The German Emperor as Shown in His Public UtterancesWilliam II, German Emperor
History
The German Emperor as Shown in His Public Utterances
William II, German Emperor
Germany -- History -- William II, 1888-1918 -- Sources; Germany -- Politics And Government -- 1871-1918
In other cases, where the problem would seem to have been simpler,
the results have likewise been disastrous. It is not our purpose
to give the reasons but to state the facts. After one hundred
and twenty-five years of incorporation into Prussia the Poles
of East Prussia have in large part not been amalgamated and are
still the victims of discriminatory legislation. In judging such a
policy it is not merely a question as to whether Alsace-Lorraine,
for instance, did or did not once belong to Germany. Morally it
is difficult to concede to any nation the right to govern any
population which it makes permanently unhappy. After forty-four
years the problem of Alsace-Lorraine seemed to be very little
nearer a solution than it was at its inception. It is a mistake
to believe that the discontent was due principally to the fact
that the inhabitants must transfer their allegiance from France to
Germany. The discontent was due to the empire's refusal to give the
population rights and status compatible with their self-respect
as enlightened subjects of a twentieth-century government. Men of
German as well as of French descent, and even German emigrants who
were induced to settle in the province since 1870, took part in the
opposition. In a recent haphazard list of the "real leaders" of
Alsace-Lorraine, we find the following six names: Wetterlé, Preiss,
Blumenthal, Weber, Bucher, and Theodor. Of these the last five,
at least, are wholly or in part of German descent. Yet the most
serious demonstration in Metz since its annexation took place in
June, 1910. On July 25 of that same year, for the first time since
the University of Strasburg had been re-established by the Germans,
a professor was hissed out of his lecture-room; and, as we have
seen, in spite of an energetic propaganda by German newspapers, in
1912 more Alsacians enlisted in the French Foreign Legion than in
any single year since 1871. The situation in that province has been
already discussed in connection with the Emperor's speech of March
14, 1891. Quite evidently, the problem there was hardly on the
way to successful solution in August, 1914. Of course, Germany's
success in colonizing is not the only question to be considered
with regard to her _Weltpolitik_. It is, however, an essential
factor.
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