FROM OCTOBER 20 TO NOVEMBER 20
THE ARMISTICE WITH GERMANY
On November 11, at 5 a. m., the German High Command signed armistice terms dictated by the Allied Powers and requiring the immediate evacuation of all territory west of the Rhine, together with the surrender of such naval and military material as to remove the possibility of further opposition. The negotiations leading up to this armistice, partly given in the November INSTITUTE, are here continued from October 20.
In a note to Germany dated October 23 Secretary Lansing informed the German Government that the President had transmitted his correspondence with the German authorities to the governments associated with the United States as belligerents. To this Germany replied briefly, as follows:
GERMAN NOTE OF OCTOBER 27.—The German Government has taken cognizance of the answer of the President of the United States.
The President is aware of the far-reaching changes which have been carried out and are being carried out in the German constitutional structure, and that peace negotiations are being conducted by a People's Government, in whose hands rests, both actually and constitutionally, the power to make the deciding conclusions. The military powers are also subject to it.
The German Government now awaits proposals for an armistice, which shall be the first step toward a just peace, as the President has described it in his proclamation. SOLF.
ARMISTICE TERMS PREPARED.—In the meantime Allied Premiers and military and naval officers forming the Supreme War Council of the Allies assembled at Versailles to prepare the armistice terms to be granted to the Teutonic Powers. On October 25 was announced the arrival in France of Colonel Edward M. House, representative of President Wilson, with Admiral Benson and other Americans on his staff. Premier Lloyd George, with Secretary Balfour, left for Paris on October 27. In the ensuing conferences complete agreement was reached.
ALLIES CONSENT TO SUBMIT TERMS.—In the following note of November 5, President Wilson informed Germany that the Allies were prepared to submit armistice terms on the basis of the principles laid down by the President in his addresses to Congress, reserving, however, the right to determine the interpretation of the phrase "freedom of the seas," and explicitly stating that invaded territories must be restored as well as evacuated:
DEPARTMENT OF STATE, November 5, 1918.
From the Secretary of State to the Minister of Switzerland, in charge of German interests in the United States.
DEPARTMENT OF STATE, November 5, 1918.
SIR.—I have the honor to request you to transmit the following communication to the German Government:
In my note of October 23, 1918, I advised you that the President had transmitted his correspondence with the German authorities to the governments with which the government of the United States is associated as a belligerent with the suggestion that, if those governments were disposed to accept peace upon the terms and principles indicated, their military advisers and the military advisers of the United States be asked to submit to the governments associated against Germany the necessary terms of such an armistice as would fully protect the interests of the peoples involved and insure to the associated governments the unrestricted power to safeguard and enforce the details of the peace to which the German Government has agreed, provided they deem such an armistice possible from the military point of view.
The President is now in receipt of a memorandum of observations by the Allied Governments on this correspondence, which is as follows:
22—The Allied Governments have given careful consideration to the correspondence which has passed between the President of the United States and the German Government. Subject to the qualifications which follow, they declare their willingness to make peace with the government of Germany on the terms of peace laid down in the President's address to Congress of January, 1918, and the principles of settlement enunciated in his subsequent addresses.
They must point out, however, that Clause 2, relating to what is usually described as the freedom of the seas, is open to various interpretations, some of which they could not accept. They must, therefore, reserve to themselves complete freedom on this subject when they enter the peace conference.
Further, in the conditions of peace, laid down in his address to Congress of January 8, 1918, the President declared that invaded territories must be restored as well as evacuated and freed. The Allied Governments feel that no doubt ought to be allowed to exist as to what this provision implies. By it they understand that compensation will be made by Germany for all damage done to the civilian population of the Allies and their property by the aggression of Germany by land, by sea, and from the air.
I am instructed by the President to say that he is in agreement with the interpretation set forth in the last paragraph of the memorandum above quoted. I am further instructed by the President to request you to notify the German Government that Marshal Foch has been authorized by the government of the United States and the Allied Governments to receive properly accredited representatives of the German Government and to communicate to them terms of an armistice.
Accept, Sir, the renewed assurances of my highest consideration.
(Signed) ROBERT LANSING.
MR. HANS SULZER,
Minister of Switzerland,
In charge of German interests in the United States.
The number "22" attached to the memorandum from the Versailles conference, which is quoted in President Wilson's note to the German Government, is the index number of the statement, each of those adopted by the Allied conference being numbered.
GERMANY SENDS ARMISTICE ENVOYS.—On November 7, at 12.30 a. m., Marshal Foch received the following message from the German High Command:
The German Government, having been informed through the President of the United States that Marshal Foch had received powers to receive accredited representatives of the German Government and communicate to them conditions of an armistice, the following plenipotentiaries have been named by it:
Matthias Erzberger, General H. K. A. Winterfeld, Count Alfred von Oberndorff, General von Gruenell and Naval Captain von Salow.
The plenipotentiaries request that they be informed by wireless of the place where they can meet Marshal Foch. They will proceed by automobile, with subordinates of the staff, to the place thus appointed.
Orders were given to cease fire on the front at 3 o'clock p. m. until further orders.
A route was assigned, over which the German envoys arrived within the Allied lines on the night of November 7.
ARMISTICE SIGNED ON NOVEMBER 11.— confusion was caused by a false announcement that the armistice had been signed on November 7, official notice was issued from Washington on November 11 that the agreement had been signed by the German delegates at 5 o'clock, Paris time, that morning, and would become effective at 11.
TERMS OF THE GERMAN ARMISTICE
The terms of the armistice called for what in effect amounted to the complete surrender of Germany, requiring evacuation by the German armies of all territory west of the Rhine and its occupation by Allied forces, evacuation of all foreign territory in the East and abandonment of the Treaties of Brest-Litovsk and Bucharest, the turning over of vast quantities of war equipment, munitions, and railroad materials, and the surrender of 6 battle cruisers, 10 battleships, 50 destroyers, and all submarines.
On November 11 the terms of the armistice were read to the parliaments of the various Allied Governments, President Wilson announcing it in an address to Congress as follows:
Gentlemen of the Congress: In these times of rapid and stupendous change it will in some degree lighten my sense of responsibility to perform in person the duty of communicating to you some of the larger circumstances of the situation with which it is necessary to deal.
The German authorities, who have at the invitation of the Supreme War Council, been in communication with Marshal Foch, have accepted and signed the terms of armistice which he was authorized and instructed to communicate to them. These terms are as follows:
THE ARMISTICE
I.—Military Clauses on Western Front
One—Cessation of operations by land and in the air six hours after the signature of the armistice.
Two—Immediate evacuation of invaded countries: Belgium, France, Alsace-Lorraine, Luxemburg, so ordered as to be completed within 14 days from the signature of the armistice. German troops which have not left the above-mentioned territories within the period fixed will become prisoners of war. Occupation by the Allied and United States forces jointly will keep pace with evacuation in these areas. All movements of evacuation and occupation will be regulated in accordance with a note annexed to the stated terms.
Three—Repatriation, beginning at once and to be completed within 14 days, of all inhabitants of the countries above mentioned, including hostages and persons under trial or convicted.
Four—Surrender in good condition by the German armies of the following equipment: Five thousand guns (2500 heavy, 2500 field), 30,000 machine guns. Three thousand minenwerfers. Two thousand airplanes (fighters, bombers—firstly, D, seventy-three's and night bombing machines). The above to be delivered in situ to the Allies and the United States troops in accordance with the detailed conditions laid down in the annexed note.
Five—Evacuation by the German armies of the countries on the left bank of the Rhine. These countries on the left bank of the Rhine shall be administered by the local authorities under the control of the Allied and United States armies of occupation. The occupation of these territories will be determined by Allied and United States garrisons holding the principal crossings of the Rhine—Mayence, Coblenz, Cologne—together with bridgeheads at these points in 30 kilometer radius on the right bank and by garrisons similarly holding the strategic points of the regions. A neutral zone shall be reserved on the right of the Rhine between the stream and a line drawn parallel to it 40 kilometers to the east from the frontier of Holland to the parallel of Gernsheim and as far as practicable a distance of 30 kilometers from the east of the stream from this parallel upon the Swiss frontier. Evacuation by the enemy of the Rhine lands shall be so ordered as to be completed within a further period of 11 days—in all, 19 days after the signature of the armistice. [Here the President interrupted his reading to remark that there evidently had been an error in transmission, as the arithmetic was very bad. The "further period" of 11 days is in addition to the 14 days allowed for evacuation of invaded countries, making 25 days given to the Germans to get entirely clear of the Rhine lands.] All movements of evacuation and occupation will be regulated according to the note annexed.
