The morning call., 1893-03-27
A SPECK OF WAR.

History never tires of repeating itself.
Thirty-Seven hundred years ago the great
est o. the ancient nations which autedated
Greece and Rome-tbe Leuicians-which
gave an alphabet 10 Athens, language to
Judea and a polity to Egypt, auation which
for five hundred years mOnopolized the trade
of the world, founded a city which they
destiued to be the capital Of civilized man.
kind. This was Carthage, In the heart OF
the Bay Of Tunis, within striking distance
Of ali the trading cities and all the fortified
ports Of the sea- which was then the theater
of the commerce of Southern Europe and
Northern Africa. The policy of its founders
was s. enlightened that the bigOted preiu-
dices Of the Romans and Jews have not
ayailed to obscure its merits. They pro-
posed TO build fleets of the fastest freight
ships TO ply 10 every port which had produce
TO sell OF money to buy foreign goods. They
planted colonies everywhere. on the c0Bdi-
ti0n that the col0nists should court the
friendship Of the races among which they
settled and would not seek conquest. They
resolved to carry on their wars with mer-
cenaries, deeming the Ph9aieian blood too
valuable to be split in conflict. Had this
nation been allowed to fulfill its destiny it
is quite possible that Rome would have
never risen above the rank Of a flourishing
Italian city. It was the iron resolve of
Rome TO destroy Carthage which changed
tie natural course Of history.
And now, after lapse Of over 1000 years
since the Punic wars. Carthage bids fair to
be again the seat Of a conflict, which may
be as euvenomed as that which secured to
Hannibal and Scipio the place they oc-
cupy in history. By the last convention
between Tunis and France the whole terri
tory Of the former has passed under the
protectorate of the latter. France lost no
time in commencing an elaborate system Of
fortlfcaiions at Bizerta, which occupies the
site of the ancient cityof Carthage. She has
already spent 100000 francs on the
works When they are completed an i'm
pregnable stronghold will be created round
a harbor in which all the navies Of the
world can lie. This harb0r will be only a
few hours steaming from Malta, and
within easy striking distance of all the
Spanish and Italian seaports, as we'll as the
commercial mouth of the Nile. 1t would
substantially destroy the value of Glib
raltar. Malta and Alexandria as strategic
points. 1t would convert the Mediter-
Tanean into French lake.
Neither Great Britain nor Italy is blind
to the danger. An energetic protest
been fled by the italian Minister at Paris,
and under the conditions of the Dreibund
his contention has been indorsed by the
Ministers of Germany and Austria. Great
Britain is, Of course, in line with the other
nations. Frances attitude is q matter of
conjecture. But it is a diplomatic secret
which every one knows that one Of the
questions which were settled at the late
informal meeting of the French and Rus
sian statesmen at 81. Petersburg was that
of BiZerta. France could well afford TO
conniye at the designs of Russia on Con-
stantinOple in consideration Of Russian
support for her scheme TO make a French
seaport the strateglcal center of Africa and
the dominant point on the Mediterranean.
Italy's interest in the matter is direct and
Immediate. The situation has not changed
since the days of Cato. who ended every
speech with the words, "And whatever you
do in this matter, remember that Carthage
must be destroyed" But Italy is power
less. She is absolutely bankrupt, and re-
duction instead OF an increase in the army
and navy budgets is inevitable. 1t is the
only course by which internal connections
can be avoided. Great Britain, of course.
is another matter. She can fight if she
wants. But it is a grave question how far
the British people would sustain Minister
who proposed to plunge the empire into n
great war in order to indorse at the present
day the mistakes of the past England has
no business in the Mediterranean. She has
no business at Gibraltar, none at Malta.
one in Egypt. She would be better off and
less vulnerable if she sloughed off all these
excrescences. II would be possible, Of
course. 10 fire the British heart. and to
arouse the old fighting instinct by appeals
to jingosm. But snch outbreaks would
be brief, and would be followed by reaction.
And yet If France rebuilds Carthage as an
impregnable port and fills it with ironclads
no nation will have any say in the Medter-
ranean but herself