ad refused, the only
thing left for the central powers to do was to fight to the bitter end
and use any means whatsoever to force their enemies to make peace.

In other words, here were the two conflicting claims: Germany said,
"We have won the war. Don't you recognize the fact that you have been
beaten? Give us back our colonies, organize a kingdom of Poland, out
of the part of Russian Poland which we have conquered, as a separate
kingdom under our protection, but don't expect us to join to this any
part of Austrian or Prussian Poland. (Prussian and Austrian Poland are
ours. You wouldn't expect us to give up any part of them, would you?)
Allow us to keep the port of Antwerp and maintain our control over the
Balkan peninsula. We will restore to you northern France, most of
Belgium, and even part of Serbia. See what a generous offer we are
making!"

The Allied nations replied, in effect: "You now have gotten
three-fourths of what you aimed at when you began the war. If we make
peace now, allowing you to keep the greater part of what you have
conquered, you will be magnanimous and give back a small portion of it
if we in turn surrender all your lost colonies. Hardly! We demand, on
the other hand, that you recompense, as far as you can, the miserable
victims of your savage attack for the death and destruction that you
have caused; that you put things back as you found them as nearly as
possible; that you make it plain to us that never again will we have
to be on guard against the possibility of a ruthless invasion by your
army; that you give to the peoples whom you and your allies have
forcibly annexed or retained under your rule a chance to choose their
own form of government."

Then said the Germans to the world, "You see! They want to wipe us out
of existence and cut the empire of our allies into small bits. Nothing
is left but to fight for our existence, and, as we are fighting for
our existence, all rules hitherto observed in civilized warfare are
now called off!"

In the latter part of January, 1917, the German government announced
that, inasmuch as they had tried to bring about an honorable peace
(which would have left them still in possession of three-fourths the
plunder they had gained in the war) and this peace offer had been
rejected by the Entente, all responsibility for anything which might
happen hereafter in the war would have to be borne by France, England,
etc., and not by Germany. It was stated that