Intermountain Jewish news., 1926-11-04

1905 two clever Jews met together and
tried without any false pathoss of real
pathos about 1t either, to adjust In the
way two important business men would
-Ballin and Cassel (Sir Ernest Cassel)
both of them close and trusted
friends of their respective monnrchs.
Ballln Of the Kaiser. Cassel Of King
Edward VII, Cnssell more OF the
Grand Seigner, Ballln more the self
made man, the one living In the free
dom and the liberty Of England which
only little while before had given
Its proprlershlp to Jew, the other con-
Cassel In role which fitted him,
Ballin In the painful part OF man
doing something alien to himself, some
thing which mode him feel uncomfort.
able. Here is passage in their con-
versatlon.
Cassel 1t il the anxiety on account
of Germany's growing fleet which IS
taking us into the entente. We must
ask Germany once and for all when she
will stop building.
Ballin. The question alone will mean
war.
OF 1iallin's part in the peace at
tempts made during the Great War
we are told by Ballins loyal associate
and secretary, Huldcrman, in his work.
albert Ballin, A Book OF Memories" +"
which was issued for circulation only
to friends of the Ballin family. II
was through Ballin's hands, he writes,
that the most promising OF the attempts
Mt negotiation known to me went. To
describe 1t in all its details is something
which must be left over to a time
when there is no longer any need to
ernments and individual personages. 1t
was Ballin's old international connec-
tions which opened the opportunity to
him and he passed it on TO the Kaiser
and the Federal Chancellor. After two
years of untiring effort he had by the
beginning of 1917 led up to position
where there was prospect Of direct
contact between the enemy countries.
Then came the ruthless submarine war,
and this attempt at opening up contact
fell away and the patiently woven
threads were definitely torn asunder.
1t was only then that the Allies became
sure of American intervention and vic
tory. No peace effort of which have
heard was worked upon with such self
less and tireless self sacrifice and stub
borness as this.
That Wilhelm II at times felt real
friendship for his Ballin appears from
numerous records made by BALM.
Ballin enjoyed the privilege given only
to n very few Of writing direct TO the
Kaiser at any time. Very frequently
he was present At the intimate dinner,
table of the Kaiser and his family. An
indication of the personal relations be-
tween the two is given in the follow
ing entry in Bnllin's diary:
kaiser's Interest In Ballin
As far back as 1904. Ballln writes,
the Kaiser sent me telegram asking
me 10 come to his reception in Berlin.
and in n very long conversation with
he told me that he was highly con-
cerned about the state of my health.
His doctor, Leuthold had reported to
him unfavorably about my state of
health. The Kaiser told me that he
could no longer stand by and see how
1 went on without sufficient help, with
out anyone who could take my place or
represent me for long period of alb
sence. He was very much concerned
est, he said, he had to see to 1t that I
should not repeat the dangerous posi-
tion which had occurred in Krupe's
case, of leaving so vast business with
out a proper head.
To what extent the Kaiser right up
to the end believed In his Ballin Is
SHoNH Ds Ills tOHNeESutiDu uuTiIlk 'ue
Crown Council at Spa on August 14th,
1913. The Kaiser said: (White Book
on the Preliminary History Of the
Armistice). A propaganda Commits
sion has got TO be formed to weaken
the confidence in victory among the
enemy and to raise the feeling Of vic
tory among the German people. Flam-
ing speeches are to be delivered by
private people who are held in esteem.
such as Ballin, and also by statesmen.
After this War Crown-Council, the
Kaiser left his headquarters at Spa
and went to his Palace at Wilhelm
shoehe. On September 9th he received
Ballin there and had long conversa-
tion with him which Ballin has des-
cribed in the extract given from his
diary. Ballin tried to enlighten the
Kaiser as TO the real position, but as
bp pynloins Vnn Rarp interyaned and