Six—In all territory evacuated by the enemy there shall be no evacuation of inhabitants; no damage or harm shall be done to the persons or property of the inhabitants. No destruction of any kind to be committed. Military establishments of all kinds shall be delivered intact as well as military stores of food, munitions, equipment not removed during the periods fixed for evacuation. Stores of food of all kinds for the civil population, cattle, etc., shall be left in situ. Industrial establishments shall not be impaired in any way and their personnel shall not be removed. Roads and means of communication of every kind, railroad, waterways, main roads, bridges, telegraphs, telephones, shall be in no manner impaired.
Seven—All civil and military personnel at present employed on them shall remain. Five thousand locomotives, 50,000 wagons, and 10,000 motor lorries in good working order with all necessary spare parts and fittings shall be delivered to the Associated Powers within the period fixed for the evacuation of Belgium and Luxemburg. The railways of Alsace-Lorraine shall be handed over within the same period, together with all pre-war personnel and material. Further material necessary for the working of railways in the country on the left bank of the Rhine shall be left in situ. All stores of coal and material for the upkeep of permanent ways, signals and repair shops left entire in situ and kept in an efficient state by Germany during the whole period of armistice. All barges taken from the Allies shall be restored to them. A note appended regulates the details of these measures.
Eight—The German Command shall be responsible for revealing all mines or delay-acting fuse disposed on territory evacuated by the German troops, and shall assist in their discovery and destruction. The German Command shall also reveal all destructive measures that may have been taken (such as poisoning or polluting of springs, wells, etc.) under penalty of reprisals.
Nine—The right of requisition shall be exercised by the Allies and the United States armies in all occupied territory. The upkeep of the troops of occupation in the Rhine land (excluding Alsace-Lorraine) shall be charged to the German Government.
Ten—An immediate repatriation without reciprocity according to detailed conditions, which shall be fixed, of all Allied and United States prisoners of war. The Allied powers and the United States shall be able to dispose of these prisoners as they wish.
Eleven—Sick and wounded who cannot be removed from evacuated territory will be cared for by German personnel, who will be left on the spot with the medical material required.
II.—Disposition Relative to the Eastern Frontiers of Germany
Twelve—All German troops at present in any territory which before the war belonged to Russia, Roumania or Turkey, shall withdraw within the frontiers of Germany as they existed on August 1, 1914.
Thirteen—Evacuation by German troops to begin at once, and all German instructors, prisoners, and civilian as well as military agents now on the territory of Russia (as defined before 1914) to be recalled.
Fourteen—German troops to cease at once all requisitions and seizures and any other undertaking with a view to obtaining supplies intended for Germany in Roumania and Russia (as defined on August I, I914).
Fifteen—Abandonment of the treaties of Bucharest and Brest-Litovsk and of the supplementary treaties.
Sixteen—The Allies shall have free access to the territories evacuated by the Germans on their eastern frontier either through Danzig or by the Vistula in order to convey supplies to the populations of those territories or for any other purpose.
III.—Clause Concerning East Africa
Seventeen—Unconditional capitulation of all German forces operating in East Africa within one month.
IV.—General Clauses
Eighteen—Repatriation, without reciprocity, within a maximum period of one month, in accordance with detailed conditions hereafter to be fixed, of all civilians interned or deported, who may be citizens of other Allied or associated states than those mentioned in clause 3, paragraph 19, with the reservation that any future claims and demands of the Allies and the United States of America remain unaffected.
Nineteen—The following financial conditions are required: Reparation for damage done. While such armistice lasts no public securities shall be removed by the enemy which can serve as a pledge to the Allies for the recovery or reparation for war losses. Immediate restitution of the cash deposit in the national bank of Belgium, and in general immediate return of all documents, specie, stocks, shares, paper money, together with plant for the issue thereof, touching public or private interests in the invaded countries. Restitution of the Russian and Roumanian gold yielded to Germany or taken by that power. This gold to be delivered in trust to the Allies until the signature of peace.
V.—Naval Conditions
Twenty—Immediate cessation of all hostilities at sea and definite information to be given as to the location and movements of all German ships. Notification to be given to neutrals that freedom of navigation in all territorial waters is given to the naval and mercantile marines of the Allied and associated powers, all questions of neutrality being waived.
Twenty-one—All naval and mercantile marine prisoners of the Allied and associated powers in German hands to be returned without reciprocity.
Twenty-two—Surrender to the Allies and the United States of America of 160 German submarines (including all submarine cruisers and mine laying submarines), with their complete armament and equipment in ports, which will be specified by the Allies and the United States of America. All other submarines to be paid off and completely disarmed and placed under the supervision of the Allied powers and the United States of America.
Twenty-three—The following German surface warships, which shall be designated by the Allies and the United States of America, shall forthwith be disarmed and thereafter interned in neutral ports, or for the want of them, in Allied ports, to be designated by the Allies and the United States of America, and placed under the surveillance of the Allies and the United States of America, only caretakers being left on board, namely: Six battle cruisers, ten battleships, eight light cruisers, including two mine layers, fifty destroyers of the most modern type. All other surface warships (including river craft), are to be concentrated in German naval bases to be designated by the Allies and the United States of America, and are to be paid off and completely disarmed and placed under the supervision of the Allies and the United States of America. All vessels of the auxiliary fleet, trawlers, motor vessels, etc., are to be disarmed.
Twenty-four—The Allies and the United States of America shall have the right to sweep up all mine fields and obstructions laid by Germany outside German territorial waters and the positions of these are to be indicated.
Twenty-five—Freedom of access to and from the Baltic to be given to the naval and mercantile marines of the Allied and associated powers. To secure this the Allies and the United States of America shall be empowered to occupy all German forts, fortifications, batteries and defence works of all kinds in all the entrances from the Cattegat into the Baltic, and to sweep up all mines and obstructions within and without German territorial waters, without any question of neutrality being raised, and the positions of all such mines and obstructions are to be indicated.
Twenty-six—The existing blockade conditions set up by the Allied and associated powers are to remain unchanged, and all German merchant ships found at sea are to remain liable to capture.
Twenty-seven—All naval aircraft are to be concentrated and immobilized in German bases to be specified by the Allies and the United States of America.
Twenty-eight—In evacuating the Belgian coasts and ports. Germany shall abandon all merchant ships, tugs, lighters, cranes and all other harbor materials, all materials for inland navigation, all aircraft and all materials and stores, all arms and armaments, and all stores and apparatus of all kinds.
Twenty-nine—All Black Sea ports are to be evacuated by Germany; all Russian war vessels of all descriptions seized by Germany in the Black Sea are to be handed over to the Allies and the United States of America; all neutral merchant vessels seized are to be released; all warlike and other materials of all kinds seized in those ports are to be returned and German materials as specified in Clause Twenty-eight are to be abandoned.
Thirty—All merchant vessels in German hands belonging to the Allied and associated powers are to be restored in ports to be specified by the Allies and the United States of America without reciprocity.
Thirty-one—No destruction of ships or of materials to be permitted before evacuation, surrender, or restoration.
Thirty-two—The German Government will notify the neutral governments of the world, and particularly the governments of Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Holland, that all restrictions placed on the trading of their vessels with the Allied and associated countries, whether by the German Government or by private German interests, and whether in return for specific concessions, such as the export of shipbuilding materials or not, are immediately canceled.
Thirty-three—No transfers of German merchant shipping of any description to any neutral flag are to take place after signature of the armistice.
