e it, and to spare the world any further
suffering. To this day I am still convinced that, had the Germans
skilfully conducted their share in these peace negotiations, we
should have achieved all we wanted to achieve. The happy personal
relations which, in that case, would have prevailed between Mr.
Wilson and the German representatives at the Peace Conference,
would, in view of the element of chance, which is so conspicuous at
such congresses, have turned the scales in our favor to a surprising
extent. On the other hand, I was, and am still, of the opinion
that the peace which would have been settled at that time, would
not have satisfied the public opinion of the moment in Germany.
But I attached no importance whatever to this consideration. He
who practises politics in the interests of his native country,
must be ready at any moment to plunge like Curtius into the abyss,
in order to save his nation. This, however, is what made Curtius
immortal. Besides, in a few years, if not sooner, the German people
would surely have realized that "Peace without Victory" constituted
a victory for Germany.

After the 31st January, 1917, Mr. Wilson was incapable of an impartial
attitude towards Germany. He saw red whenever he thought of the
Imperial Government, and his repugnance against it knew no bounds.
Even to-day the bitter feeling still rankles within him, that the
German Government deprived him of the glory of being the premier
political personage on the world's stage. It goes without saying,
that at Versailles the Entente exploited with a vengeance both
this attitude on the part of the President, and his peculiar
idiosyncrasies. Intercepted wireless messages from Paris had made
us aware of the fact that the original American interpretation
of the fourteen points entirely agreed with our own; and thus we
in Berlin were filled, not without reason, with certain hopes of
America's help. But Mr. Wilson, who would have acted more wisely
had he never gone to Versailles, sat there alone, facing three
European statesmen, for whom he was no match. They played upon
his weakest point, by suggesting to him the view that, in addition
to the German Government, the German people, who were guilty, too,
should also be punished, and that the obligation to punish the
guilty took precedence of the fourteen points. Had Mr. Wilson,
after January, 1917, really come to the definite conclusion that
he held the proofs of Germany's war guilt and lust