President-Traitor

Some time ago, Herr Rothardt, Editor of the Mitteldeutsche Presse, Monarchist journal, printed in his newspaper an attack upon Friedrich Ebert, President of the German Republic. It was stated that the President was one of the principal leaders of the great munitions strike of 1918 which, allegedly, contributed materially to Germany's defeat in the same historic year. Editor Rothardt also felt that" the President, even at this late date, should be punished for high treason.

Attacks of a similar nature have been launched from time to time against the President. Once a Munich newspaper libeled him. The President decided to sue; later, he gave up the idea because the case would have had to appear before a Bavarian court with pronounced monarchical sympathies.

This time, however, the President decided that sue he must. The case was to be held in Magdeburg, a commercial town in Prussian Saxony about 80 miles southwest of Berlin. A terrific campaign against, the President was waged by the Monarchist press, while the Republican press was equally active in the opposite direction.

The Public Prosecutor and counsel for the President declared, and supported their statements by prominent witnesses, that Herr Ebert had joined the strikers only to limit the scope of the strike and to bring it to a quick conclusion; that the plaintiff was not in any way responsible for the strike. Thus, on these grounds, the President claimed that he had been wilfully maligned.

The defense produced a witness, one Syrig, who had heard Herr Ebert declare in 1918 that he ''approved any measure that would bring the War to an early termination."

HERR EBERT

He, too, was guilty

One Gobert, described by the Monarchist press as "an honest simple- minded fellow," corroborated the evidence given by Syrig by stating that Herr Ebert had exhorted all workmen to ignore orders to join the Army.

In the course of the proceedings, it was proved that Syrig had told a friend that by giving evidence against the President his wife would be looked after all her earthly days. The uncle of Syrig testified that his nephew was a habitual liar and a practised thief. It was also brought out that Gobert had been punished eight times for fraud.

The Judge, "legal hairsplitter" (as the Republicans called him) "honest, impartial, fearless patriot" (as the Monarchists called him) found that Editor Rothardt was guilty of insulting the President, sentenced him to three months in jail and payment of all costs of the trial. Not content with sentencing the defendant, he proceeded to sentence the plaintiff by declaring that whether or no Herr Ebert joined the strikers to end the strike was immaterial, that he was technically guilty of treason --the President of the German Republic was a traitor. The Judge had killed two birds with the proverbial stone.

Counsel for the President and the Public Prosecutor gave notice of appeal; but the defendant, who was the logical person to appeal, did not do so.

Throughout Germany, the Judge's decision was used as fodder for stupendous bombardment by the cannons of Republicanism and Monarchism, the latter openly declaring that they would use it in a drive to force the President out of office and restore the Monarchy.

In Berlin, the Cabinet marched in a body to the Presidential mansion and expressed to the President their unbounded faith in him and their gratitude for his great patriotism. But to the man-in-the-street, the verdict was summed up: "President Ebert committed treason against Germany, but you must go to jail for calling him a traitor." Indeed, if the President were guilty of treason, it would seem that Editor Rothardt ought not to have been sentenced; conversely, it goes by implication that the sentence against Rothardt exculpates the President.