-
sion of the Independents to reject ab-
solutly the tentative decision of two
months ago to float a forced loan Of
1000, 100000 gold marks among Ger
many's rich men. This proposal was a
substitute for the original Socialist
demand for direct partial contisca-
ton of property to pay off some of Ger
many's debts. The Wirth Cabinet feels
now that the only solution lies in put
ting the question up to the voters.
What Wirth wants to gain by gen
eral election is enough Centrist and
Majority Socialist votes so that the
life Of the Cabinet will not be affected
by the caprices Of the Independent So
calists and the German Peoples party,
Should the Genoa economic conference
give results that could be pointed to
with real pride by Wirth and Justify
his foreign policy, the Chancellor could
so to the President and ask dissolu-
tion of the Reichstag with some assur-
ance that the ensuing election would
br ng the middle parties into complete
power and leave the extreme radicals
and the junkers out in the cold.
AS far as the Presidential elections
are concerned, it is not get certain
whether the bourgeois parties Will put
up joint candidate against Ebert, who
is sure to run for reelection. 1t is not
impossible that the Centrist party Will
refuse TO join with the parties of the
left, and instead will support Ebert.
who is Majority Socialist. 1t is un-
likely that the Centrists would put a
candidate in the field against Ebert,
because the Majority Socialists are the
chief collaborators in the present gov
ernment, and the Centrists have no de-
sire to ALLEVIATE this support
1t is improbable that the lndepen-
dents will support Ebert at the polls
because they violently attacked him for
his attitude in the recent railroad
strike, in which he issued an order de
nying government employees the right
to strike. However, there has been a
split in the ranks of the Independents,
and some Of their more moderate repre-
sentatives may switch to the Majority
Socialist party.