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Show Former Kaiser Still an Impenitent Man; Laughs at the Suggestion of Trial Exile of Anierongen B4ames Russia and the Diplomats Dip-lomats for World War; Himself Answerable Answer-able Only to God, He Declares. By HAROLD BEGBiE. (New York Times Cable, Copyright.) AMKRONGEN, March 30. What I aiji about to -write of the former German kaiser's opinions I should have been able to write In the lorm of a conversation but for the ex-emperor's determination tp remain re-main a private person and to do nothing which 'might give htm moment's appearance ap-pearance of wishing to interfere with the present government in Germany. I am 'conscious above everything else of Amerongerfs indifference to the notorious no-torious man whose presence here has conferred con-ferred upon it worldwide fame. Amerongen castle is a castle only in name. " It is an unimpressive, rather j sombre, red brick house, standing in so thick a companionship of trees that it I looks expressy,made for a ghost story of I Eds;ar Allan Poe. On Sunday, November 10, 1918, Count Godard Bentinck, in his castle at Amerongen, Ameron-gen, was confronted by a domestic crisis. Half of bis servants were down with influenza, in-fluenza, the other half were recovering from the same malady, and a shooting party was expected at the cistle in a few days. What should he do? He had been to church, eaten his Sunday luncheon, lunch-eon, and was in a reflective mood. He thought tilings out and decided to put off bis party. Hears of Kaiser's Flighty to Holland. As he reached this decision, the telephone tele-phone rang. This was at 2 o'clock. He went to the telephone and found himself ad dressed by tiie governor of the province. prov-ince. Tiie governor informed him fcht the kaiser bad fled from Germany, 'd crossed into Dutch territory; had been held up by a sergeant and a private soldier, sol-dier, and that the Dutch government, suddenly confronted with this critical affair, af-fair, would be exceedingly obliged if Count Godard received the kaiser for a few days while they turned about and considered what should be done with him. Count Godard replied that it was impossible im-possible for him to receive the kaiser, and explained his domestic crisis. The governor gov-ernor b,rushed Che influenza aside as a. thing not worthy to be mentioned In such a situation. Count Godard weakened and said he would consult his children. The children thought the matter might be managed. The end of it was that next day tiie kaiser and his suite were received re-ceived into Amerongen castle and Count Godard provided dinner for forty-rive persons. Not an Old Friend of Fugitive Monarch. The two days have now lengthened into twice as many months, and the problem of the ex-kaiser's domicile in stilljinsettled. It is thought by a number of people that Count Godard ol'fert-.d the kaiser the hospitality of his house and that he is. an old and intimate friend of the emperor. This is not une. Count Godard bad seen the former emperor but once, and this was in the days when the kaiser was Prince William. The emperor, on hearing that he was to be received at Amerongen castle, looked up Count Godard's record to discover dis-cover bis relation with the bouse of Bentinck. The two men, host and guest, met as absolute strangers on November 11. 1 invite you to think of the element in' this historic event the great and powerful German emperor held up by a sergeant and a private of the Dutch armv, looking up Count Bentinck to discover dis-cover the quality of his jailer. "All Highest" Still Impenitent Sinner. The former kaiser is entirely impenitent. impeni-tent. Pie is not only convinced of his innocence in-nocence he sees himself as one who strove harder than any man in the world to avert war. As for being put on trial, he laughs at such.an idea. There is no power on earth that can try him. If ho tbbught he was to be arraigned before an international tribunal he would destroy himself, not out of any fear of the result of such a trial, but because he 1 would regard such an ordeal as undigni- : fied, he says. "f am answerable for . my conduct only to God, and God knows how I strove, to my own peril, the peril of my throne, to avert the calamity of war." Me does not often protest his innocence. It is a more frequent occurrence on his part to express amazement at the opinions opin-ions of those who regard him as the guilty cause of the war. Questioned as to any plot on the part of Germany, be said it was with tiie consent of his war minister min-ister that Germany, manufacturer of munitions, mu-nitions, supplied Russia in the early days of 1 Tl 4 with 30,000 machine guns, 400.-000 400.-000 rifles and 4,000,000 rounds of ammunition. ammuni-tion. Says War Came, as Result of Diplomacy. "I did not want, as Nicholas did not want, war. George did not want war," he says, with energy. "No ruler wanted war. We were all dead against the war. The war was made bv the diplomatists. The whole guilt of -ther war rests on the Russian government, and there were secret se-cret forces at work in the Russian government." gov-ernment." . His argument is that the rivalry in the Balkans between "Russia and Austria led to the conflict of 1914. Russia was beginning be-ginning to get upon her feet, Austria was falling into decay; France was financing Russia! England bad assured Russia of her friendship. The finances of Russia and her army organization were in a comparatively Found condition, and the Russian government, , feeling itself thus powerfully buttressed, decided that tiie hour was ripe for a definite contest with the worm -ea ten empire of" Austria. Germany Ger-many was drawn into the war because she was pledged to defend Austria against Russian aggression and because she herself her-self could not be Insensible to the Increasing In-creasing menace of Russian activity. No War Party in Hundom, He Says. He denies with a kind of fierce ridicule