The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1871-11-11


The Bismarck Benedict correspondence is
one Of the leading sensations of the day. Some
few weeks ago Benedict, as the world thought,
made clean breast of it and told us all he
knew. The Benedict volume held up Bis
marck before the eyes of European diploma
fists as great malefactor. 1t did not leave
the French government spotless, but it proved
that Bismarck, not Napoleon or Napoleon's
Minister, was the first to suggest that France
might seek in the little kingdom of Belgium
suitable compensation for the gains which Prus-
STA made by Sadowa. Poor Benedict, when
he published his little volume, was under the
impression that certain documents, which
would give different version Of the affair,
were hopelessly lost or safe In NJ. Rouhers
hands. He did not know that these very
autumn, it so happened, the country seat Of
M. Rouher was occupied by the German
troops, and it is suspected these very docu-
ments were found aud transmitted to Bismarck,
at the headquarters of the German army. The
official journals of Berlin have replied to Bene-
detti's charge, and in doing so have made a
liberal use of the papers which M. Benedict
vainiy imagined would never see the light.
The German reply, though it leaves some gaps
yet to be filed up, Is crushing. Benedict has
had sufficient time to deny the genuineness Of
these documents but he has not done so.
On the contrary, he is represented as being
extremely indignant that his friends should
have allowed him to get into such mess.
After all, 1t Is paltry affair. Who cares who
was the first to propose that France should
have Belgium The great fact which stands
prominently out, and which neither the one
party nor the other can deny, Is
that Prussia and France, Bismarck and
Napoleon, were for some time in 1866 diplo-
matically cutting and carving Europe at will.
AT one time France demands Saarlouis, Saar-
bruck, Landau and Luxembourg. If Beneditti
could not get the three former 'shis public
agreement was to be confined to the Duchy of
Luxembourg and the secret treaty to the re-
union of Belgium with France. At one time
during the process Of negotiation it seems to
have occurred to the minds of the principal
leaders in the affair that England might make
some objection, and SO it was proposed, as
sop to that Power, that Antwerp be declared
free city. On the 26th of August, 1866, both
parties seem to have been prepared to con-
clude a treaty about Belgium, Luxembourg,
Mayence and the others having been given up
as beyond the region of the practicable; but
on the Goth Bismarck's views had completely
changed and Benedict began to dream of a
Russo-Prussian alliance. 1t is difficult to say
whether Prussia or France is more to blame;
1t is impossible to say which of the diplo-
matists first spoke of Belgium, but it is
abundantly plain that the victory remained
with Bismarck. If anything else remains to
be said, it is this that Benedict has made
worse than mistake in writing what he has
written. The sin, if there be any sin. must
be divided between the two offenders but the
world, the European world particularly,
should profit by the lesson. History repeats
ITSELF The next repetition may be more
serious and alarming.