The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-08-25
Count Lobanoff WiIlingto Even
Mediate Between England
and France.
INDIFFERENCE OF THE CAR
Too Much Worried by Nihlllsts TO
Think of Anything But HIS
Own Safety.
rCopyrignt 1895 by the New York Times.l

LONDON, ENG, Aug. 24.-Usually this
latter half of August finds Europe wrapped
incomplete holiday languor, with palaces
and foreign offices locked and shuttered
and kings and statesmen all off on
innocuous vacation jaunts. This year
there is perceptible tendency on the part
of men in public affairs to keep near the
telegraph Office and MAINTAIN a careful
watch over their neighbors' doings. In
tAe domain of international politics there
has not been such a nervous and pre-
occupied summer for a dozen years. As
England is the only great power which
has a Parliament in session there is not
much activity visible on the surface, but
underneath the chancellories all are busy
at work.
During the week 1 had the advantage of
two conversations with Continental
diplomat and administrator, not now in
Office but whose name is well known.
He will not permit his name to be men
TONED, for his own reasons, but he saw
things partly of his own knowledge and
the rest based on exceptionally wide and
close information, which there can be no
harm in repeating. As was foreseen from
the beginning, the Czarship has lapsed
into commission.
The Gar himself is eager to placate the
big domineering forces which surround
him and attempts to play no real part in
what is regarded in Russia as the Govern
ment. He signs papers when he has to
sign, but he is chiefly anxious to avoid be-
ing committed by one clique against the
other. and is only too grateful if they fight
1t outamong themselves without reference
to him. He is understood to be much
frightened at the report revived of nihilism,
and he has decided to confine his attention
entirely TO problems OF personal safety and
to secure the enjoyments of an easy life.
The result is that his Ministers and other
influential people are playing each mis- own
hand in confused go-as-you-please game.
This is always more or less true of the
Russian administration, but it is true now
much. more than ever before.
The interest of outsiders naturally CEN
ters in Count Lobanoff, who is nominally
the head of the foreign affairs department
He strikes the closest observers as a
man who may be big enough to
impress himself on Europe if favorable
opportunity arrives, but who in the mean
time is forced to adopt hand-to-mouth
policy between the various rival court
forces at home, pleasing one day, deferring
to another the next, and dexterously bal
ancing himself among them, all without
any very fixed purpose in one direction.
It is believed that he thinks a general
European conference would be good
thing for him and incidentally for Russia,
and that he is working with that end in
view. He is confident of his ability to
shine in such a gathering as the recogniz-
able heir of Metternich and of Gortschakoff,
and is credited with the idea that he could
secure England's general support in this
assemblage by the adroit use of his in
fuence with France.
His scheme is said to be to act as medi-
ator in the big catalogue of Anglo French
Misunderstanding induce both TO accept
q compreh ensive compromise of all their
outsta nding issues and both to join Russia
as partners in assuming control over Tur-
key and in winding up its disordered
affairs, which would practically mean
dividing up the Ottoman Empire among
them. My informant believes that there
IS not much chance OF this deal being
made than is commonly imagined. His
suggestion is at least worth remembering
The existence of such a plan would ex-
plain much which is now mysterious in
the behavior of the French Foreign Office
toward England. All this piling up of
diverse and largely artificial French griey-
ances against England in all parts Of the
globe has mystified the English even more
than it has angered. They can hardly
imagine that the French seriously want to
pick a quarrel with them, yet find no other
explanation for performances like those on
the Meh- Kong and Upper Niger.
If, however, they are merely parts OF a
scheme to put pressure on England to join
Russia and France in a general compact
for concerted action in Europe, Asia and
Africa. they become ineligible at once.
Whether England will decide to go tiger
hunting in such company is another mat
ter. II European conference docs grow
out of the existing tangle it will be OBJ
served that England. Russia and France
appear before it as already figured in joint
action on the Armenian question. This
will afford substantial basis for an ex-
tension of the understanding to the Mace
donian question and other phases or the
Turkish Issue, if England cares to have it
and is willing to pay the price and run the
risks involved.
Some inkling of the possibility of this
extraordinary new shuttle of cards would
seem now to have been given to the editors
of the Berlin papers. That at least would
account better than anything else for the
angry attacks ON England with which they
have been busy for the past fortnight and
which have puzzled English readers be-
yond measure.
The tradition that Lord Salisbury is
friend of Germany and foe to Russia has
survived here from Disraelian times and
never been revived in the public mind. If
he should turn sharply about now there
would be good deal of surprise, but people
would follow him readily enough. In fact,
the change, probably, would be extremely
popular, for the English have only abstract