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that of enemy countries. On Dec. i a second war credit was voted by the Reichstag. In this instance the express assent of the Social Democrats was given, and their then leader, Haase, explained in a long speech the reasons for their attitude. The feeling in Germany was everywhere the same; victory was be- lieved to be certain; even the unfavourable issue of the battle of the Marne, the fall of Tsing-tau and the destruction of the German cruiser flotilla off the Falkland Is. did nothing to impair this conviction. Although the participation of England in the war was keenly felt, the unquestionably great military successes of Germany in 1914 dispelled any apprehensions that the nation might not be strong enough to face its enemies.

The beginning of 1915 brought no alteration in this respect. In March the Social Democrats, by the mouth of their leader, Haase. expressed in the Reichstag the gratitude of the country to the German troops for their valour. At the same time the Government did its best to meet the Social Democrats halfway by fulfilling demands which that party had hitherto preferred in vain. The Secretary of State for the Interior, Dr. Klemens Delbriick, indicated in the Reichstag that new lines of policy were to be adopted; the question must be considered to what extent the great events which were taking place confronted the Empire with the necessity of meeting legitimate desires of the Left. In Aug. the president of the Reichstag, Dr. Kampf, in- timated that the Government had abandoned its opposition to the proposal to place the inscription " To the German People " on the place long reserved for it on the Reichstag building.

In May Italy entered the war, an event which had long been foreseen and therefore did not exercise any very depressing influence. In certain circles a feeling nevertheless began to gain ground that, in view of the steady increase in the number of Germany's foes, the prospect of victory was becoming more doubtful. The Government did its best to repress this feeling. On Aug. 19 1915, the Chancellor, Bethmann Hollweg, delivered a speech in the Reichstag directed chiefly against England, and culminating in the prediction that the numbers, the powers, the wealth and the malice of Germany's enemies would be. shattered against the iron determination of the German race. Once more the Reichstag, including the Social Democrats, voted a war credit, but this time one Socialist vote, that of Dr. Liebknecht, was recorded against it. Gradually, however, the Social Dem- ocrats began to give expression to aspirations for peace. As early as Nov. 1915 the Social Democratic leader, Scheidemann, addressed a question to the Government regarding the possibil- ity of concluding peace. And now for the first time a Socialist group of 18 deputies, under the leadership of the deputy for Leipzig, Geyer, voted against a fresh war credit, although the Socialist Dr. Landsberg still protested in the most emphatic manner against any surrender of German territory. A division in the ranks of Social Democracy began. A sensation was caused by the publication of a peace manifesto issued by the German Social Democratic minority in the Paris newspaper HumanM.

This was vigorously repudiated by the Socialist majority. On July 19 Haase, Bernstein and Kautsky published in the Leipziger Volkszeitung, under the title " A Necessity of the Hour," a declaration in favour of the early conclusion of peace. The official leaders of the Social Democratic party issued, it is true, a counter-declaration, but in this document it was ac- knowledged for the first time that the Government must be ready for peace negotiations if a suitable opportunity offered. The chief party organ, Vonvarts, which published this coun- ter-declaration, was temporarily suppressed by the Govern- ment. Thus there arose between the Social Democrats and the Government a discordancy which gradually extended among the masses. All the non-Socialist parties identified them- selves in this instance with the attitude of the Government. Another element in the situation was that in Prussia there was a campaign going on for the refqrm of the suffrage, demanded by the Social Democrats but somewhat peremptorily refused by the Prussian Ministry. The bombing of Freiburg in Baden by enemy airmen, causing the death of eight persons, and the simi- lar fate of Karlsruhe, where 27 persons were killed and 57

wounded, helped, no doubt, to revive popular feeling against the Entente and against the idea of peace. Nevertheless, a sense of war-weariness became more and more apparent and began to spread even in non-Socialist circles.

This change of feeling was above all due to the increasing diffi- culties in providing the masses with food. The severance of all communications between Germany and foreign countries pre- vented the importation of raw materials and foodstuffs of every kind. Although, at first, raw materials, sometimes in large quantities, could be imported through Holland, Switzerland and Sweden, these supplies gradually diminished as scarcity began to be felt in those countries. As far back as the beginning of 1915 the German Government was compelled to adopt meas- ures for securing a supply of food for the whole population. All grain and flour were sequestrated on Feb. i 1915. A system of bread cards was introduced for a ration of 200 grammes of bread per head of the population. It was further decreed that the bread should be baked with an admixture of substances like potato-flour. On June 29 1915 a Grain Office for the Empire was instituted and took over the whole traffic in grain; and on July 23 a similar department was set up for providing fodder for animals. A prohibition was issued against feeding cattle with rye or wheat. As it was at first impossible to enforce this pro- hibition by a system of minute surveillance, an order was issued that one-third of all the swine should be slaughtered. The lack of petroleum made itself felt, especially in the rural districts which had no other means of lighting. Illicit traffic in the kinds of goods that were under Government control began to spread, and profiteers raised prices far above real values. The Govern- ment was, therefore, compelled to adopt measures for preventing profiteering on the necessities of life. Maximum prices for petroleum were fixed in July 1916, and in Oct. of the same year for butter and potatoes. On May 22 1916 a War Food Office was established, with the former chief president of E. Prussia, von Batocki, at its head. The bread card was supplemented on Oct. 2 by a meat card allowing 250 grammes of meat weekly per head of population.

From Nov. i 1916 onwards meat might be obtained only on Tuesdays and Fridays. Milk was also rationed, in order to assure a supply for infants and young children. The munici- palities and communes made arrangements for supplying food to indigent persons; in the large towns popular kitchens were established which provided a meal at a low cost. The pupils in the schools were instructed to collect remnants of food and kitchen-refuse to supplement the fodder for cattle. The older pupils volunteered to go into the country and bear a hand in the harvest. Materials for clothing gradually began to be scarce. In July 1916 a Clothing Office for the Empire was instituted, and everyone who wanted to buy an article of wearing apparel had to apply to it for a permit; without the production of this purchase certificate no article of wearing apparel could be sold. German scientific experts were meanwhile doing their best to devise substitutes for articles of which there was a scarcity, and these efforts led to many new inventions.

The provision of financial resources for the prosecution of the war and for other public requirements presented a special prob- lem. While Great Britain met her war expenditure in the main by increasing the tax revenue and issuing short-dated loans, Germany adopted from the first the method of issuing long- dated war loans. At the beginning of the war the Secretary of State Kiihn was in charge of the finances of the Empire; he resigned in Jan. 1915 and was succeeded by Dr. Helfferich, who at a later date became the leader of the German National party (the Conservative Right). In May 1916 Dr. Helfferich suc- ceeded Dr. Klemens Delbriick as Secretary of State for the Inte- rior, and was himself succeeded in the Department of Finance by Count Rodern, hitherto Secretary of State in Alsace-Lorraine. The method of providing money remained the same throughout the war. The loans were employed not merely for meeting ex- penditure but also for meeting interest due upon previous loans. The result was a very rapid increase of the public debt, which by 1918 had reached the amount of nearly 102 milliard marks.