OCR Text |
Show : , LONDON, Monday, Nov. 25, British Wireless Service. ( Publication of official reports from the Bavarian minister at I Berlin to his home government confirm evidence in the hands : i of the Entente that Germany and Austria conspired to bring about the war. It was for this reason that the terms of Aus- Itria's ultimatum to Serbia were made so drastic that hostili- ties were bound to follow. These revelations have been published in Munich after i permission had been asked, by the Bavarian premier and foreign for-eign minister of the German federal government. They are , ; in the form of a report sent to Munich, July 18, 1914, by Count von Lerchenfeld, the Bavarian minister at Berlin. According to the report, the delivery of the ultimatum to ; Serbia was delayed until after President Poincare and Premier Viviani, of France, had gone to St. Petersburg which would, make it difficult for the Entente nations to arrive at an under- standing and take counter measures. j F Count von Lerchenfeld said that "Serbia obviously can-j not accept such conditions as will be laid down," and that as a ! j- consequence "there must be war." He declared that action I , on the part of Austria could not be long delayed" for that ! I might give Serbia, under pressure from France and Russia, an , j opportunity to offer satisfaction." ' In a telegram to Munich from Berlin on July 31, 1914,' j Count von Lerchenfeld said that Sir Edward Grey's efforts to i preserve peace would ''certainly not succeed in arresting the, j course of events." Later the same day he wired information j j afi to ultimatums to Russia and France, forecast their rejection ' ' by both nations and told of plans to hurl Germany's armies i against France which, he said, would be "overwhelmed in! ; four weeks." He said that the morale of the French army was , j poor and that it was poorly armed. 1 On August fourth the Bavarian minister outlined Ger- many's intention to violate Belgian neutrality, saying: j "The chief of the general staff has declared that even, j' British neutrality will be paid for too dearly if the price is I ( respect of Belgium. An attaqk on France is possible only through Belgium." LONDON, Nov. 26. Shocking stories of their treatment are j told by many British prisoners who have reached England from Germany. Unfortunate Britishers who arrived at Friederichsfeld Prussia, after hostilities ceased, had a hard lot. The' had been taken ! prisoner shortly before or during the British advance and were com-! com-! pellcd to work behind the lines, being driven from place to place J 'like something lower than beasts." J Of one working party of 1S00 only 2S2 came into Frederiehsfeld. ! From twenty to thirty daily went into hospital and fifty of the party ! died during the first week in camp. Several of the men said they' caught snails and ate them while on the march. j It was admitted by the German doctors, current advices state, luat a large proportion of the S00 British prisoners at a camp at Lasqum nine miles from Brussels died from starvation or exposure. i BERLIN, Nov. 25. Reports of tests j of strength between the conservative elements and the independent Bolshevik Bolshe-vik Socialists in various places in German Ger-man continue to indicate that as far : as mere numbors go the extremists are almost negligible. ; Fuller reports from Bremen show t uiat the movement in the coast cities r already has turned into a more con-j con-j servallvc channel. f A meeting of soldiers', workmen's ;( and peasants' councils, representing y Bremen, Hanover, Hamburg, Flens bure. Osnabrueck, Wllhelmshaven and a numberof smaller places in the prov-J prov-J mcesof Hanover and Schleswig-Hol-j eln adopted a resolution declaring 'y jhat these councils would stand behind ' i jno present government and demand jno convocation of a national aaaem-I aaaem-I ( ,"!". The resolution was adopted by a ; i vte of 81 to 20. There also was a , j crushing defeat for the extremists at I a meeting representing the Tenth !. army corps at Hanover whereby a vote ! f HO to 4 a resolution was adopted against efforts to establish a dicta-1 , lorshlp and demanding the assembling M a constituent assembly. J Soldiers from the front arc begin- i Jing to arrive in Berlin and men who J f.avo conversed with them express t , inemselves optimistically as to the ef- !j 'ect of their return. These men dell de-ll are that the great bulk of the sol-! sol-! Qers reject Bolshevism in all its ' Phases. i 11 aso may perhaps be considered ! ',' ?n J.c atlon of tbe general public's ' 1 rh n the conservatism of the sol- "'ersuthat German and Prussian flags rot ,,re..beSinning to re-appear over all il "srim aftor having made way for the . red flag since November 10. Only in one of the suburbs was any objection raised to tho flying of the national flags. Certain elements there lore the Prussian banners from tho street cars. Elsewhere the emblems were not disturbed. dis-turbed. oo I |