The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1892-06-24
Especial Correspondence

savory Records of Diplomats Who
Have Been Lionized in Washington.
Especial Correspondence
WASHINGTON, June 21.-Oftentimes do
read in the newspapers here remarks of an
GncomplimentaIy nature concerning the
average class of men to whom the United
States government is accustomed to in
trust its official representation abroad, and
l frequently hear my American friends
arguing that only persons Of the highest
social standing, breeding aul political EN-,
inence should be accredited as ENJOYS OF
this great repu bile to foreign courts and
states Indeed the subject appears to be a
favorte theme of conversation.
Without entering into any discussion as
to whether they are justified or not in
their assertions, would venture to observe
that if the character of the average envoy
of the United States abroad is open to crit
icism, identically the same thing may be
said with regard to the class of the foreign
diplomats stationed at Washington. AL
though the United States is in every sense
of the word one of the great powers, yet
for some reason or other Washington has
always been regarded by foreign diplo-
mats, and by their governments as well,
not even as second, but rather as third
rate mission. Copenhagen, Brussels, The
Hague, Lisbon, and even bucharest and
Athens, stand higher in the class of diplo-
matte promotion than Washington, which
is looked upon as one of the least desira-
BILE stations in the entire diplomatic
service. One of the main causes of it's I'M
popularity is its long distance from home
Athens, BuclSrest and Copenhagen are
all within easy reach of Paris and of Lon
don, and frequent flying visits to ones ma
tive city or else to the gay metropolis on
the banks of the Seine can readily be made.
Washington however, is so far away that
an annual trip across the Atlantic is about
all that one can hope for, and diplomatic
appointment there involves what many of
us are accustomed to regard as an exile
pleasant it is here, but nevertheless an ex-
lie. To such an extent is this the case that
quite large number of foreign ENJOYS are
unable to prevail upon their wives to &C
company them to this country.
II is for this reason among others that
foreign diplomats are wont to bring into
play all the influences that they can COM
mand in order to avoid being sent to Wash
ington. The result is that the foreign dip
lomatic corps at Washington consists in
the greater part of persons who do not pos
sess in their own country the considera-
tion, the rank and the influence which the
United States by reason of it's Importance
and grandeur is entitled to look for among
the representatives accredited to its gov
eminent.
am quite prepared for the protests and
even Indignation which this assertion may
call forth But a brief enumeration of the
Il ivN1o -bc etc
in Washington during the last two de-
cades will think prove sufficient to silence
all those who dispute the truth of my |
statements In all these twenty years |
there has only been one single diplomat of /
first class rank, reputation and eminence
accredited to your federal government. 1t is |
M. De Struve, the dignitary who now rep.
resents the cZar in this country He is a |
son of the celebrated orientalist and as
tronomer, Frederick Won Struve, and a
brother of the present chief astronomer
of the empire. Commencing his ca
reer in the Asiatic department of the
Muscovite foreign Office, he first won
his spurs as chief secretary to the
governor general of Turkestan, where,
owing to his ceaseless activity, he soon be-
came the bette noir of the British Indian
government. Both at the foreign office at
Calcutta and at the Indian and foreign
offices in London the mere mention of his
name is sufficient to cause an unpleasant
little SILVER. For, besides counteracting
the English everywhere in central Asia,
while attached to the governor general of
Turkestan, he subsequently, as minister at
Toxic, created CONSERVATION in London by
secretly and successfully negotiating the
exchange of the barren Kurile islands be-
longing to the czar for that half of the
Sanghalien island owned by the Japanese.
Considering the enormous trade of Great
Britain in the Pacific, it is almost impos-
sible to calculate the disastrous effects to
England of this clever piece of diplomacy
on the part of NJ. de Strive. The latter,
besides his post of minister plenipUtenti-
airy, is chamberlain of the emperor and a
privy councillor, and his retention at Wash
ington is a striking proof of the great i'm
portance which his imperial master at
taches to the friendship of the United
States.
Russia, however, is alone in paying
America this compliment and none of the
other powers, great or small, have seen fit
to follow her example. France, Germany,
Austria, Italy and England generally adopt
a Numerically opposite course. AT the
time when NJ. Roustan was first sent to
Washington to represent France he was
so entirely and completely discredited and
disgraced that no European power would
consent to receive him. Only six weeks
before his appointment as minister to the
United States, the procureur general de la
republique or attorney general of the gov
eminent, had used the following words
during the suit for criminal libel which
he, Roustan, had been forced by his superb
ors TO bring against the journalist Roche
fort "If, gentlemen of the jury. you de-
eide that the defendant, Rochefort, is not
guilty of libel then you declare thereby
that the prosecutor, Roustan, is a thief
and an utterly dishonorable man, that he
accepted brides through his mistress, that
he bartered ard sold French and Tunisian
offices, and that he used his position as
French minister at Tunis to cause rises
and falls in the prices of Tunisian bonds
for the benefit of his own speculations. If
in your opinion NJ. Roustan is guilty of
all these acts imputed to him, then acqu.t
NJ Rochefort of the charge of libel. In
that case, gentlemen of the jury, /, as
principal law officer of the republic, shall
ba tho n ret IN demand that NJ ROustau