VI.—Duration of Armistice
Thirty-four—The duration of the armistice is to be 30 days, with option to extend. During this period, on failure of execution of any of the above clauses, the armistice may be denounced by one of the contracting parties on 48 hours' previous notice.
VII.—The Limit for Reply
Thirty-five—This armistice to be accepted or refused by Germany within 72 hours of notification.
The President's Comment
The war thus comes to an end; for, having accepted these terms of armistice, it will be impossible for the German Command to renew it.
It is not now possible to assess the consequences of this great consummation. We know only that this tragical war, whose consuming flames swept from one nation to another until all the world was on fire, is at an end and that it was the privilege of our own people to enter it at its most critical juncture in such fashion and in such force as to contribute, in a way of which we are all deeply proud, to the great result. We know, too, that the object of the war is attained; the object upon which all free men had set their hearts; and attained with a sweeping completeness which even now we do not realize. Armed imperialism such as the men conceived who were but yesterday the masters of Germany is at an end, its illicit ambitions engulfed in black disaster. Who will now seek to revive it?
The arbitrary power of the military caste of Germany which once could secretly and of its own single choice disturb the peace of the world is discredited and destroyed. And more than that—much more than that—has been accomplished. The great nations which associated themselves to destroy it have now definitely united in the common purpose to set up such a peace as will satisfy the longing of the whole world for disinterested justice, embodied in settlements which are based upon something much better and more lasting than the selfish competitive interests of powerful states. There is no longer conjecture as to the objects the victors have in mind. They have a mind in the matter, not only, but a heart also. Their avowed and concerted purpose is to satisfy and protect the weak as well as to accord their just rights to the strong.
The humane temper and intention of the victorious governments have already been manifested in a very practical way. Their representatives in the Supreme War Council at Versailles have by unanimous resolution assured the peoples of the Central Empires that everything that is possible in the circumstances will be done to supply them with food and relieve the distressing want that is in so many places threatening their very lives; and steps are to be taken immediately to organize these efforts at relief in the same systematic manner that they were organized in the case of Belgium. By the use of the idle tonnage of the Central Empires it ought presently to be possible to lift the fear of utter misery from their oppressed populations and set their minds and energies free for the great and hazardous tasks of political reconstruction which now face them on every hand. Hunger does not breed reform; it breeds madness and all the ugly distempers that make an ordered life impossible.
For with the fall of the ancient governments, which rested like an incubus on the peoples of the Central Empires, has come political change not merely, but revolution; and revolution which seems as yet to assume no final and ordered form, but to run from one fluid change to another, until thoughtful men are forced to ask themselves, with what governments and of what sort are we about to deal in the making of the covenants of peace? With what authority will they meet us, and with what assurance that their authority will abide and sustain securely the international arrangements into which we are about to enter? There is here matter for no small anxiety and misgiving. When peace is made, upon whose promises and engagements besides our own is it to rest?
Let us be perfectly frank with ourselves and admit that these questions cannot be satisfactorily answered now or at once. But the moral is not that there is little hope of an early answer that will suffice. It is only that we must be patient and helpful and mindful above all of the great hope and confidence that lie at the heart of what is taking place. Excesses accomplish nothing. Unhappy Russia has furnished abundant recent proof of that. Disorder immediately defeats itself. If excesses should occur, if disorder should for a time raise its head, a sober second thought will follow and a day of constructive action, if we help and do not hinder.
The present and all that it holds belongs to the nations and the peoples who preserve their self-control and the orderly processes of their governments; the future to those who prove themselves the true friends of mankind. To conquer with arms is to make only a temporary conquest; to conquer the world by earning its esteem is to make permanent conquest. I am confident that the nations that have learned the discipline of freedom and that have settled with self-possession to its ordered practice are now about to make conquest of the world by the sheer power of example and of friendly helpfulness.
The peoples who have but just come out from under the yoke of arbitrary government and who are now coming at last into their freedom will never find the treasures of liberty they are in search of if they look tor them by the light of the torch. They will find that every pathway that is stained with the blood of their own brothers leads to the wilderness, not to the seat of their home. They are now face to face with their initial test. We must hold the light steady until they find themselves. And in the meantime, if it be possible, we must establish a peace that will justly define their place among the nations, remove all fear of their neighbors and of their former masters, and enable them to live in security and contentment when they have set their own affairs in order. I, for one, do not doubt their purpose or their capacity. There are some happy signs that they know and will choose the way of self-control and peaceful accommodation. If they do, we shall put our aid at their disposal in every way that we can. If they do not, we must await with patience and sympathy the awakening and recovery that will assuredly come at last.
To Seize Heligoland if Necessary
London, November 11.—(Associated Press).—A supplementary declaration to the armistice terms was signed to the effect that in the event of the six German battle cruisers, ten battleships, eight light cruisers and fifty destroyers not being handed over owing to a mutinous state, the Allies reserve the right to occupy Heligoland as an advance base to enable them to enforce the terms.
MODIFICATIONS IN CONFERENCE.—The German envoys occupied the full 72 hours granted by the armistice in an effort to secure more favorable terms and signed only after having received by messenger the approval of the new government at Berlin. During this period certain concessions and modifications were made by the Allied military leaders in accordance with powers conferred upon them; and certain conditions were made more severe. The changes follow:
WASHINGTON, November 12.—Announcement was made to-night by Secretary Lansing that before the armistice agreement was signed at Marshal Foch's headquarters a number of changes were made from the original text that had been cabled to the United States Government prior to the German acceptance of the conditions. It was the original text that President Wilson read to Congress yesterday in announcing that hostilities had come to an end. Some of the changes are important.
In the original text submitted to the German emissaries by Marshal Foch it was provided in Article 12 that "all German troops at present in any territory which before the war belonged to Russia, Roumania, or Turkey shall withdraw within the frontiers of Germany as they existed on August 1, 1914."
In the amended text this article is left unchanged with respect to Roumania and Turkey, but it is provided in addition that German troops shall be withdrawn from Austria-Hungary. The important change is that the new form provides that German troops in the territory which belonged to Russia before the war shall withdraw within the frontiers of Germany "as soon as the Allies, taking into account the internal situation of those territories, shall decide that the time for this has come."
This notable modification, which permits German troops to remain in Russian territory, apparently means that the Allies are fearful that if German troops are taken away from Russia excesses will occur which may lead to anarchy.
Another important change makes more severe the conditions with reference to the surrender of material by the Germans. In Article 7, original text, it was provided that among transport stock to be surrendered should be included 50,000 wagons (railway cars). This condition as agreed to by the German emissaries provides that 150,000 wagons (railway cars) shall be surrendered. The Allies, however, modified the provision in this article for the surrender of 10,000 motor lorries so as to reduce the number to 5000.
Article 7 as amended also extends to 31 days the period with which railroads and railroad rolling stocks and lorries shall be delivered.
As originally drawn Article 5 provided that the German territories on the left or west bank of the Rhine, which are to be occupied by the Allied forces, "shall be administered by the local authorities under the control of the Allied and United States armies of occupation." As this article is changed it provides that "the occupation of these territories will be carried out by Allied and United States garrisons," thus taking from the local German authorities the right to administer these territories under Allied supervision.
Article 5 retained the provision that the Allies should be permitted to occupy the territory within a 30-kilometer radius around the Rhine cities of Mayence, Coblenz, and Cologne. While it is not exactly clear, the modified Article 5 apparently gives the Allies control of territory beyond the eastern limits of the neutral zone to a distance of 20 kilometers eastward from the Rhine cities named.
In Article 4 the original provision that Germany should surrender 30,000 machine guns and 2000 airplanes is modified so as to require the surrender of 25,000 machine guns and 1700 airplanes.
Article 16, which, as originally prepared, provided for free access by the Allies to the territories evacuated by the Germans on their eastern or Russian frontier, has been modified in the terms as accepted by Germany so as to provide that instead of permitting this free access for the purpose of conveying supplies to the populations of these territories, "or for any other purpose," it shall be limited to conveying supplies to the populations, "and for the purpose of maintaining order."
This modification was probably made so as to give assurance to the Russians that the Allies would have no selfish purpose in entering Russian territory should the occasion arise.
