Evening star., 1925-03-08
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was a time of even greater and more
general history than even the war
time, but others would deny this.
One says. and I believe this to be
true in all countries where imitation
has been or remains, that there has
been and even continues frightful
suffering among the class which
lived on small, but once sufficient m
comes from government funds. All
these incomes have been swept away,
people of these classes are destitute,
and for them there is no hope Re
pudiatfon of such government securi-
ties was complete and will hardly be
recalled.
In sum, I have the impression in
Berlin of a people accustomed to
rather high general level of prosperi-
ty which has been recently fearfully
impoverished, which has recently
been in contact with the primary
problems OF food, fuel and clothing;
which has passed through a period of
almost complete ruin financially, of
actual misery and great despair:
which has quite definitely emerged
from that evil circle, gone back to
work with the greatest industry, and
universally-for unemployment does
proportions-but has not yet been
able physically to throw off the signs
of the strain and outwardly discloses
this fact.
Workers Wages Are Low.
am told by those who should
know that wages of the workingmen
are terribly low and that the strug-
gle to support families is still incon-
ceivably difficult. Certainly there is
no mistaking the fact that the cost
Of living as measured by prices even
in the public markets is appalingly
high. Nevertheless, If one Is to judge
by appearances 1t Is not a hopeless
struggle; one doesn OF seq signs of
actual starvation or even OF acute
want.
What counts. too, is the fact that
in Germany during the war and
after the war the standard OF liv-
ing of the masses was lowered, not
raised, which was just the opposite
from what took place in the allied
countries. Thus it is true that in
England the condition of the work
ingmen has on the whole deteriorated
from very high level since peace
came, while in Germany present con-
dftions are much better than at any
time in the last 10 years, while the
people have accustomed themselves
to far lower standard OF living.
Germany Is recovering: the signs
of this are universal. Germans are,
on the whole. IL not satisfied. at least
without violent resentment over the
existing conditions; the recent past
was so much worse than the present
that the contrast still bulks large
in their minds. The sense of general
uncertainty, with money falling to
fantastic levels daily, and each days
crop of currency worthless before it
could be spent-that is over. But 1t
would be a mistake to say. I think,
that there is anything like the same
air of settled confidence as in Lon
don.
Has Germany actually suffered,
have the Germans shared the agonies
with which Americans are familiar
in the case of Belgium and France.
the hardships which the British
people know? This is question in
evitably on. many American lips. For
1t has seemed an intolerable thing
that the one nation of all engaged
In the war. which knew no invasion,
devastation, physical ruin, should be
Germany and that she, should in ad-
dition by evasion escape all repara-
tions. :.