The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1877-05-10
GERMANY AND The EASTERN
QUESTION.

A private letter just received in this
country from German statesman of the
highest position throws very curious
and instructive light upon the present
and the future of the Eastern question,
This letter deals chiefly with the extreme
excitement caused in France by the re-
cent speech of Won Moltke, and is not
particularly hattering to the French peo-
pie "The good people of Paris" it says,
"and their fuglemen at Versailles cannot
"get it out of their heads that we in Ger
"many are always thinking of them, sim
"ply because they are always thinking of
"us. As matter of fact, in this present
Question, it is Russia which most preoc.
"cupies us. We understand perfectly
"well that Russia is our next and most
formidable enemy, and we also under
stand perfectly well how to disarm and
"paralyze her. The present Emperor of
Russia is sentimental simpleton, with
tout self.poise and without moral courage.
He has been driven into this war with
Turkey by the pressure of Russian feel
"ing. We in Germany have permitted
"him to engage in it, but we are not such
children as to permit him to emerge
from it either with honor or with accre-
"tions of strength. If he is terrified by
"the attitude Of England and of Austria
"into making peace, he will probably
"end very suddenly perhaps by suicide,
perhaps in the usual way in which Rus.
"sian public opinion vindicates itself
against incompetent emperors. If he
persists in making war, he will be hu-
initiated and Russia with him, by Ger.
"tain defeat, as nothing can be more clear
"than that it is in our interest to allow
Austria, at the critical moment, to fall
upon higarmies and obliterate all recol-
Elections of the Austro. Russian alliance
"of 1S49.50. Peace or defeat equally will
"mean the accession to the Russian throne
"under cloud of popular discomfort and
"under a crushing weight of financial
Burdens, of a prince who is known to be
"our special enemy, theiCzarewitch. This
sis equivalent to complete notification
"9f Russia, for generation to come, in
"the affairs of Europe; and what can ev-
"er hold out any hope to France of the
recovery of Lorraine and Alsace except
ian alliance with Russia ?" 1t must be
admitted that this is very cold and Gym
ical view of the affairs of Europe, but it
is an ominously practical view of them
and the rulers of Germany have shown |
themselves of late years to be the most |
practical of men. If it is true, as it is be-
lieved to be, that Prince Bismarck per.
sonally was greatly instrumental year
ago in persuading the Russian Emperor
to take the steps which have led to the
present situation in the East, the view
presented in the letter which we have
been allowed to lay before our readers, of
the interest and the policy of Germany
in the matter, would at least explain, as
nothing else has explained, the recent
of the great German Chan
cellor from the active control of public
affairs. lie may very well have seen the
at hand when it would be very
convenient for him to plead complete
lack of personal responsibility for any at
titude which Germany may assume. And
the aggressive disposition
shown by the Austrian Premier, Count
Andrassy, during the last week, would be
a very natural result OF some such under
standing between Berlin and Vienna, to
the disadvantage of st. Petersburg, as is
shadowed forth in the letter we have
been allowed to cite.-New York World
7th inst.