Their main objection to the present Government had been that it prejudiced the German political revolution and spiritual renascence in the eyes of the Entente. And they now, as representing the main forces of idealism in Germany, opposed the peace terms on international not on national grounds—as a conspiracy against the peace and prosperity of the European worker, not as a combination against the power and progress of the German Empire. Consequently, as the main body of the workers, that is, the driving power of the country, were of this party and had moreover been forced out of practical politics by the reaction party, when the terms were published there was no spontaneous explosion of emotion in Germany. Crushing as they were, there was no moral force to oppose against them; either national, as a century before in revolutionary France, or international, as a year before in revolutionary Russia.
The whole tone of private conversations and of Press communiqués on Thursday and Friday showed that the Government with individual exceptions, would sign the terms. And further the whole tradition of the Majority-Socialist and of the Centrum rank and file suggested that they would in this follow the lead of the Government and give it a parliamentary majority. Indeed, such passive acquiescence reflected accurately enough the prevalent point of view in a disorganised and devitalised community.
Late on that Friday night, judging from an account given me of the proceedings in the Cabinet and from general considerations, I telegraphed that Germany would sign even such conditions as those published.[8]
But where all is negative and minus, a very small positive and plus factor can make itself predominant. The Democratic party represented politically such nationalist idealism as was left. Theodor Wolff, in the Berliner Tageblatt, started a campaign for non-signature, at first only with the compromising support of the extreme Right. Within a few hours the feeble Government and half-famished capital came under pressure from two points—Paris and the provinces.
The German delegation to Paris had been made very representative in order to strengthen the Government in eventually imposing unacceptable terms on various interests; but the effect of their week's wait in their wired pen at Fontainebleau seems to have been to give them all an incipient attack of "barb wire fever." As the guiding brain of the Cabinet, Landsberg had been substituted for David on the delegation owing to personal and political reasons, and as influential Majority Socialists were on it also, this was serious. Opposition to signature appeared in the Cabinet; and the leading article in Sunday's Vorwärts by Stampfer, the editor, who had gone to Paris hoping to meet his French confrères indicated that the Majority Socialists were also dividing on the question of signature.
Accordingly the Democratic parliamentary party having declared unanimously against signature, the Centrum and Majority Socialists followed suit with large majorities—only five in the latter party voting for signature. The Government Press then began to challenge the Independents to make good their professed policy; with the intention of forcing them to form a Government which would take the odium of signing. The Independent leaders were approached on these lines.
The Independents found themselves in a difficulty. At first they were inclined to accept, but realised in time that if they did so they would be utterly prejudiced both politically and popularly. Moreover, their Left wing and the Communists would not join any Government on a Parliamentary basis; while the Majority Socialists would probably help the Right in throwing them out again on a nationalist reaction as soon as they had signed. They accordingly decided to declare for signature, but to refuse to relieve the Government from the responsibility for its own policy.
The parliamentary situation accordingly developed by Monday into the usual deadlock. But in Germany the parliamentary situation represents, even less than elsewhere, the realities of life. The meeting of the Assembly on Monday, which was to be a national demonstration, was a failure both in staging and in steam. Held in the University aula, under the great fresco of Fichte rallying the German youth to its resurrection after the peace of Tilsit, it only served to accentuate the difference between the nationalist idealism that rebuilt Germany in the last century and the internationalist idealism that may rebuild it now. For, in this Assembly of more or less compromised and wholly commonplace elderly politicians there was nothing vital or novel. The set speeches had mostly been written by propaganda officials and the very applause had been planned beforehand.
On the following day were open-air meetings, which gave a better index of public opinion. Of the two I saw, the first was a big Majority Socialist gathering, addressed by Fischer on the Koenigsplatz in a speech curiously like Scheidemann's. Thence a crowd that, if small, was select, one might say "super" select, demonstrated before the Hotel Adlon, the centre of the foreign correspondents and Missions, until dispersed by a rather dilatory detachment. But the foreign correspondents of course responded to these efforts for their entertainment and enlightenment with sensational "stories" of "Scenes in Berlin."
The conclusion I came to was that those German working men who were still under trade unionist and party leaders, would, with the middle class, follow the Government lead in this, as in anything else.