The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-03-09
Is HE INSANE?

Is HE INSANE?
The extraordinary conduct and utter
ances of William, Emperor of Germany,
inspires the suspicion that he is threat
ened with the same form of dementia that
| afflicted Charles the Twelfth Of Sweden
and Emperor Paul Of Russia.
Emperor William is constitutional SOW
ereign, but on several occasions since his
acces sion to the throne be has used pub
licly language that would be justi6able
1 only in an absolute monarch. Prussia,
! the hereditary dominions of William, has
constitution granted in ls4s by Freder-
| lex William the Fourth, acknowledged
| by his brother, William the First, who
succeeded him, and By his son, Fred
erick, the father of the present en-
peror of Germany. By this constitution
/ of Prussia the powers of the sovereign
/ are vigorously defined. and in civil matters
suhordinatsd TO those of the peoples rep
resent2tives. After the battle of Ssdova,
( in 1866, when Bismarck had TO request an
I set Of indemnity for arbitrary methods
resorted to, King William the First gave
his pledge 10 the Prussian nation that
these violations Of the constitution should
never occur again.
As emperor of Germany, William the
Second, in time of war, has the supreme
command Of all the military forces of
/ Germany, but in time OF peace his
authority over Saxony, Bavaria and
the other German states IS limited
TO the postal administration and
the diplomatic representation OF
the German confederacy abroad. william
the Second, within the bounds of Prussia.
is strictly constitutional king, and in
times Of peace he has no more absolute
power IS emperor Of Germany than Presi-
den, Harrison SIS president Of the [ niled
States. Nevertheless this constitutional
ruler 1t Munich wrote in the visitors book
THE supreme law OF the land IS the kings
win an utterly absurd statement of his
relations 10 Bavaria or TO his hereditary
dominions of Prussia. Under the picture
. which he presented 20 the PrGSsian minis
ter Of worship, William wrote: such IS
my will; such my command" At the
Brsndenburs banquet in 1Sa0 he shouted:
Him who bars my way | will dash in
pieces" Al the Rhine provinces dinner
last year William said: There is only
one ruler in the country. am he. and I
will endure no ether" At the re-
cent BrandenburS banquet William de-
nouuced the parliamentary opposition to
the measures Of the Prussjan ministry IS
enemies OF the state, and called upon all
who loved the Prussian fatherland TO fol-
low him wherever he led.
What would he thought Of Qreen Vic
toria If she publicly denounced the parlia-
mentary opposition TO Lord Salisbury IS
enemies OF the state?
Another extraordinary utte-ance OF En-
peror William was made last September
when in pablie speech he contemptuously
denounced Napoleon the First as "a par
venu; a Corsican upstars." This "Co7-
sican upsar." married the daughter of the
emperor Of Austria, the niece of Marie
Antoinette, and the granddaughter OF
Maria Theresa and might have married a
Russian grand duchess This "Co-sicaa
upStArI" placed his brothers On the thrones
OF Spain. Holland and Westphalia; placed
one Of his marsbals on the throne Of
Naples and another on that OF Sweden.
This ''Corsican Cpstar." destroyed in a
week with his sword the Prussian mon
a7chy that Frederick the Grea. mad bat
tied ten years TO firmly establish. To
sneer at Napoleon the First IS = parvenu
was historically absurd, for the iirS; king
Of Prussia assumed his title only sixty
eight years before Napoleon was born, and
had % buy recognition Of his title Of the
emperor Of Austria The architects Of
P.Ussian supremacy in Germany were
Bismarck, the son Of s small land owner,
and MolIke, the son Of an obscure and
needy Ho.stsiner, whose illustrious son
was educated ST the expense Of Denmark,
even as the Corsican upstsri was : charity
student s; the military schoo! of Brienue.
For Emperor William, under these
circumstances, TO speak with contempt
OF men Of genius as pArvenus. forgetting
that the only man al genius Of his family
was deemed an ups;Art by the House Of
Austria, was utterly unworthy of s man
Ct sense and intelligence.
Emperor William recently told some re-
eru1,s thar the German srIny was his 70
do what be pleased with; he dictates every
th'ns from paving Berlin stree; Or super
intending sCArd-nount 10 the conduct Of
the schools and universities and the pre-
scrlptcn II religion. The result IS that
the German people are Disguised and voice
their disgust in the following eonuniruga
current IN Berlin; What IS the dltter-
ence between God and the Emperor Njl.-
lsmT God knows everything. but the I'm
PeToE William knows everything better. q"