the government felt that the grip of Germany upon
the Reichsland had steadily increased with the
lapse of time and was now unshakeable, it finally
came to feel that it was safe to grant some of the
concessions which were so greatly desired. On
March 15, 1910, the Chancellor of the Empire,
Bethmann-Hollweg, announced in the Reichstag
that the Emperor had agreed with the confederated
governments to grant a more autonomous constitu-
tion to Alsace-Lorraine. This announcement was
received with lively satisfaction. But the people
of the Reichsland were soon to learn that the Greeks
are not the only people to suspect when they come
forward bearing gifts. When, on June 29, the mem-
bers of the Landesauschuss expressed the desire
that the Landesauschuss should be consulted before-
hand as to the constitutional changes under con-
sideration in Berlin they were informed by the Alsa-
tian ministry that the Imperial Government did
not recognize the right of the Landesauschuss to
mix in questions which belonged exclusively to the
Bundesrath and the Reichstag.

Indeed the speech of the Chancellor ought to have
checked any undue optimism on the part of the
Alsatians. Stating that it was necessary to grant
"a greater political independence to Alsace," the

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