The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1884-02-23
A Deserved Rebuke.

Herr Lasker, German of prominence as
politician and scholar, died in New York a
few weeks ago, having come to this country
to study its institutions. Upon his death
Col. Tom Ochiltree introduced into Congress
resolutions eulogistic of Lasker, and as every
Congressman had more or less German voters
in his district, the resolutions passed without
opposition Every member of Congress
either wants to be returned or to be sent to
the Senate, and each was afraid that opposi-
ton to such an improper procedure would
lessen his popularity and iniurc his plans for
the future.
Copies of the resolutions were directed by
Congress to be sent to Laskers family and to
the Reichstag, of which Lasker was formerly
a member. Herr Lasker belonged to the
minority party at home. and was political
opponent of Prince Bismarck. The resolu-
tons had to pass through the hands of the
Prince, and he concluded to send them back
to the Congress of the United States rather
than to allow them to go to the Reichstag
In this he pursues proper course, and his
action will be a fitting rebuke to the Congress
of the United States, body that NEEDLES
quite too much with the affairs of other gov
ernments. About year ago the House of
Representatives gave up their hall to a for
eigner to vent his spleen against the English
government, and more recently Congress In
structed the President to ask the English gov
eminent to respite a murderer until a few
cranks and outlaws in this country were given
an opportunity to establish as fact that the
murderer was subject of this country and
was improperly tried under the laws of Great
Britain.
The English government made short reply
to this unwarranted interference, and we pre-
dict that the measure would not have been
passed by Congress but for the fear OF mem
bers that they might impair their popularity
among Irishmen if they raised their voices
against it.
The German papers of this country, gener-
ally, are edited by political agitators who have
been forced to leave their country, and these
agitators are now laboring, through their
papers. to get the Congress of the United
States to regard Prince Bismarck's action as
an insult, and to provoke a war, and pledging
all Germans to fight against the German gov
eminent. In this, these agitators are abusing
the privileges of citizenship here. Foreigners
come to this country voluntarily, and when
they come they should study our institutions,
learn our laws and be content with what they
find. Our ways are the ways of peace, and
he who disturbs it, or undertakes to do so, IS
an enemy. The American people have had
quite enough of war, and they do not want to
be forced into one on account OF the internal
affairs of another government which do not
concern them. Non-nterference is a doctrine
that guided this government until the late
civil war, when the politics of the country
became demoralized by lot of scheming and
dishonest politicians who were thrown to the
surface by the upheaval. Instead OF Congress
undertaking to resent Bismarck action as an
insult, it would be far better to pass it by I'M
noticed, or to offer an apology for passing the
Lasker resolutions and violating policy OF
interference SO long practiced by this
government. They should go further, and
enact law prohibiting the passage of resolu-
tons such as were passed to the memory OF
Herr Lasker, and another prohibiting for
eigners transferring the political troubles and
grievances at home to this country, or OF
making this country base for plans and
schemes to work injury to foreign govern
ments. If foreigners are allowed to come to
this country to mature plans and inaugurate
schemes for destroying foreign navies, for
blowing up government buildings of foreign
countries and for Wandering foreign rnlops, it
is only question of time that the United
States will be involved in a war.