Evening star., 1925-03-01

press comment on President Ebert s
death available, but the presidential
crisis in Germany, coming after the
| so recent ministerial crisis both in
the Reich and Prussia-neither of
which could be settled except by
| quite unsatisfactory compromises-is
viewed in political and diplomatic
quarters in London as a matter of
greatest gravity.
There are so many questions caus-
ing strained relations between Ger
! many and her late enemies and re-
quiring a quiet. stable condition of
political affairs in Germany, il any
peaceful solution is to be hoped for.
that the disaster that has overtaken
the new German republic can cause
nothing but disquietude for the fu-
ture, in the opinion of British OBJ
servers.
Successor Unknown.
The position is aggravated by the
fact that there appears to be no
known figure in German statesman
ship to whom fate points inevitably
as successor to Ebert. Nobody ap-
pears to have the faintest idea upon
whom the mantle will fall; therefore
it is felt that anything may happen
to make matters worse. The Weimfr
constitution appears to have made no
provision Tor deflnlte meInOQ OF
electing president
The fear held in political quarters
in London is that under the existing
circumstances in Germany a presi-
Dental election may register a fur
ther move in the direction of Ma
tionalist and Monarchist sentiments.
Two names prominently mentioned
as possible successor to Ebert are
DR. Luther, the chancellor. and Will
helm Marx, the former chancellor, and
the political tendencies of neither of
these statesmen are such as to give
confidence of future smooth progress
of the relations of Germany with
her neighbors, Smarting already
under the delay in the evacuation
of the Cologne zone, the German
COVE meRt has had to submit to
what it regards as a further indignity
an unaccountable delay in the publi-
cation of the report of the inter-
allied commission of control on Ger
many's alleged infringements of the
Versailles treaty in the matter of
armaments.
Then there IS the question of French
security, which has assumed a posi-
tion of greater difficulty through its
entang1ement with the question of the
Geneva protocol. The proposed COM
mercia1 treaty between Germany and
France also is still in the negotia-
tion stage, and all these threatening &
problems are likely to be affected
by the outcome of the new presi-
dehtil election.
, 1t may be said that the grave situa-
tion which now has arisen has only
been hastened, because Herr Ebert's
term of office, had he lived, would
have ended in June. But, although
he had expressed a wish not to stand
again as a presidential candidate,
there was always the chance of his
fe-election, which would have avoided
disturbance in the flow of political
international affairs, and tended to
smooth the progress of the execu-
tion of the Dawes plan.
There will now be an uncertain
period of waiting, until the election
of Ebert's successor in June, which is
only too likely to delay still further
settlement of the outstanding prob
lens.
Nothing has yet been announced
here whether the British court will
enter into an official mourning period
for the dead Presdnet, but since the
King had been prompt to convey his
condolences to Herr Eberts family,
and as the two countries are on a
friendly footing, it is considered like
ly that such an official step will be
taken.
The Sunday papers, in commenting
on the death of President Ebert, con-
fine themselves to brief eulogistic
tributes to Herr Ebert's personality
The Sunday Express characterizes