The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1893-06-02


OF course the kaiser believes that the
reichstag in voting against the army bill
misrepresented the will of the people, or
he would not have appealed from the
congress Of Germany to the voters that
decide who shall sit in that body. But
it is possible that he is mistaken. The
electors may choose a reichstag that is
no more In harmony with the imperial
will than was the one that has been dis
solved. 1t is even imaginable that the
army bill may be more overwhelmingly
turned down by the new than it was by
the old legislature. The people are al
ready tax ridden to an extreme point.
1t is claimed by some German trades
men that no sooner do they make little
money than the revenue collectors swoop
down upon them and take it away The
best of the nations men of all ranks are
already absorbed by the army. The bright
est and most promising young men of
the privileged classes enter military serv-
ice as officers, and by law all the men of
the working classes are obliged to serve
actively for three years in the ranks at
the very time Of life when they would
be most effective as producers.
AS consequence the army dominates
everything. The officers are overbear-
ing in their treatment of men in the pro-
fessions and civil pursuits generally, and
there is a notable dearth of men to do
the manual work of the country It is
because Of this latter fact, it is claimed,
that the women of Germany are SO often
seen carrying hods of brick and mortar,
sweeping the streets and performing 9th
er duties that in most civilized countries
are undertaken by men only.
1t is admitted by those who are with
the kaiser in his demand for stronger
army that much of this is true, but it is
claimed that Germany must be better
prepared to fight her foes than she now
Is in order to DO certain of preserving her
autonomy. While Russia might keep
her hands of. they say, in case of war
with France. France would certainly
join hands with the cars government if
war were to break out between Germany
and Eussia. and the only way to insure
peace Is to have SO strong an army that
no one will dare make an attack.
There is little doubt of the patriotism
Of the German people, but there is a
grave question in many German minds
as to the necessity of adding still further
to the peoples. burdens at this time.
There are several political parties in
Germany, of which the following are
tho leading ones: Conservatives, Nation
al Liberals, Centrists, Freisinnige, Pol
ish, Socialists and Alsatians No one
of these parties, excepting perhaps the
Conservative. is solidly with the kaiser,
though many members of the National
Liberal party will perhaps vote for the
army bill. But the matter is very much
mixed and cannot be explained in detail
In the space here at command. Of late
all parties have been the victims of much
dissension.
It is not likely that there would be
much question of the outcome if Bis
marck were with the kaiser. He had a
way Of seeing to it that the imperial de-
sires-really his own-were Endorsed by
the people and Endorsed by such maiori-
ties that he was enabled to carry out his
policies with a strong hand. There was
hope that he would become reconciled
before the next election, but that hope
is now dissipated. In Won Caprivi, the
imperial premier; Count Eulenburg, the
Prussian premier, and Miguel the kaiser
has three devoted adherents. and either
Eulenburg or Miguel may be Caprivi's
successor In case change is made
Eulenburg comes from a renowned
Prussian family and was for long time
a trusted adviser of Bismarck. He is a
man of middle age and stands well with
the German people. &c