The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1893-01-08
WILL CRUSH THEM.
All Must Bend to the Will
of the Kaiser.
CAPRIvI COMES OUT STRONG.
There Seems TO Be No Doubt That the
Army Bill Will Pass the
ReiChStag.
Special to THE MORNING CALL

BERLIN, Jan. 7.-When the holiday sea-
son came to an end public attention was
turned to the army BILL No measure Of
recent years affects so closely the home life
of the German people, for should the
Rechstag reject it and Chancellor Won
Caprivi carry out his threat to insist upon
the full three years service in the army ir
will mean much to the young men who are
the main and In mauy eases the sole sup
port of their sisters and of their widowed
mothers. The Reichstag will resume ITS
sttings on Tuesday, and the committee of
the House to which was referred the army
bill will meet ON Wednesday. Chancellor
Won CapriVi has requested the president of
the committee to expedite its deliberations,
in order not to retard the final decision
of the Reichstag. The Chancellor having
nothing more to tell, the committee
ought TO report promptly, but the members
representing the Clerical party remain In
state of indecision. expecting the Chancel-
lor to offer an inducement that will suffice
for their surrender when they are called
upon to face their constituents. None Of
those within the inner political circles be-
iieve that the Chancellor has committed
himself. The utmost length to which he
has gone is believed to be promise to leave
to the Government supporters the privilege
OF taking an independent course when the
Center party gets a remote chance OF divd.
Ing the Reichstag ON the Jesuit question.
In his private dealings with the leaders
OF the several parties the Chancellor is dis
playing much tact, and his course of action
is such as TO elicit the admiration even of
his adveI saries. Nothing more has been
heard Of the ChaDcelor's retirement from
office. His position with the Emperor is
stronger thar ever, and his development of
personal resources, fnesse and audaeity
staggers his opponents. who are becoming
weak under the apprehension that the army
bill Will be passed without single con-
cesson of importance being made by
the Government. The opposition papers are
trying to raise a popular storm over the
Emperor's use of the phrase, Il will crush
[ZerschmetterDl those who oppose me-" ; and
the Freisinnige press assumes that The words
mean that the Emperor intends to override
the vote of the Reiehstag, should it be hostile
to the army bill, by resort to the appica-
tion Of that article of he German const-
tuition by which every able-boded man may
be compelled to serve In the army and TO
another article which enables the Emperor
to fix the strength of the army.
The abundant partisan fury which has
been expended over the much discussed
phrase seems wasted, and since the official
papers suggest that if the language was
used at all 1t was directed at those military
personages who we're unfriendly TO the bill.
it seems probable that the Emperor used
the threat generally, iif he used it at all
and had DO design of attacking the privi-
leges Of the Reichstag or any particular
person.
The War Office is taking action, antci-
patory OF the passage OF the bill, and new
revision councils are being formed with a
view to the extension OF recruiting. TIE
Emperor. beyond doubt, means that the
bill shall become a law in the course of tie
year.
The proprietors of the leading stores in
Berlin concur in the statement that the
holiday season just past showed an enor-
nous decrease In the business usually done
at that period of the year. The annual
reports issued by The various Chambers Of
Commerce in Germany state that the de-
preston prevails everywhere in the empire.
The strike in the Saar mines is expected
to collapse next week, owing TO a lack of
both popular and trade support. Thou
sands of the strikers and their families are
In starving condition, aud this fact tends
greatly to weaken the backbone of the
strike.