1 VT,
The Commoner
;
Vofc 18, NO. 9
. , . , . But eT8n uter victorious peace .in
Austria's Official Communication a;gS25S5rJ
Proposing Peace Discussion
An Anifltordam cable, carried by tbe Asso
ciated Press under dixto of September 15, fol
lows: In extending an Invitation to all tbo bel
ligerent governments to onder Into non-binding
discussions at Borao neutral meeting place the
Austrian-Hungarian government stated that the
objoct of the conference would be to secure an
oxchango of views which would show "whether
those prerequisites exist which would make tho
spocdy inauguration of peace negotiations appear
promising."
Tho Austrian proposal, which is announced
in. an ofllcial communication telegraphed here
from Vionna, suggests that there be no interrup
tion of the war, and that the "discussions would
go only so far as considered by the participants
to offer prospects of success."
Tho proposal calls for all tho belligerents to
send delegates for a "confidential and unbinding
discussion on tho basic principles for tho con
clusion of peace, in a place in a neutral country
and at a near date, that would yet have to be
agrcod upon."
Tho proposal says the conference would be one
of "delegates who would bo charged to make
known to one another tho conception of their
govornmonts regarding those principles and to
recoivo analogous communications as well as to
request and givo frank and candid explanations
on all those points which need to bo precisely
defined."
Tho government announces that a note em
bodying its suggestions had been addresed to the
various bolligoront powers and that the Holy
Seo had boon apprised of tho proposal in a spe
cial noto.
Tho govornmonts of the neutral states also
had been made acquainted with the proposal.
Tho toxt of the ofllcial communication reads:
"An objective and conscientious examination
qf tho situation of all tho belligerent states now
loaves no doubt that all pooplo, on whatever side
they may bo fighting, long for a speedy end to
tho bloody struggles. Despite this natural and ,
comprehensible desire for poace, it has not so
far been possible to create those preliminary
conditions calculated to bring tho peace efforts
nearer to realization and bridge tho gap which
at prosont still separates tho belligerents from
ono another.
Moro effective moans must therefore be con
sidered whereby tho responsible factors of all
the countries can bo offered an opportunity to
Investigate tho presont misunderstandings. In
accord with other allies, the first stop, taken in
Docomber 1916 for tho bringing about of peace,
did not lead to tho end hoped for.
'.'Tho grounds for this lay assuredly in the
situation at that time.' In order to maintain in
their people tho war spirit, which wa3 steadily
declining, tho allied means suppressed evon any
discussion of tho peace Idea. And so it came
about that tho ground for a peace understanding
was not properly prepared. Tho natural transi
tion from tho wildest war agitation to a con
dition of conciliation was lacking.
"Jt would, howover, bo wrong to believe that
tho peace stop we thon took was entirely with
out results. Its fruits consist of something which
is not to bo overlooked that tho peace ques
tion has not sinco vanished from tho order of
the day. Tho discussions which have been car
ried on before the tribunal of public opinion
have disclosed proof of the not slight differences
which today still separate tho warring powers in
their conception of peace conditions. Neverthe
less an atmosphere has been created which no
longer excludes the discussion of peace problems.
TO REACH UNDERSTANDING
"Without optimism it at least assuredly may
bo deduced from tho utterances of republic states
man that tho desire to reach an understanding
and not to decide the war exclusively by force
of arms is also gradually beginning to penetrate
Into allied states, save for some exceptions in tho
case of blinded war agitators, which are certain
ly not to be estimated lightly.
VThe Austro-Hungarian Government is aware
that after the deep-reaching convulsions which
"hare been caused in tho life of the peoples by
thS ' devasting effects of tho world war it will
not bo possible to re-establish order in the tot-
.
CXITMI) STATES HK.JJSUXH rimuja
CON 1WK13XCE PKOPOS AJj
A Washington dispatch, dated Sep
tember 18, foliows: Tho United States,
as was fully expected, has unconditional
ly rejected Germany's peace feeler. In
doing so the government has spoken for
all the co-belligerents. Almost immed
iately after receiving the Austrian gov-
..,,.-. ( ,. .mfn fnnTYi din mlnlofor fmtll
Sweden, Mr. Ekengren, Secretary Lan
sing tonight issued this formal state
ment: "I am authorized by the President to
state that the following will be tho reply
of this government to the Austro-Hun-garian
note proposing an unofficial con
ference of belligerents.
"The government of the United States
feels that there is only ono reply which
it can mako to the suggestion of the im
perial Austro-Hungarian government. It
has repeatedly and with entire candor
stated the terms upon which the United
States would consider peace and can and
will entertain no poposal for a conference
upon a matter concerning which it has
made its position and purpose so plain."
The terms, referred to in the reply dic
tated today to the Austrian note, were
clearlv set out in President Wilson's
Fourth of July speech, at Mount Vernon,
as follows:
"1 The destruction of every arbitrary
power anywhere that can separately, se
cretly and of Its single choice disturb the
peace of tho world; or, if it cannot bo
presently destroyed, at least its reduction
to virtual impotence.
