The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1894-10-27
upon voting thissyear as more of bust
ness than political matter.


If Queen Victoria lay dying the fact.
while it would excite great attention the
world over, would create no apprehen-
sion. Nobody would speculate upon the
probable effect upon the peace OF Europe
A change of the nominal ruler in Eng
| land would produce no real change in
the policy of tho government either at
home or abroad. The wishes of the
monarch count for very little in Eng
land. The same is true, though in some
| of them to lesser extent, in all the
nations of Europe, except. Russia. In no
one of them is the will of the King or
| Emperor law. In all of them the sovereign
| is hedged about to a geater or less extent,
| with parliamentary bodies, which he has
| to consult and whose consent he must
| first obtain before plunging the country
| into war But in Russia the case is
| different. Of all the countries in Europe
| this is the olly one where the sovereign
wields despotic power and holds the
destinies of his subjects in his hand.
| Hence it is that the prospect of
change of rulers becomes matter of
deep concern not only in Russia, but
| all over Europe. Whatever may be said
concerning the present Gear, it must be
set down to his credit that he has kept
| his country out OF war, Notwithstanding
that4the military party which is very
powerful, hassbeen exceedingly anxious
for different policy. Now that he is
| dying and WILSON be unable to inter
| pose his will to thwart the wishes Of
tens of thousands of army officers FESTIVE
under restraint and ambitious to win
honors on the field Of battle the charac-
ter of the man who is to succeed him be-
| comes a matter of great moment. If he
should share in the ami billions of the
| army or be too weak to resist the press
sure that the military party will inevi-
tably bring to bear, there is strong prob
| ability that Russia will be involved in
war in the near future. Opportunities
| for picking a quarrel which may furnish
a pretext will be abundant enough. The
relations between England and Russia
on the Indian border have been in an ex-
| ceedingly delicate condition for several
/ years past, and monarch who really
desired war could have found there at
any time during that period plenty of
| pretexts for beginning hostilities. To the
southwest of the Russian possessions in
Europe in Bulgaria also there have been
plenty of opportu mites for quarrel and
plenty of excuses for an invasion by
Russian troops. With Gear ont the
throne who was anxious for war, Europe
would have been in commissions long
ago. Concerning the CzRrowitz little
seems to be known. He is apparently
not anxious to become Gear, for he has
several times been on the point of alb
dicating i'll favor of one of his younger
brothers. But what manner of man he
| is has not yet been found out. outside of
/ Russia at least, though the fact that he
looks forward TO his accession to the
throne with anxiety aud distrusu, is
/ pretty good evidence that he is not a
| headstrong person with ambitious pro-
| jects in his head Apparently the dam
ger from him will lie in his inability to
put his foot down on the ambitious
4 schemes OF others, rather than in having
| any of his own.