GERMAN LEADERS of YESTERDAY and TO-DAY BY ERIC DOMBROWSKI D. APPLETON AND NEW YORK LONDON 1920 CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. OCTAVIO, BARON VON SESDLITZ UND NEUKJLRE. ... 1 II. FRIEDRICH EBERT 8 III. ERICH LUDENDORFF 16 IV. THEODOR WOLFF 30 V. MATUIAS ERZBERGER 36 VI. GEORG LEDEBOUR 48 VII. ERNST VON HEYDEBRAND UND DER LAASE 54 VIII. ALFRED VON TIRPITZ 60 IX. FRIEDRICH NAUMANN 73 X. WlLHELM II 79 XL CLEMENS DELBRUCK 92 XII. HERMANN PACHNICKE 99 XIII. QICTO HAMMANN 103 XIV. ADOLPH HOFFMANN 110 XV. HELLMUT VON GERLACH 119 XVI. KARL THEODOR HELFFERICH 124 XVII. PHILIP SCHEIDEMANN . , v . 135 XVIII. HERMANN PAASCHE 141 XIX. HANS DELBRUCK , 147 XX. THEOBALD VON BETHMANN-HOLLWEG 151 XXI. MINNA CAUER 158 XXII. PAUL LENSCH 164 XXIII, ERNST GRAF zu EEVENTLOW 169 - XXIV. GEORG MICHAELIS 176 XXV. GUSTAV STRESEMANN 183 XXVI. LOTHAR PERSIUS 191 XXVII. FRIEDRICH VON PAYER 198 XXVIII. KUNO GRAF VON WESTARP 205 XXIX. HUGO HAASE 210 XXX. WILHELM VON WALDOW. - 218 XXXI. KlCHARD VON KUHLMANN 825 V CHAPTER PAGB XXXII. PAULFUHRMANN 231 XXXm. GEOEG GRAF VON EERTLING 238 XXXIV. ROBERT FRIEDBERG 246 XXXV. HANS GEOEG VON BEEEFELDE 252 XXXVI. PAUL VON HINTZB 262 XXXVII. ROSA LUXEMBURG 271 XXXVIII. MAXIMILIAN VON BADEN 277 XXXIX. KURT EISNER 285 XL. WILHELM KARL DITTMANN 294 XLI. ADOLPH GBOEBEB 299 XLII. EMIL EICHHORN 304 -XLIII. KARL LEEBNECHT 310 XLIV. WALTER ADRIAN SCHUCEJNG 320 XLV. GUSTAV NOSBU 328 GERMAN LEADERS of YESTERDAY and TO-DAY OCTAVIO, BARON VON ZEDLITZ TJND NEUKIRCH The political activity of Octavio, Baron von Zedlitz und Neukirch, dates back to tlie time when Prussia consisted of the Khine provinces, the Altmark, and East Elbia. He was torn in Glatz in 1840, the year of Friedrich Wilhelm Ills death. His father was president of the Eoyal Prussian Government The son arrived at a lesser station in life but nevertheless enjoyed great political influence. He and Prussia grew up together, but at heart he represented the old Prussia. Now that Monarchism, with an audible jerk, turned onto new tracks, Octavio, the knightly old champion, laid hia tired body upon the sick-bed. With Hebbels Master Anton he sighed resignedly I no longer understand the world whose political bumps I have tried to smooth with cunning compro mises for so many decades. Now it is everything or nothing, just like the battlefield under cannon fire, equal suffrage or the iron rocL What have I to do with that After all, I Have the right to get tired. I have tad a turn at every office and have become a political fao totom. I still remember passing my state examination LEADERS OF YESTERDAY AND TO-DAY for the bar, and that, immediately thereafter, I was sent upon an official mission abroad. Those were years in which the fate of the European continent was gambled for. In 1864 I was appointed to the Prussian Civil Commission in the annexed Duchies of Elbia. Ach and two years later the merry war with Austria In Koniggratz they picked up the badly wounded, smart, young, militia officer from the battlefield. Yes. And when I was well again I began slowly, slowly, year by year, to tread the traditional, bureaucratic, seniority march First assessor, then sheriff in Sagan. Then came a sudden pause. War with France mixed everything in a mess. To be sure, when I think of it, it was but a childs game compared to the present. All at once I was Under-pref ect in San Quentin. I wonder if the old house is there I dont suppose so. The bullets will have razed it to the ground along with all the rest. But whats the difference Live stock and dead, whole generations are rooted out, stock and branch, and we old fellows have nothing better to do than to lay the rest of our petty existences under the scythe as soon as possible. In those days life had just begun for me. Bis marck was building the new nation with broad sweeps and I was permitted to sit in his shadow and help. The district of Sagan-Sprottan sent me to the Reichstag took my seat there on the Conservative bench... --This text refers to the Paperback edition.