Article 17 provided for the unconditional capitulation of all German forces operating in East Africa within one month. As modified it provides for the "evacuation" of all these forces "within a period to be fixed by the Allies."
One of the most interesting and important changes made affects the surrender of U-boats. It was provided in the original draft—the draft read to Congress yesterday by President Wilson—that the Germans should surrender to the Allies 160 submarines. This article was so changed as to compel Germany to surrender all her submarines. It is provided also, as a new condition, that the entire German submarine fleet shall be surrendered within 14 days after the signing of the armistice, that is, by November 25.
With reference to the six battle cruisers, ten battleships, eight light cruisers, and fifty destroyers to be turned over by Germany to the Allies for internment in neutral or Allied ports, the original armistice draft was changed so as to provide, in addition, that the military armament of all ships of Germany's auxiliary fleet should be put on shore (the original form having provided that they should be "disarmed"), and that all vessels to be interned shall be ready to leave German ports seven days after the signing of the armistice, that is, on November 13.
Evidently the Allied governments were impressed by the appeal of the German parliamentaires that if all their ships were taken from them they would be unable to bring in supplies to feed the starving populations.
An appeal of similar purport has come to Secretary Lansing from Dr. Solf, the German Minister for Foreign Affairs. While declining to change the existing blockade conditions and permit German ships to ply the sea the Allied armistice representatives added to the appropriate article a provision that "the Allies and the United States would give consideration to the provisioning of Germany during the armistice to the extent recognized as necessary."
Article 28 was changed so as to be more drastic. It provided originally for the abandonment by Germany of all her ships, harbor materials, airchaft, arms, armament, etc., on the Belgian coasts. As changed it extends this provision so as to include everything in the way of German material and supplies on the Belgian coasts.
Article 34, which provided orginally that the armistice was to be for 30 days, with option to extend, was amended so as to recognize the application of the principle of a permanent international armistice commission, although the fixed duration of the armistice is left at 30 days. As amended, the appropriate article apparently provides that a permanent international armistice commission shall be appointed.
With reference to prisoners of war, covered in Article 10, while the amended document retains the provision that all Allied prisoners of war held by Germany shall be surrendered without reciprocity, it is set forth that persons under trial or convicted now in German hands shall be surrendered and that the repatriation of German prisoners of war interned in Holland and in Switzerland shall continue as before.
SOLF APPEALS TO PRESIDENT TO HASTEN PEACE.—On the same day that the armistice was signed Foreign Secretary Solf sent an appeal to President Wilson urging the immediate conclusion of a preliminary peace. The German wireless communication accompanying the note declared that while Germany was forced to accept the armistice terms, the surrender of transport and rolling stock and the continuance of the blockade threatened Germany with starvation and would produce conditions and feelings which would hamper reconstruction on a sound basis. The appeal follows:
LONDON, November 12 (Associated Press).—Germany has requested the President of the United States, according to a German wireless message from Berlin, to arrange immediately for the opening of peace negotiations, there being a pressing danger of famine. The message was sent by Foreign Secretary Solf to Secretary of State Lansing. It said:
"The armistice being concluded, the German Government requests the President of the United States to arrange for the opening of peace negotiations. For the purpose of their acceleration, the German Government proposes, first of all, to take in view the conclusion of a preliminary peace and asks for a communication as to what place and at what time the negotiations might begin. As there is a pressing danger of famine, the German Government is particularly anxious for the negotiations to begin immediately."
FOOD APPEAL FAVORABLY CONSIDERED.—The renewed appeal of the German Government on November 12, for assurance regarding food supply, and the answer of the United States are here given:
DEPARTMENT OF GERMAN INTERESTS,
LEGATION OF SWITZERLAND, WASHINGTON, November 12, 1918.
SIR: By direction of my government, I have the honor to transmit the following cable:
"The German Government urgently requests the President of the United States to inform the German Chancellor Ebert, by wireless, whether he may be assured that the government of the United States is ready to send foodstuffs without delay, if public order is maintained in Germany and an equitable distribution of food is guaranteed."
Accept, sir, the renewed assurances of my highest consideration.
HANS SULZER,
Minister of Switzerland,
His Excellency, Robert Lansing, Secretary of State, Washington.
Secretary Lansing made the following answer:
DEPARTMENT OF STATE, WASHINGTON, November 12, 1918.
SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of to-day, transmitting to the President the text of a cable inquiring whether this government is ready to send foodstuffs into Germany without delay, if public order is maintained in Germany and an equitable distribution of food is guaranteed.
I should be grateful if you would transmit the following reply to the German Government:
At a joint session of the two Houses of Congress on November 11 the President of the United States announced that the representatives of the associated governments in the Supreme War Council at Versailles have by unanimous resolution assured the peoples of the Central Empires that everything that is possible in the circumstances will be done to supply them with food and relieve the distressing want that is in so many places threatening their very lives, and that steps are to be taken immediately to organize these efforts at relief in the same systematic manner that they were organized in the case of Belgium. Furthermore, the President expressed the opinion that by the use of the idle tonnage of the Central Empires it ought presently to be possible to lift the fear of utter misery from their oppressed populations and set their minds and energies free for the great and hazardous tasks of political reconstruction which now face them on every hand.
Accordingly the President now directs me to state that he is ready to consider favorably the supplying of foodstuffs to Germany and to take up the matter immediately with the Allied Governments, provided he can be assured that public order is being and will continue to be maintained in Germany, and that an equitable distribution of food can be clearly guaranteed.
Accept, Sir, the renewed assurances of my highest consideration,
ROBERT LANSING.
Mr. Hans Sulzer, Minister of Switzerland, in charge of German interests in the United States.
GERMAN NOTES MUST DE DIRECTED TO ALL ALLIES.—WASHINGTON, November 11.—In the almost hysterical appeals of the German Provisional Government for supplies of food and for permission to address itself directly through a commission to the American public, officials here see a purpose to excite the sympathies of a large element of the American population more or less connected by blood ties with Germany. With such sympathies aroused, the German Government, it was said, undoubtedly hopes to influence the approaching peace conference toward leniency.
It is known officially that there is sufficient food in Germany to meet immediate needs. The supreme war council is planning to supply food in the future and before the present stocks are exhausted, assuming the exercise of wise economy in food distribution.
Therefore, it is said to be quite unnecessary for the German Government to send the proposed commission to the United States to arrange for the purchase of food. Mr. Hoover and the agencies behind him will attend to all of that.
To correct what appears to be a general purpose of misunderstanding on the subject, it may be authoritatively stated that none of this food to be sent from America to Germany or Austria will be given away. It must be paid for by the governments of those countries.
Secretary Lansing made public to-day the text of his reply to radio communications from the German Government seeking modifications in the terms of the armistices with Germany and Turkey. It announced that the requests would be referred to the Allied Governments and the Supreme War Council and pointed out that such communications should be sent to all the associated governments, instead of only to the President or government of the United States, and should come through established diplomatic channels instead of by wireless.
Mr. Lansing's note, addressed to Minister Sulzer of Switzerland, follows:
"I should be gratified if you would be good enough to convey the following communication to the Secretary of Foreign Affairs of the German Government:
"The government of the United States has received the radio messages addressed to the President of the United States by the German Government, relative to relief from certain requirements imposed in the armistice with the Ottoman Government and the armistice with the German Government.
"The communications which have been received will be forthwith communicated to the other governments with which the government of the United States is associated and also to the Supreme War Council in Paris.
"The government of the United States takes this opportunity to suggest to the German Government that communications of this nature, which pertain to the terms of the armistice or to matters in which all the associated governments are interested, should be sent to all the governments and not addressed alone to the President or government of the United States.
"The government of the United States also desires to call the attention of the German Government to the fact that these communications should be presented through established diplomatic channels rather than by direct radio communication."—Baltimore Sun, 17/11.
PREPARATIONS FOR PEACE CONGRESS.—Renewed conferences of Allied representatives were held at Versailles beginning November 15. It was the general opinion that Paris and Versailles would be chosen for the peace negotiations, which could hardly begin before January.
