The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-03-12
GERMAN MINISTER. BITTERLY ATTACKS FRENCH INVASION
In Reply to General De Goutte Says French Are Mak- ing War Against Dis
 armed People

BERLIN, March 11.-(By Associ- ated Press.)-Herr Gessler, minister of defense, today replied to the in- terview which General DeGoutte, French commander in the Ruhr. gave to the Associated Press recently at Duesseldorf General DeGoutte at the time explained the French aims in the Ruhr and explained that the Germans had begged and pleaded for armistice.
 In his rejoinder Herr Gessler says; We want no pity. as General De- Goutte seems to believe. We de- mand our rights. The iron fist of the French army leader on the Ruhr can violate justice for the time, but justice and truth are stronger than physical power.
 Because through American help France was able to defeat Germany in the World war. French militarism now feels strong enough for war like campaign against a disarmed people. l must leave you to judge whether such campaign, conducted years after the conclusion of peace, is just. It is difficult to make the German and French points of view harmonize in this respect"
 O o O
 Denies Assertion.
 Turning to specific assertions made in General DeGoutte's statement, Herr Gessler continued: General Dedoutte boasts that his troops oc- cupied the Ruhr areas without drop of blood having flowed. This boast ed condition was not due to his sol diers, but to the self-discipline of the German population in the Ruhr. who submitted to all brutalities or the occupying troops. clenching their teeth, indeed, but without permitting themselves to be drawn into cous- ter battle.
 .In the meantime. unfortunately, much German blood has flown be- cause the French government as- signed it's troops to task for which the discipline of the individual sol- dier has not sufficed. If General De- Goutte says he has allowed the Ger man populace full liberty, then we have a different idea of liberty.
 "The banishment of all unyielding inhabitants, the suppression of every free expression of opinion, the pro- hibition of more than 100 newspa- pers, the Imprisonment of thousands of persons, the maltreatment of women and girls with riding whips do not pass for signs of liberty either in Germany or the rest Of the civilized world.
 Says Germans stood Firm.
 General DeGoutte calls us Ger mans .quitters,' and says that the German is the first to beg for mercy when he finds, himself opposed by a stronger individual. It surprises me that he makes this contention so shortly after the results of the last great war. and even then to an American. The French army lfader certainly cannot have forgotten that Germany fought for four years against overwhelming odds: that her troops defeated the Russians. the French and the English. even though these threw tenfCld more men and material against her.
 Tn the summer of 1918 France was saved only by the>fact that an American division revived the fight ing and at the last moment prevent ed the taking of Paris. We know from MT. Walter H. Pages book (American ambassador at London) that in 1917 France intended to with draw and conclude separate peace. Accepted Armistice.
 "Germany accepted the armistice in 1918 after the powerful American army had turned the balance agains: her. FranCe uld not IiSHt on after the battle of Sedan, as General De- Goutte boasts, but what was the re- suit? The outcome of the world could no longer be changed. and sim ply because of a passion for glory on the part of the masters of the new government further hundreds Of thousands of lives were sacrificed.
 Tn Germany the government which took over the leadership in November. 1918, hoped first of all that the fellowship of nations would be restored on the basis of the peace program advanced by the United States, and knew that this goal would not be reached if the war continued. This belief was our quit ting
 Now, we know that France en- gagged in sabotage systematically from the beginning relative to all these plans for the reconciliation ot nations. and no German today still hankers to be a comrade of Mister DeGoutte."