The anti-monopolist. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1874-1878, 1874-11-05
COUNT hRuIM's IMPRISONMENT.
Bismarck,s Side of the Story.
from the London Saturday Review.l

A practice has lately come INTO I8Sn-
ion among foreign diplomatists which is
in the highest degree reprehensible.
This practice is that of publishing, to
suit their own private convenience or
crafty their own private malignity, doc
uments which have come into their pos
session as the trusted servants of the
State. The officials of the second EN-.
pire may perhaps be credited with the
distinction Of having first invented or
popularized this practice. Many Of
them have lived as adventures in an at
mosphere of adventure, and they look
ed on State documents as so many re-
volvers, which, as they were in custody
Of them, tLey might as we'll put in their
own private drawers on the chance Of
wanting to shoot some one some day.
NJ. Rouher kept large number of these
secret weapons of diplomatic murder in
his own house, where they fell into the
hands of the Germans. That NJ. Rouher
ever meant to make bad use of them
is not to be asserted or implied; but it
showed an extraordinary laxity of Of
fetal uses when it was possible that a
minister, after leaving office,
should retain documents In
his possession which be-
longed to the State, and of which all
INSCRIPTIONS man might have made a
dishonest use. NJ. Benedict, after the
fall Of the empire, took upon himself to
divulge secrets with which he stated
himself to have become acquainted in
his diplomatic career, in order that, as
he said, he might do himself justice. 1t
so happened that he had nothing moro
to say that that Prince Bismarck had
befooled him, which was antecedently
probable; but he tried to do all the
harm he could. More recently, the
Duke Of Gramont made his revelations.
and published documents which were
calculated to place Austria in posi-
ton of difficulty and embarass its rela-
tons with Prussia. His revelations
showed that Austria was strongly in
clined to help France when the war
with Prussia was threatening; but
this was perfectly we'll known to Prus-
STA, and, as the policy Of Austria had
subsequently entirely changed, and her
great aim was to be on good terms
with Germany, Prince Bismarck was
quite content with what he had got, and
no notice was taken of what Austria
had been thinking of doing some time
before. The GROWING act Of indiscre-
ton, however, was that of Gen.
della Marmora, who, merely to
enjoy the malicious fun of
starting a quarrel between Germany
and Italy, published an account of what
had been talk ed of between him and the
representative of Prussia at a period
when the policy of Prussia was very un-
decided. Prince Bismarck remonstrat-
ed IN the strongest way with the Ital-
ian government, and in fact called it to
account severely for such an act Of
treachery being unpunished. The Ital-
ian government expressed its deep re.
gret, but stated that under the existing
Italian law there was no mode Of pun
ishing the offender. 1t offered, how
ever, to bring in bill by which such
an offense as that Of which Gen. della
Marmora had been guilty should in fu.
ture be punishable criminally, and the
German government expressing itself
satisfied with this o.er, the matter
dropped. 1t was not necessary for the
Italian government to press for rccip-
rOcal enactment, as the law Of Prussia
already made the abstraction Of State
documents a criminal offense, and it
would probably have seemed to both
parties in the highest degree unlikely
that any Prussian official would be
guilty of such an offense. If this. how
ever, was the conviction of Prince Bis
marck, he has lived to see himself mis-
taken.
Count Arnim has passed the best
years Of his life il the diplomatic SER
vice Of Prussia, and has feld posts OF
the highest Importance. He represent
ed Prussia at Rome while the arrange
ments were in progress for the Vatican
council of 1870, and subsequently he
was sent to Paris after the German
war. The man who was selected to
represent his country on two such &C.
casions was necessarily very dis.
tinguished and trusted public servant,
and he became Of course the confidant
of Prince Bismark on many occasions,
when the priuce's policy was not i'm
probably shifting, and perhaps not
overscrupulous. For many years Count
Arnim and his chiel were on the best of
terms, but at length the prince thought
Count Arnim was committing himself
in the wrong direction. 1t was ru-
mored that Count Arnim had been al
lying himself too warmly with the par
ty which matured the stroke by which
NJ. Theirs was driven from power.
This is only rumor, and the precise
reason for Count Arnim' S
being recalled was not officially
divulged. To have divulged it
would have been highly improper and
contrary to all precedent. A diplo-
matist, when he enters the service,
knows that he is always liable to be re-
moved from his post if he does not sat
isfy his official superiors. and he must
be content to suffer in silence If his re-
call has been unwise or unjust. At the
time It was supposed that, in order to
smooth his fall, Count Arnim would be
sent to the dignified exile Of CONSTANT