"2 The settlement of every question,,
whether of territory, of sovereignty, of
economic arrangement or of political re
lationship, upon the basis of the free ac
ceptance of that settlement by the people
immediately concerned and not upon the
basis of the material interest or advant
age of any other nation or people which
may desire a different settlement for the
sake of its own exterior influence or
mastery.
"3 The consent of all nations to be
governed in their conduct toward each
other by the same principles of honor
and of respect for the common law of
civilized society that govern the indi
vidual citizens of all modern states in
their relations with one another; to the
end that all promises and convenants
may be sacredly observed, no private
plots or conspiracy hatched, no selfish
injuries wrought with impuriity and a
mutual trust established upon the hand
some foundation of a mutual respect for
right.
"4 The establishment of an organiza
tion of neace which shall make it certain
that the combined power of free nations
will check every invasion and serve to
mako peace and justice the more secure
by affording a definite tribunal of opinion
to which all must submit and by which
every International readjustment that
cannot bo amicably agreed upon by
sanconede 'eCtly concerned all be
'
'
'
'
0000)
tering world at a single stroke. The path that
leads to the restoration of peaceful rei?Hn ?
mcT 0" L8 Ut by Mbtt
jnent. It is too Irksome and wearisome v5
is our duty to tread this path -1 tho A
negotiations and if there are stm ni.P?th of
as desire to overcome th mTJi!fc
means and to force the will tr iXtL y wllItaiy
there can, nevertheless, no SnVh! SZl
this aim, even assuming that u i Jffi1 ?,at
would first necessitate a further Vnn?inable,'
protracted struggle. lurcner sanguinary and
"Tlllt MVATt a 1fiMT 4tnxl... -
to all the states and peoples of Enron! ?
onlv ne&ce which could rlirTitnii0i .. . lfi
still divergent conceptions of the onnL ?
would bo a peace desired by all the peoples S
this consciousness, and in its unswerving ex!
cies, a discussion between the enemy powers56"'
jui uubl jjcauu ujl mu population of all w
states who are jointly suffering through theI
the indisputable rapprochement in individnai
controversial questions as well as the mo
conciliatory atmosphere that is general seen!
to give a certain guarantee that a fresh'sten fa
the interests of peace, which also takes account
of past experiences in his domain, might at th
present moment offer the possibility of success!
PRACTICABLE TO AUSTRIA
"The Austro-Hungarian government has there
fore resolved to point out to all the belligerents
friend and foe, a path considered practicable to
it and to propose to them jointly to examine la
a free exchange of views whether those prere
quisities is which would make the speedy In
aUguration of peace nbgotiations appear pro.
mising. To this end the Austro-Hungarian go
ernment has today invited the governments o!
all the belligerent states to a conference and un
binding discussion at a neutral meeting place,
and has addressed to them a note drawn up in
this sense.
"This step lias been brought to the attention
of the Holy See in a special note, and an appeal
hereby made to the pope's interest in peace.
Furthermore, the governments of the neutral
states have been acquainted with the step taken.
Tho constant close .accord which exists between
the four allied powers warrants the assumption
that the allies of Austria-Hungary to whom the
proposal is being senf in the same manner, share
the views developed in the note."
The official telegram proceeds to say that the
note has been drawn up in French and runs as
follows:
"The peace offer which the powers of the
quadruple alliance addressed to their opponents
on December 12, 1916, .and the conciliatory
basic ideas of. which they have never given up,
signifies, des,pite the rejection which it experi
enced, 'an important stage i,i the history of this
war. In contrast to the first two and a half mi
yearsv, the question of peace has from that
moment been the center of European aye, of
world discussion, and dominates it in ever
increasing measure.
NO TANGIBLE RESULT
"We have in turn again and again expressed
ourselves on the question of peace, its pro-requl-tites
and conditions. The lines of development
of this discussion, however, has not been uniform
and steady. The basic standpoint changed under
the influence of the military and political situa
tions, at any rate, it, has not led to a tangible
general result that could be utilized.
"It is true that, independent of all these oscil
lations, it can be stated that the distance be
tween the conceptions of the two sides, has, on
the whole, grown somewhat less; that despite
the indisputable conditions thereto unabridged
differences, a partial turning from any of the
most -extreme concrete war aims is visible and
a certain agreement upon relative general basic
principles, of a world peace manifests itself. In
both camps, there is undoubtedly observable in
wide classes of the population, a growth of the
will to peace and understanding. Moreover, a
comparison of the jeace proposal of the power3
of the quadruple alliance on tho part of the'
opponents with the later utterances of republic
statesmen of the latter, as well as of the non
responsible but, in a political respect, no vise
uninfluential personages, confirms this im
pression.
"While for example, the reply of the allies to
President Wilson made demands which amountea
to the dismemberment of Austria-Hungary, to J
dimunition and a deep internal transformation
of tho German empire, and the destruction oi
Turkish European ownership, those demands, tw
realization of which was based on the supP0S1
tion of an overwhelming victory, werVmi.
modified in many declarations from allien w
lomats or in part were dropped.
REFORM NOT INTENDED
'Thus, in a declaration made in the BriUJJ
house of commons a year ago, Secretary Bauou
expressly "recognized that Austria-Hungary mu"
" (Continued on page 11.)
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