PRESIDENT WILSON TO GO TO EUROPE
Washington, November 18.—President Wilson, it was officially announced to-day, will sail for France early next month for the purpose of taking part in the discussion and settlement of the main features of the treaty of peace. He will go as a delegate and does not expect to be absent from this country more than a month or five weeks.
The announcement, given out at the White House, follows:
"The President expects to sail for France immediately after the opening of the regular session of Congress, for the purpose of taking part in the discussion and settlement of the main features of the treaty of peace. It is not likely that it will be possible for him to remain throughout the sessions of the formal peace conference, but his presence at the outset is necessary in order to obviate the manifest disadvantages of discussion by cable in determining the greater outlines of the final treaty about which he must necessarily be consulted. He will, of course, be accompanied by delegates, who will sit as the representatives of the United States throughout the conference.
The names of the delegates will be presently announced.
One of the President's main purposes in taking part in the preliminary work of furnishing the chart and compass for the Peace Tribunal, according to members of Congress, is to make sure that the League of Nations and disarmament are accepted as two cardinal principles of the document to which the leading nations on earth will affix their signatures. The President desires to outlaw warfare. He wants to make it as impossible as human agency can in this day for groups of nations to settle disputes, quarrels and rivalries by means of the gun and bayonet. With that condition he wants to bring about the disarmament of nations and relieve the people of the terrible burden of maintaining expensive military establishments.'
President Wilson's plans for a League of Nations, it is asserted by some, differs somewhat from the plans advanced by the League for Enforced Peace which has a large organization in this country. The President's scheme is said to call for rules and laws, which the contracting nations are to follow and respect, just as the states of the American Union respect the federal laws passed by Congress.—Baltimore Sun, 19/11.
REVOLUTION IN GERMANY
The opening of armistice negotiations was the signal for a complete overthrow of the old regime in Germany. On Saturday, November 9, public buildings in Berlin were occupied by soldiers and sailors, the red flag hoisted, a republic proclaimed, and a temporary government established wholly under the control and guidance of various branches of the Socialist party. The revolution is said to have begun with a revolt of sailors in the fleet against the project of going out to meet the British navy. This quickly spread to workers in the naval bases at Kiel, Wilhelmshaven and elsewhere. By Saturday all Germany was aflame. Crowned rulers and princes of small states abdicated and fled or made an effort to cooperate with the new forces in control. The result a week later was the existence of some two-score embryonic republics in the former German Empire, while the entire nation was threatened with Bolshevism and financial collapse. At the date of going to press relative calm had been established, with the new Socialist government in full control.
In Berlin a republic was proclaimed on November 9. All newspapers were taken over as organs of the various wings of the Socialist party, and a general strike was announced. Prince Max, the former chancellor, at once resigned. Forces of the so-called Workmen's and Soldiers' Council took charge. Herr Frederick Ebert, vice-president of the Social Democratic Party, was given the task of organizing a new government supported by other Socialist leaders of all shades of opinion, including Dr. Karl Liebknecht, Hugo Haase, Philipp Scheidemann, Dettmann, Landsberg, and Barth.
A dispatch of November 14 stated that the five men last named had been chosen with Ebert as an all-Socialist cabinet, thus composed of three Majority and three Independent Socialist members, and that one of their first acts was to confiscate all Prussian Crown property, and proclaim a sweeping program of reforms, including freedom of speech and press, political amnesty, eight-hour working day, and universal secret suffrage.
COALITION CABINET.—According to a later dispatch of November 16 it appeared that the Socialist Cabinet was only a temporary "Council of Plenipotentiaries," and that under more moderate influences, a coalition cabinet had been formed. The dispatch follows:
In accordance with the decision of the Council of National Plenipotentiaries the departments of state in the new goverment have been filled as follows:
Foreign Office, Dr. W. S. Solf ; Treasury, Dr. Schiffer; Economics, Dr. August Mueller; Industrial Demobilization, Dr. Koth; War Food, Emanuel Wurm; Labor, Dr. Bauer; War, Major-General Scheuch ; Admiralty, Mann; Justice, Dr. Krause; Post Office, Dr. Ruedlin.
Announcement was made through Copenhagen early in the week of the formation of a German Cabinet of six members, three Majority Socialists and three Independent Socialists. It would appear from the Berlin wireless dispatch that a Coalition Cabinet now has been formed, perhaps subsidiary to Chancellor Ebert and his Socialist colleagues.
Dr. Solf has been German Foreign Secretary since the retirement of Secretary von Kuehlmann. Dr. Schiffer is a leader of the National Liberal party and formerly was under-secretary of the Imperial Finance Ministry. Dr. Mueller is a Social Democrat and formerly was under-secretary of the War Bureau. General Scheuch has been Prussian Minister of War.
Emanuel Wurm is a Social Democratic deputy in the Reichstag. He is a chemist, a writer and was born in Bavaria.
Dr. Bauer is a Socialist member of the Reichstag and was appointed Secretary of State for the Imperial Labor Office on October 6.
Vice-Admiral Mann was appointed Secretary of the Navy early in October. Previously he had been head of the U-boat department of the navy.
Dr. Paul Krause, a National Liberal, was appointed Secretary of Justice in the Prussian Cabinet in August, 1917. He is second vice-president of the Prussian lower house.
Dr. Ruedlin has been director of railways and posts in the Prussian Cabinet since August, 1917.—Associated Press, Baltimore Sun, 17/11.
KAISER AND CROWN PRINCE FLEE TO HOLLAND
After resisting increasing pressure for his abdication, the Kaiser at last gave way to the inevitable. On the night of Friday, November 8, at the army headquarters, both he and the Crown Prince signed papers of abdication. The following are press accounts of the decision:
Amsterdam, November 10.—I learn on very good authority that the Kaiser made a determined effort to stave off abdication. He went to headquarters with the deliberate intention of bringing the army around to his side. In this he failed miserably.
His main support consisted of a number of officers, nearly all of Prussian regiments, who formed themselves into two regiments and placed them selves at his Majesty's disposal. To do anything with such support was seen, of course, to be Gibertian.
During the night the Kaiser called the Crown Prince, Hindenburg, and General Græner to him, and the consultation lasted a couple of hours. Both officers strongly pressed the Kaiser to bow to the inevitable, and Hindenburg informed him that any more delay in coming to a decision to abdicate would certainly have the most terrible consequences and lead to serious events in the army. For those consequences, Hindenburg said, he must refuse responsibility.
The Crown Prince, it is said, was the first to give way. General Gröner fully supported Hindenburg's view, but when the conference broke up the Kaiser remained unconvinced of the advisability of abdication. He is said to have come to his final decision an hour or so later, after several communications had reached him from Berlin and after another short and stormy talk with Hindenburg.
Meanwhile, his son-in-law, the Duke of Brunswick, for himself and his heir, had abdicated. "Brunswick's Fated Chieftain" was forced without fighting to abdicate. Reports have it that the republican movement in Brunswick, which long before the war was chafing under autocratic conditions, began to be noticed even before it was set in motion at Kiel.—George Renwick, N. Y. Times, 11/11.
Washington, November 11.—Emperor William's last words before affixing his signature to the abdication document were: "Let us not lose our faith in the future." The Crown Prince, who was present, "cried like a baby," according to an official telegram from Amsterdam to-day in which the scene of abdication was discussed. It says:
"The Kaiser signed his letter of abdication in the presence of the Crown Prince and Hindenburg, and of all the officers of the general headquarters, and of all his private servants. He appeared to be deeply moved. He signed, saying: ‘May it be for the good of Germany. Let us not lose our faith in the future.’
"The Crown Prince, who was crying like a baby, signed his letter of renunciation of the throne shortly afterward.
"The Emperor committed to Hindenburg the charge of making the facts known to the troops and the government.
"The Crown Prince left immediately for his general headquarters in order to take leave of his officers and to resign his command."
Prince Henry of Prussia is reported in a semi-official dispatch from Amsterdam to have fled from Germany with his wife to Denmark. He is supposed to have taken out of Germany with him several million francs, a part of his private fortune.—N. Y. Times, 12/11.
