On Monday the German Reichstag, which was elected on May
4th, was dissolved. The General Election is to be held not later than December 19th. Although the short life of the last Reichstag looks at first like a sign of instability, it may really be the prelude to better things. The patched-up Government of the Centre always had within it the seeds of its collapse. The Nationalists, who were the strongest single party in the Reichstag, con- tinually hammered at the door of the Ministry, and there were times when it looked as though they must obtain • admittance. In the end it became evident that if they were admitted Herr Gessler would resign ; and Herr • Gessler, with his perfect knowledge of the military situation in Germany, had made himself practically indispensable. The price was not • worth paying. The only way was to appeal to the country and ask for the return of a more manageable Reichstag. We sincerely ' hope that this will be obtained. It would be a tragedy if - the favourable tendencies under the Dawes Scheme- were checked and the German people exhausted their energy - upon hunting some new Nationalist hare.
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