The Washington bee. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1884-1922, 1893-04-08
ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO.

"Reminiscences of the Stirring Times of the
Year 1913,
The United States was mere baby
among nations in the year 1898, but it
was baby of promise. The American
spirit had not then asserted itself. ex-
cept in matters of war and government.
and the people were only feeling their
way. But in 1898 probably the first
great American invention was made by
a citizen of the United States, and the
cotton-gin was giTen to the world. The
inventor was named Eli Whitney, and
through the perfection of his machine
the United States began to grow richer.
After 100 years we think of and re-
member the man who did so much to-.
ward furthering the interests of COM
merce, and with the recollection of Eli
Whitney comes the thought of the
great General, George Washington,
who in 1898 was inaugurated President
of the United States for the second
time. The two names are linked to-
gether in the year 1898, for the living
owe debt to each.
France, who had aided US in our
struggle for independence, was in a
state of disorder IN 1893. Louis XVI,
the King of France, was imprisoned by
his subjects, tried, condemned to death,
and behealed on the 21st of January.
The French people went mad that year.
They We're intoxicated with blood, and
on February LIST declared war with
England and Holland. And in addi-
ton all France was fighting with itself.
Every Frenchman suspected and feared
his friend and neighbor, and the Reign
of Terror was established in that un
happy country. Marat was Stable hy
Charlotte Corday Queen Marie An
tionette was beheaded !; Madame Ro-
land and the Duke of Orleans lost their
heads by the guillotine, and altogether
poor France had most terrible time of
it. The French spirit was wholly I'M
like the strong, peaceful American
spirit that had just begun to assert
itself. George III was reigning in
England then, and nothing deserving
of special mention occurred there dur
ing that year.
Poland in 1898 was nearing its end
as an Independent State. Russia, I'M
der various pretexts, had grad ually
made its way into the kingdom, and
that year second partition treaty of
the possessions of Poland was signel.
The people saw their country belns
gradually absorbed by their powerful
neighbors on all sides, and were unable
to do anything to stem the tide of ma
tional disaster. It was only two years
before the time when the last King of
Poland, Stanislaus Ii, was to give up
the crown and the end was fore
Swallowed.
In 1893 the outside world first learned
something definite regarding the Chi
nese Empire. We do not know very
much now, but a hundred years ago
people knew absolutely nothing. Earl
Mccartney arrived in Peking in Sep
TENDER, at the head of an English en-
bassy. He was received by the En-
peror and then requested to depart,
which he wisely did in October. But
the embassy found out q number of
things; among others that the popula-
ton of China was said to be $50. 000,-
900, and that there 4, 400 wall cities in
the empire 1t must have been very
difficult to find out the little that they
did. for the Chinese never cared for
foreigners any more than we care for
the Chinese now. That year, however,
when China showed her exclusiveness
and gave no desire to be enlightened,
Williams College was founded at
Williamstown, Mass. In 1893 the great
congress of Antwerp was held in that
city, and in Hayti the blacks, following
the Chinese exclusiveness, got rid of
nearly all the whites on the island by
killing them.
Other notable things occurred in that
year, but they are not easily recalled or
referred to. The world was not so busy
then as it is now, daily newspapers
were few and far between, while the
methods of communication were very
bad. If a writer in 1898 refers back a
hundred years to find out what was 60
ing on at this time, he will have an
easy task, for the newspapers of this
age will aid future historians in giving
them a minute record of all that hap
pens in all the world oyer.-Philadel-
phia Press.
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