The Kaiser crossed the Dutch frontier at Eysden, between Liége and Maastricht, at 7.30 on Sunday morning, in a train of to automobiles heavily armed and guarded by German officers. After various delays, the ex-Kaiser left Maastricht, amid the execrations of 2000 Belgian refugees, in a special train bound for Velp, near Arnheim, were he found quarters prepared in the château of Midachten, owned by Count Bentinck. For the time being the Dutch Government decided that the former emperor, now Count Hohenzollern, should not be interned. He was to be joined shortly by the former Kaiserin.
The Crown Prince, with a suite of 10 or 12 officers, crossed the frontier on the afternoon of November 12 and remained temporarily at the residence of the governor of Limbourg in Maastricht. Washington was officially informed on November 14 that the former heir to the German throne had been interned by the Dutch Government. He was assigned a residence on an island in the Zuyder Zee.
PRELIMINARY NAVAL CONFERENCE.—On November 16 a conference between Allied and German naval officers was held in the Firth of Forth. The German delegates, headed by Admiral Hugo Meurer, were taken thither in the cruiser, Koenigsberg. The French cruiser Amiral Aube carried Admiral Grasset, the delegate of France. Admiral Hugh Rodman, commander of the American battleship force in the North Sea, was appointed to represent the United States. Details regarding the delivery of German naval forces constituted the business of the conference, which was held aboard the Queen Elizabeth with Admiral Beatty in charge of British interests.
TERMS OF THE AUSTRIAN ARMISTICE
The downfall of Germany was hastened by the complete collapse of Austria and the signing of an armistice by delegates of that nation on the afternoon of November 3, to take effect at 3 a. m. the following day. The negotiations were conducted by General Diaz, Italian commander-in-chief. In the campaign immediately preceding the armistice, and beginning October 24, the Italians captured about 300,000 prisoners and not less than 5000 guns. The armistice terms were most stringent, requiring the total demobilization of the Austrian Army; the surrender of half its equipment; the evacuation of Austrian border territory, Dalmatia, and islands in the Adriatic, and their administration by the Allies; surrender or disarmament of naval forces; and the right of the Allies to free movement over all Austro-Hungarian rail and water ways.
TERMS OF THE ARMISTICE ACCEPTED BY AUSTRIA
WASHINGTON, November 4.—The terms of the Austrian armistice, with parenthetical explanations of minor errors in cable transmission, were announced by the State Department to-day, as follows:
Following are the terms of the armistice imposed upon Austria, which will go into effect at 3 o'clock to-day:
Military Clauses
One—The immediate cessation of hostilities by land, by sea and air.
Two—Total demobilization of the Austro-Hungarian Army and immediate withdrawal of all Austro-Hungarian forces operating on the front from the North Sea to Switzerland.
Within Austro-Hungarian territory, limited as in Clause 3, below, there shall only be maintained as an organized military force a (?) reduced to pre-war effectives (effectiveness?).
Half the divisional, corps, and army artillery and equipment shall be collected at points to be indicated by the Allies and United States of America for delivery to them, beginning with all such material as exists in the territories to be evacuated by the Austro-Hungarian forces.
Three—Evacuation of all territories invaded by Austria-Hungary since the beginning of the war.
Withdrawal within such periods as shall be determined by the commander-in-chief of the Allied forces on each front of the Austro-Hungarian armies behind a line fixed as follows: From Pic Umbrail to the north of the Stelvio it will follow the crest of the Rhetian Alps up to the sources of the Adige and the Eisach, passing thence by Mounts Reschen and Brenner and the heights of Oetz and Zoaller. The line thence turns south, crossing Mount Toblach and meeting the present frontier Carnic Alps. It follows this frontier up to Mount Tarvis, and after Mount Tarvis the watershed of the Julian Alps by the Col of Predil, Mount Mangart, the Tricorno. Terglou), and the watershed of the Cols di Podberdo, Podlaniscam, and Idria. From this point the line turns southeast toward the Schneeberg, excludes the whole basin of the Save and its tributaries. From Schneeberg it goes down toward the coast in such a way as to include Castua, Mattuglia, and Volosca in the evacuated territories.
It will also follow the administrative limits of the present province of Dalmatia, including the north Lisarica and Trivania, and to the south territory limited by a line from the (Semigrand) Cape Planca to the summits of the watersheds eastward, so as to include in the evacuated area all the valleys and water courses flowing toward Sebenico, such as the Cicola, Kerka, Butisnica, and their tributaries. It will also include all the islands in the north and west of Dalmatia from Premuda, Selve, Ulbo, Scherda, Maon, Paga, and Puntadura, in the north, up to Meleda, in the south, embracing Santandrea, Busi, Lisa, Lesina, Tercola, Curzola, Cazza, and Lagosta, as well as the neighboring rocks and islets and passages, only excepting the islands of Great and Small Zirona, Bua, Solta, and Brazza.
All territory thus evacuated (shall be occupied by the forces?) of the Allies and the United States of America.
All military and railway equipment of all kinds, including coal belonging to or within those territories (to be?), left in situ and surrendered to the Allies, according to special orders given by the commander-in-chief of the forces of the associated powers on the different fronts. No new destruction, pillage, or requisition to be done by enemy troops in the territories to be evacuated by them and occupied by the forces of the associated powers.
Four—The Allies shall have the right of free movement over all road and rail and water ways in Austro-Hungarian territory and of the use of the necessary Austrian and Hungarian means of transportation. The armies of the associated powers shall occupy such strategic points in Austria-Hungary at times as they may deem necessary to enable them to conduct military operations or to maintain order.
They shall have the right of requisition on payment for the troops of the associated powers (wherever?) they may be.
Five—Complete vacuation of all German troops within 15 days, not only from the Italian and Balkan fronts but from all Austro-Hungarian territory.
Internment of all German troops which have not left Austria-Hungary within the date.
Six—The administration of the evacuated territories of Austria-Hungary will be intrusted to the local authorities, under the control of the Allied and associated armies of occupation.
Seven—The immediate repatriation without reciprocity of all Allied prisoners of war and interned subjects of civil populations evacuated from their homes, on conditions to be laid down by the commander-in-chief of the forces of the associated powers on the various fronts. Sick and wounded who cannot be removed from evacuated territory will be cared for by Austro-Hungarian personnel who will be left on the spot with the medical material required.
Naval Conditions
One—Immediate cessation of all hostilities at sea and definite information to be given as to the location and movements of all Austro-Hungarian ships.
Notification to be made to neutrals that freedom of navigation in all territorial waters is given to the naval and mercantile marine of the Allied and associated powers, all questions of neutrality being waived.
Two—Surrender to the Allies and the United States of 15 Austro-Hungarian submarines completed between the years 1910 and 1918, and of all German submarines which are in or may hereafter enter Austro-Hungarian territorial waters. All other Austro-Hungarian submarines to be paid off and completely disarmed and to remain under the supervision of the Allies and the United States.
Three—Surrender to the Allies and the United States with their complete armament and equipment of three battleships, three light cruisers, nine destroyers, twelve torpedo-boats, one mine layer, six Danube monitors, to be designated by the Allies and the United States of America. All other surface warships, including river craft, are to be concentrated in Austro-Hungarian naval bases to be designated by the Allies and the United States of America and are to be paid off and completely disarmed and placed under the supervision of the Allies and the United States of America.
Four—Freedom of navigation to all warships and merchant ships of the Allied and associated powers to be given in the Adriatic and up the River Danube and its tributaries in the territorial waters and territory of Austria-Hungary.
The Allies and associated powers shall have the right to sweep up all mine fields and obstructions, and the positions of these are to be indicated.
In order to insure the freedom of navigation on the Danube, the Allies and the United States of America shall be empowered to occupy or to dismantle all fortifications or defence works.
Five—The existing blockade conditions set up by the Allied and associated powers are to remain unchanged and all Austro-Hungarian merchant ships found at sea are to remain liable to capture, save exceptions which may be made by a commission nominated by the Allies and the United States of America.
