Although it has since been cabled that the Imperial Government was
considering taking action against Prince Lichnowsky, and that Captain
Beerfelde, a member of the German General Staff, was under arrest for
having aided in the distribution of manifolded copies of the memorandum,
there was no general demand in the German press for the trial of the
Prince on a charge of high treason. The exceptions were a few extreme
Pan-German organs, led by Count zu Reventlow's Deutsche Tageszeitung. On
the other hand, a few of the Socialist and Liberal papers cautiously
remarked that, after all, although what the Prince said about the
responsibility for the war was altogether too pro-Entente, it might help
the movement in Germany for a negotiated peace.
Count zu Reventlow's article in the Deutsche Tageszeitung read, in part,
as follows:
"When a former Ambassador, and an experienced diplomat and official
besides, writes an article and gives it to some one else in these times,
there is, in our opinion, no excuse. It is a case of high treason and it
makes little difference if here one might perhaps admit the view of its
being high treason through negligence, because certainly no former
diplomat and official ought to allow himself to be so negligent, and
furthermore he must have known the great danger of his action, which, as
has been said, was exclusively meant to be to his personal interest.
Therefore, we cannot very well understand for what reasons the proper
steps have not been taken already against Prince Lichnowsky. We use the
characterization 'high treason' after due deliberation.
"Prince Lichnowsky should not have allowed a single piece of his article
to have left his hands, for he was very well able to judge that its
publication outside of the German Empire was bound to have the effect of
a treasonable act. The German cause will not be made any worse because a
former diplomat, completely enchanted by English ways and never in touch
with the essence of the English policy, places himself on the side of
the enemies of the German Empire."
The Kölnische Volkszeitung, the organ of the annexationist faction of
the Centre Party, concluded its editorial thus:
"One thing must be emphasized, Liebknecht, Dittmann, and other traitors
have been jailed because of their high treason. Lichnowsky wanted to
show to the whole world with his memorandum that Germany had sought,
wanted, and begun the war because some persons did not wish to have him,
Prince Lichnowsky, enjoy the success of the Anglo-German friendship.
And, in so doing, Lichnowsky furnished our enemies with weapons, worked
to our enemies' advantage. In time of war this is treason. The excuse
that the fourteen copies that he had prepared were only written for his
friends is ridiculous. Theodore Wolff of the Berliner Tageblatt is known
to be one of Lichnowsky's most intimate friends. Who knows who the
others may be! If a Social Democrat or an anarchist writes an inciting
pamphlet in the form of a memorandum and doesn't distribute it himself,
but has his friends do it, is he then exempt from punishment? If a
person commits high treason and does not circulate the document himself,
but lets others do it, or at least does not take precautions to see that
it is not distributed, does he go free? The German people will hardly
understand the decision of the Imperial Department of Justice as just
rendered in favor of Lichnowsky. Even at the last session of the
Prussian House of Lords Prince Lichnowsky sat beside his friend
Dernberg. Will he appear in the House of Lords again?"