The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1893-09-24
IN AMERICAN IN EUROPE.
Observations Upon the Life and Politics
of Thirty Years Ago.
BY TIE LATE
LANES ERD PIKE.
On Diplomacy and Diplomats.

The royal personages OF the smaller powers
Az. lass confined at home than they Of the
larger Kingdoms.
The King OF Holland often spends weeks al
his country seat at Loo. near the Prussian
,rontier He has a villa ikewise at Wiesbaden.
IN the Valley OF Nassau. whore he also recre-
.t.s at leisure. Like master. like man. II the
King will run away so will the foreign Minis
t.rs. and nobody will care for their absence.
The Ministers at the inferior courts have
hut little to do. and any pretence to the con
trary IA TO magnify their office at the expense
OF the truth
There is q strong feeling OF esprit de corps
among the foreign diplomatists. and good
deal OF consequence is sometimes assumed
about the small matters they have to attend
IN. But the secondary and dependent powers
40 not meddle with important European po-
uucal questions. and their opinions and ao-
tion would be OF small account II they did.
There are thus no general questions OF mo-
ment to be watched or shaped By the Diploma
tsts. and no constant supervisory care needed
TO see that things do not go wrong simply
because they do not go at all. except under
tho lead and shadow OF high example among
the leading Governments.
There are always some trifing affairs be-
ween the Governments. arising chiefly out Of
.nuer cial intercourse, to be adjusted by in
reryiew or correspondence: but there Is little
else. The business might all be done by letter.
or. IL necessary. by a special agent in particu-
lar cases II there was nothing but the business
itself to attend to.
But the courts are fastidious and exacting.
and generally so in proportion to their lack Of
consequences and they object to dealing except
with formally accredited representatives Of
rank and standing and resident at the capital.
Where. for example. a Minister Is the repre-
tentative Of his country at two courts as Is
sometimes the case. there is apt to be a feeling
OF insulted dignity which turns the cold Shout
der toward all SUCH The court dislikes to be
treated to half Ministers.
Tho necessity Of q representative at the sew
eral courts is thus not necessity which grows
out OF the actual duty there is to do. but rests
10 a considerable extent on other grounds.
There are reasons for other Governments
keepipg up their missions at the courts OF the
dependent powers which do not apply to the
United States. They serve as feeding ground
for their diplomatists in training. from which
they can be drawn when wanted for active SER
vice. But with US in America no such reason
exists Wehave no diplomatic system properly
90 called. We do not train m en- for active uses
In this department, or. indeed. in any. We
send fresh men to courts, expecting them to
DO au fat in all their duties from tho start.
And what little they have to do is perhaps as
we'll done as II they had undergone years of
training The fact that they are frequently
unable to speak any language but their own
shows that their labors cannot be Of very in
tricate nature.
During the civil war tho relationship OF the
United States with all tho maritime powers.
great and small. required constant watchful-
ness. We were threatened with blockade run
ners and ironclads In such various forms and
from such various quarters that 1t was diff
cult to tell where they would not turn up.
Every point. even the most unlikely. had thus
to be kept under supervision.
But under ordinary circumstan ces Amerl-
can Ministers have even less to do at the sub
ordinate European courts than those OF other
countries
The Hague has an important historic sound.
but 1t is no longer important in point OF fact
1t has been the theatre Of important events
and not the least was tho slight to Mr. st. John.
which resulted in great war with England
and the passage OF the famous navigation act
which ruined Dutch commerce.
But these things are over. Holland is one of
the dependent powers Of Europe. with but
handful OF people. and only protects herself by
her inconsequence or by threatening to scut-
tie the ship II an invader comes. The diplo-
macy OF The Hague is thus no longer signif-
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