Six—All naval aircraft are to be concentrated and impactionized in Austro-Hungarian bases to be designated by the Allies and the United States of America.
Seven—Evacuation of all the Italian coasts and of all ports occupied by Austria-Hungary outside their national territory and the abandonment of all floating craft, naval materials, equipment and materials for inland navigation of all kinds.
Eight—Occupation by the Allies and the United States of America of the land and sea fortifications and the islands which form the defences and of the dockyards and arsenal at Pola.
Nine—All merchant vessels held by Austria-Hungary belonging to the Allies and associated powers to be returned.
Ten—No destruction of ships or of materials to be permitted before evacuation, surrender, or restoration.
Eleven—All naval and mercantile marine prisoners of the Allied and associated powers in Austro-Hungarian hands to be returned without reciprocity.
AUSTRIAN NOTE OF OCTOBER 28.—Prior to the negotiations for an armistice, Austria addressed the following note to President Wilson in response to his communication of October 19 in which he declared that the Czechoslovaks and Jugo Slays must now be allowed to determine for themselves their future government:
VIENNA, October 28.
In reply to the note of President Wilson of the 19th of this month, addressed to the Austro-Hungarian Government and giving the decision of the President to speak directly with the Austro-Hungarian Government on the question of an armistice and of peace, the Austro-Hungarian Government has the honor to declare that equally with the preceding proclamations of the President, it adheres also to the same point of view contained in the last note upon the rights of the Austro-Hungarian peoples, especially those of the Czechoslovaks and the Jugo Slavs.
Consequently, Austria-Hungary accepting all the conditions the President has laid down for the entry into negotiations for an armistice and peace, no obstacle exists, according to the judgment of the Austro-Hungarian Government, to the beginning of these negotiations.
The Austro-Hungarian Government declares itself ready, in consequence, without awaiting the result of other negotiations, to enter into negotiations upon peace between Austria-Hungary and the states in the opposing group and for an immediate armistice upon all Austro-Hungarian fronts.
It asks President Wilson to be so kind as to begin overtures on this subject.
ANDRASSY.
THE BREAK-UP OF THE HAPSBURG EMPIRE
For a considerable period before the armistice the Austro-Hungarian monarchy was in process of dissolution. As early as October 17 press reports stated that a proclamation had been read in the Hungarian Parliament declaring Hungary an independent state, with the emperor as the only connecting link with Austria. Count Michael Karolyi, President of the Hungarian Independent Party, announced to the Hungarian National Council on November 2 that the independence of Hungary had been recognized by Emperor Charles. A new Hungarian Ministry was formed at Budapest, with Count Karolyi as Premier and Count Batthyanyi as Foreign Minister.
CZECHS TAKE CONTROL IN PRAGUE.—By October 30 the Czech National Committee was in full control of the capital of Prague and other parts of Bohemia. General Ikestranek, in command of the troops in Prague, was arrested by the National Committee for attempting to overthrow the new regime. The Hungarian troops under his command refused to obey his orders, and fraternized with the Czechs.
AUSTRIAN-GERMANS FORM STATE.—The German-Austrian deputies in the Austrian Reichsrat, according to a statement of October 23, had formed a separate assembly with Karl Seitz, leader of the German Socialists of Austria, as President, and announced the creation of a "German State of Austria." A dispatch of November 2 stated that Professor Lammasch, the new Austria Premier, had been empowered to hand over the government of German localities to this body.
How THE AUSTRIAN EMPIRE IS BREAKING UP.—Already five separatist movements have developed in Austria-Hungary. In approximate order of time they may be designated as follows:
(1) Czecho-Slovakia, comprising a large portion of the northern area of the empire. Prague has already been selected as the capital.
(2) Southern Slav State, consisting of all of the southeastern part of the empire, excepting that occupied by Italians.
(3) Hungary—the Magyar State—including by no means all of old Hungary. Under Karolya independence has been declared by a national council at Budapest.
(4) German Austria, comprising the central part of old Austria, with Vienna as its capital. It is reported that a republic has been proclaimed, and the new national council has stated its purpose to make peace "in accordance with Germany."
(5) German Bohemia. Members of the Reichsrat from regions comprising the northern and western fringe of Bohemia (which is virtually all Czech otherwise), have proclaimed independence for this district and selected Reichenberg for the capital.
Aside from these five groupings of large areas of Austria-Hungary on racial lines, there are three other regions which in any normal readjustment would naturally get split off from the empire. These are the district in the northeast inhabited by Poles, which would doubtless form part of an independent Polish state; Transylvania, which on a racial basis should be added to Roumania, and the Italian districts in the southwest, which are doubtless to be added to King Victor Emmanuel's realm.—N. Y. Times, 2/11.
SLOVENES, CROATIANS, AND SERBS UNITE.—Basle, October 23.—The Central Executive Committee elected on October 5 by the National Council of Slovenes, Croatians, and Serbians, at Agram, has issued a statement that the committee will at once assume the political direction of those nationalities, and declaring for the creation of a sovereign state on a democratic basis.
The following principles have been enunciated by the committee:
First, to bring about a reunion of all the Slovenes, Croatians, and Serbians on a racial basis, without reference to their present political frontiers.
Second, to create a sovereign state on a democratic basis.
Third, to see that the nationalities represented by the council have a delegate at the peace conference.
The committee rejects the plan contained in the imperial manifesto for the settlement of nationalistic problems in Austria. It will guarantee the free development of all national majorities which may form a part of the state organized by it. Neighboring states will be assured free access to the sea, provided that they make no attempts on the constitutional rights of the state and on its territorial integrity.
The committee finally urges concord among all the nationalities in order to create a great national state.—N. Y. Times, 24/10.
POLAND A REPUBLIC.—The Austrians and Germans having finally carried out of necessity their promise to free Poland, that nation declared itself a republic and early in November elected Ignatz Daszynski, an extreme radical Socialist and a former deputy in the Austrian Parliament, as President of the new state.
ABDICATION OF CHARLES.—On Monday, November 11, Emperor Charles of Austria-Hungary abdicated from the throne and retired to a royal castle near Vienna. Prior to his departure he issued this proclamation:
"Since my accession I have incessantly tried to rescue my people from this tremendous war. I have not delayed the re-establishment of constitutional rights or the opening of a way for the people to substantial national development.
"Filled with an unalterable love for my people I will not, with my person, be a hindrance to their free development. I acknowledge the decision taken by German-Austria to form a separate state.
"The people has by its deputies taken charge of the government. I relinquish every participation in the administration of the state. Likewise I have released the members of the Austrian Government from their offices.
"May the German-Austrian people realize harmony from the new adjustment. The happiness of my people was my aim from the beginning. My warmest wishes are that an internal peace will be able to heal the wounds of this war."
(Signed) CHARLES.
(Countersigned) LAMASCH.
TURKISH ARMISTICE TERMS
An armistice with Turkey, to take effect October 31 at noon, was signed at Mudros, on the island of Lemnos, in the Ægean Sea. General Townsend, captured at Kut-el-Amara, was sent by the Turks as an envoy to request peace. The terms imposed on Turkey follow:
First—The opening of the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus and access to the Black Sea. Allied occupation of the Dardanelles and Bosphorus forts.
Second—The positions of all mine fields, torpedo tubes, and other obstructions in Turkish waters are to be indicated and assistance given to sweep or remove them, as may be required.
Third—All available information concerning mines in the Black Sea is to be communicated.
Fourth—All Allied prisoners of war and Armenian interned persons and prisoners are to be collected in Constantinople and handed over unconditionally to the Allies.
Fifth—Immediate demobilization of the Turkish Army, except such troops as are required for surveillance on the frontiers and for the maintenance of internal order; the number of effectives and their disposition to be determined later by the Allies, after consultation with the Turkish Government.
Sixth—The surrender of all war vessels in Turkish waters or waters occupied by Turkey. These ships will be interned in such Turkish port or ports as may be directed, except such small vessels as are required for police and similar purposes in Turkish territorial waters.
Seventh—The Allies to have the right to occupy any strategic points in the event of any situation arising which threatens the security of the Allies.
