Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-11-04
The Young Plan in Germany.


Germanys nationalist anti-Young
plan party has won it's first battle" as
the Kreuz-Zeitung exults at Berlin, hav-
ing on Saturday rolled up the registra-
ton requisite for holding a nationwide
plebiscite to approve or disapprove the
new reparations agreement.
The referendum proposal needed a
total of ten per cent of the registered
electorate, in order to place it on a
constitutional basis. The electorate
numbers 41,o19,181, and total of A.
136,334 persons asked fer the plebiscite,
representing fraction of one per cent
over and above the necessary poll. The
margin is not as deep as we'll or as
wide as a church door, but it suflces.
The German enemies of an orderly fair
adjustment of the reparations contro-
versy will now have the demanded OPP
portunity of reviewing the Reichstag's
prospective ratification of the Young
plan.
Saturdays vote, it appears, calls upon
the Reich government to submit to the
GSCANtAotd6 J4IC SO~GdhGu IlUCIly Oil
sponsored by the East Prussian and
Pomeranian junkers who would ditch
the reparations agreement. The BILL
which is strongly opposed by the gov
eminent, would compel notification to
the ether signatories of the treaty of
Versailles that Germany rejects the
celebrated war guilt" theory. 1t insists
upon unconditional evacuation of Ger
man territory by allied troops and re-
nounces any further financial obliga-
tons on Germany's part, including
those embraced in the Young plan. 1t
would render liable for prosecution for
high treason any ministers Of the Reich
who sign any agreement growing out
OF the PREPARATIONS settlement.
Happily there is slim hope that this
psace-menacing Nationalist program
VIII secure majority either in the
Reichstag or later in the country, to
which the Young plan eventually will
now be presented for ratification, or
rejection, by popular vote. Four million
German voters declared themselves op-
posed to tor were coerced, in part
into doing so, for the cables bring re-
ports Of terrorism against tenant farm
ers in the Prussian junker provinces.
But more than 100000 voters by abb
stention from the polls gave powerful
evidence that in their overwhelming
majority the German people espouse a
course of sanity in their present-day
international relations. That they will
finally reflect that view in stentorian
tone at the Forthcoming plebiscite is
now hardly to be doubted.
Germany is coming back" so fast, is
giving so creditable an account of herself
all along the line, that 1t would shock
the world if the Reich were to turn its
back, at this stage, on the policies which
the lamented Stresemann promoted and
which President Hindenburg is so cour-
ageously supporting Every dictate of
German self-interest, to put it on no
higher plane, clamors for the earliest
possible Endorsement of the Young plan
by the German people.
Perhaps DR.. Alfred Hugenberg, boss
Of the Nationalist wrecking crew, sees
the handwriting on the wall in the cir
cumstance that his party on November
2 contrived to poll only four-sevenths
of its nominal vote in Reichstag cleo
ticns. Even junkerdom seems to recog-
nize that the German lingo jig is up.