the charge that there was any war party in the German empire. He quotes with fiery energy the statement of Lloyd Geoi&e that Germany was just as much entitled to her large army as England to her strong navy. He says he was surrounded sur-rounded by enemies. He asks what England En-gland would have done in Germany's geographical geo-graphical position, with France financing Russia in order that she should build strategic railways to thei German frontier. fron-tier. Bernhardt, he declares, was scarcely beard of in Germany before English translations of his works bad made him a kind "of military Shakespeare. The people peo-ple of Germany desired peace, the jingoes were a small party among the serious statesmen of the fatherland. There was fear of Russian . aggression, but no movement move-ment toward a war of defense. Resents Charges of War Atrocities. . Asked why he did nothing to enter the entente, he 'replied that he could not trust Russia. The entente seemed to him an organization of tremendous power, aimed directly at the German empire-and inspired in-spired by fear of German industry and envy of German prosperity. He was governed gov-erned in some measure in this respect by bis feelings toward Edward VII. He says Queen Victoria warned him against the influence of Edward. "Don't have anything any-thing to do with him." she would pay. "lie will do you no good intellectually, morally or socially." He whs a ntipa tlwic to Edward, and (Continued on Page -J, Column 6.) FORMER KAISER STILL i wwm mi (Continued from Page One.) this overflowed into their political relations. rela-tions. He protests his love of England, and is never tied of talking about his English friends. He said the famous Krn-ger Krn-ger telegram, which made him so many enemies in England, was sent against his wishes. He says that Prince Hohenlohe insisted upon tho dispatch of this telegram, tele-gram, telling him the roichstag desired that Germany should express sympathy with the attacked Boers. He is emphatic In his declaration that he did not wish to send that telegram and sent it eventually eventu-ally with sharp regret. As to the character of the war. he hotly resents the charge of organised atrocities and refuses to believe that any evidence worthy of the name exists -; sum monstrous wickedness. :- : He sava of the sinking of the Lusita that it was a great blunder, and one tr -he will never cease to regret, but he s:l. England's policy of attempting to sta : the women and children of Germany driven his people out of all patiences, . Quite maddened them against England, Of the shooting of Miss Cavell, heir, clares that the order was given by. a gii era! who was the worse for drink, a that directly he heard of he execution, sent orders to headquarters that hem forth no woman was to be shot witlu-: liis own personal sanction. He deploi that execution. He says the Germ'T armies fought with incredible courage a! absolute devotion to duty and he fires ' ' and becomes furious with indignati1 when they are pictured as brutal huna Sees No Iniquity I in Belgian Invasion. f . The question of Belgium is so clear his eyes that he cannot understand li( honest men can doubt the right of Ge many to go through that neutral territor He says that under Lord Haldane's a5,Q ministration of the British war office : c regarded Lord Haldane as England's cle erest spy. Plans were laid, with consejj( of King Albert's government for attac ; ing Germany through Belgium. The violence of German methods Belgium, he defends on the score th Belgian franc-tireurs were attempting unnerve the German armies and bre: their discipline. He declares that no hai ..; would have befallen a city or a village ; Belgium, if the Germans had not b& subject on all sides to secret attacks Belgian citizens. .. . His full blame for the catastrophe war is laid on Russia. His attitude t ward England is curiously sympathet : 3 He does not now think, as he was on . minded to do. that England's statesm '.: deliberately brought about the war. ; -:: Says England Was Deceived by Russia. ? He now says England was deceived l", Russia and that she had nothing to i ."-when ."-when the war came but to keep fait .-i with her allws. As for Germany, he is convinced tht she will rise in righteousness and pow-from pow-from the ashes of defeats incurred ; , defending her freedom from a world i. " arms. He feels that England has nevi -realized the justice of Germain's tire :. of Russia. England at one time fear. Russia, at another fime vilified scorned her. and at another time U -upon her neck and kissed her; but Germany. Russ:a has always been ' . world menace, inscrutable and treache ous. a mass of black ignorance, savaf -ferocity and almost soulless animatisr which, moving westward, would one d;' flood the world with anarchy and dent' Always, for Germany, Russia has bet Bolshevist. ; As to the future of the world, tr ; kaiser entertains the convict ion th; ; everything precious in human life is no" -menaced with destruction by the orgai . ized forces of evil. He has foilnd a new peril. Bo!shrvis ; for him is only a criminal alias for fro ' masonry. Sees Death Peril in Red Freemasonry. He is convinced that socialistic tret masonrv as it exists on the continent : a power comparable in its organ izatio and its international ramifications v't the Latin church. He sees in the d struction of German unity and Germs ' discipline not so much the phvsical vie 1 torv of the entente as the spiritual vie ' lory of this secret societv. He read" , ' number of books on tho "subject and hi ' eloauenee :bout freemasonry is a . earm-st ns in former days was his da ; nunciation of the yellow peril, socially f and slavism. 1 He sees in front of humanity a fear i full abvss of agony and ruin, towar j which the hidden hand of frecmasoiT. ' is fast driving tho unconscious ma of the world. He says that two g:a powers st ill stand in the midst of :h world ruin, the Church of Rome an the Freemasons. |