Eighth—Free use by Allied ships of all ports and anchorages now in Turkish occupation and denial of their use by the enemy. Similar conditions are to apply to Turkish mercantile shipping in Turkish waters for the purposes of trade and the demobilization of the army.
Ninth—Allied occupation of the Taurus Tunnel system.
Tenth—Immediate withdrawal of Turkish troops from Northern Persia to behind the pre-war frontiers already has been ordered and will be carried out.
Eleventh—A part of Transcaucasia already has been crdered to be evacuated by Turkish troops. The remainder to be evacuated if required by the Allies after they have studied the situation.
Twelfth—Wireless, telegraph, and cable stations to be controlled by the Allies. Turkish Government messages to be excepted.
Thirteenth—Prohibition against the destruction of any naval, military, or commercial material.
Fourteenth—Facilities are to be given for the purchase of coal, oil fuel, and naval material from Turkish sources, after the requirements of the country have been met. None of the above materials is to be exported.
Sixteenth—The surrender of all garrisons in Hedjaz, Assir, Yemen, Syria, and Mesopotamia to the nearest Allied commander, and withdrawal of Turkish troops from Cilicia, except those necessary to maintain order as will be determined under Clause 6. (5?)
Eighteenth—The surrender of all ports occupied in Tripolitania and Cyrenica, including Misurata, to the nearest Allied garrison.
Nineteenth—All Germans and Austrians, naval, military, or civilian, to be evacuated within one month from Turkish dominions, and those in remote districts as soon after that time as may be possible.
Twenty-first—An Allied representative to be attached to the Turkish Ministry of Supplies, in order to safeguard Allied interests; this representative to be furnished with all aid necessary for this purpose.
Twenty-second—Turkish prisoners are to be kept at the disposal of the Allied powers. The release of Turkish civilian prisoners and prisoners over military age to be considered.
Twenty-third—An obligation on the part of Turkey to cease all relation with the Central Powers.
Twenty-fourth—In case of disorder in the six Armenian milayets, the Allies reserve to themselves the right to occupy and part of them.
Twenty-fifth—Hostilities between the Allies and Turkey shall cease from noon, local time, Thursday, the 31st of October, 1918.
BULGAR KING OVERTHROWN.—Copenhagen, November 2.—King Boris of Bulgaria, who ascended the throne on October 3, has abdicated. A peasant government has been established at Tirnova, under the leadership of M. Stambuliwsky, who has been chief of the peasants and agrarians of Bulgaria for some time. M. Stambuliwsky is said to be in command of a republican army of 40,000 men.
M. Stambuliwsky was only recently released from prison. When Bulgaria entered the war in October, 1915; he was sentenced to imprisonment for life after conviction on a charge of anti-militarism. He remained in prison until September 30, when he was pardoned by King Ferdinand prior to that king's abdication. For many years Stambuliwsky has been the leader of the peasants and the agrarians in the Bulgarian Parliament.—N. Y. Times, 3/11.
PRO-ALLY GOVERNMENT IN ROUMANIA.—With the overthrow of Germany a new government was established in Roumania. General Coanda, a friend of Roumania, became Premier. According to dispatches of November 2, Roumania, in order to make clear her position, again declared war on Germany.
RUSSIA
OMSK GOVERNMENT MAY BE RECOGNIZED.—Omsk, November 11.—Eugeno Regnault, the French High Commissioner, has arrived on a special train from Vladivostok. Next week Consul General Harris of Irkutsk is expected here, representing America.
M. Regnault's presence in the temporary capital of the All-Russian Government and the announcement that Consul General Harris will investigate for Washington, coupled with Sir Charles Elliot's recent visit, indicates that France, England, and the United States are showing official interest in the new Russian Government, which contemplates the reorganization of the whole of Russia and the establishment of a government which will succeed the Bolsheviki.—N. Y. Times, 15/11.
MISCELLANEOUS
GERMANY'S DEBT TO BELGIum.—London, October 21 (Via Montreal).— Some of the items which figure on Germany's bill in Belgium are given as follows from an official Belgian source:
War contributions from November, 1914, to October, 1916-£38,400,000.
War contributions, seven months, to May, 1917—£14,000,000.
War contributions from May, 1917, to May, 1918-£28,000,000.
War contributions from June to October of the current year— £I5,000,000.
Raw materials and machinery taken by the Germans were reckoned by them in January, 1915, at £80,000,000. The damage to December, 1914, estimated by the North German Gazette, amounted to £200,000,000. This makes a grand total of £384,200,000.
These items do not include material destruction and requisitions since January, 1915, which alone must be reckoned at several hundred million pounds.
During the winter of 1916, Belgian workingmen to the number of 1,750,000 were reported to Germany. The future production of these men was thus totally lost to their country.
UNITED STATES LOANS TO ALLIES.—The following credits had been established and cash advances made in favor of foreign governments by the United States up to September 3:
The obligations received from foreign governments are in the form of or are held as demand notes, carrying interest at rates not less than those borne by the respective issues of Liberty bonds of the United States, and the Treasury Department receives assurances from the Department of State as to the authority of the foreign representatives to execute the obligations on behalf of their respective governments.—Times Current History, October.
ALLIED PROTEST TO CHINA.—PEKING, November 4 (Associated Press).—The British Minister to China, with the concurrence of the other Allied Legations, has handed informally to the Chinese Foreign Office a memorandum concerning matters in which China is regarded as having been remiss as an ally. Among the instances mentioned are the following:
The wasting in party quarrels of the Boxer indemnity, remitted for fostering industries to enable participation in the war.
Lack of results by the Chinese War Participation Bureau and the diversion of Chinese troops to civil warfare in the south.
The appointment of a Papal Minister without consultation, creating an impression of friendship with the enemy.
Failure to confiscate enemy property, to impose restrictions on enemy enterprises and to impose penalties for trading with enemy subjects.
Refusal to retire the Governor General of Heino for supporting the enemy and the Bolsheviki in spite of the protests of the Allies.
Failure to imprison intriguing enemy subjects.
Failure to permit Allied Consuls to witness the trials of arrested spies.—N. Y . Times.
LLOYD GEORGE ON A LEAGUE OF NATIONS.—Premier Lloyd George made this announcement in an address to his Liberal supporters on November 11: "What are the principles on which the settlement is to be created?" he asked. "Are we to lapse back into the old national rivalries, animosities, and competitive armaments, or are we to initiate the reign on earth of the Prince of Peace? It is the duty of Liberalism to use its influence to insure that it shall be a reign of peace.
"What are conditions of peace? They must lead to a settlement which will be fundamentally just. No settlement that contravenes the principles of eternal justice will be a permanent one. The peace of 1871 imposed by Germany on France outraged all the principles of justice and fair play. Let us be warned by that example.
"We must not allow any sense of revenge, any spirit of greed, any grasping desire to override the fundamental principles of righteousness. Vigorous attempts will be made to hector and bully the government in an endeavor to make them depart from the strict principles of right and to satisfy some base, sordid, squalid idea of vengeance and of avarice. We must relentlessly set our faces against that.
"The mandate of this government at the forthcoming election will mean that the British delegation to the peace congress will be in favor of a just peace."
In discussing the question of a league of nations before his supporters, Premier Lloyd George said that such a league was more necessary now than ever. He pointed out that the conditions which prevailed in the Balkans before the war were now affecting practically two-thirds of Europe.
"A large number of small nations have been reborn in Europe," he continued, "and these will require a league of nations to protect them against the covetousness of ambitious and grasping neighbors. In my judgment, a league of nations is absolutely essential to permanent peace.
"We shall go to the peace conference to guarantee that a league of nations is a reality. I am one of those who believe that without peace we cannot have progress. A league of nations guarantees peace and guarantees also an all-round reduction of armaments, and that reduction of armaments is a guarantee that you can get rid of conscription here.
"Of course, we must have in this country an efficient army to police the Empire, but I am looking forward to a condition of things, with the existence of a league of nations, under which conscription will not be necessary in any country."—N. Y. Times.