The San Francisco call., 1896-11-01
1t Causes Austria to Look With
Suspicion Upon Her Ger.
man Cousin.
NEW ALLIANCES ARE IN ORDER.
Bat the Scandal Has Created Much
Warmer Feeling For England
by the Fatherland.
Copyright 1896, by the New York Times.I

more lorClDly Illustrate tno dn4AouS anu
even frightened state the nations of
Europe are in than the prodigicus fuss
which has been made this week, and is
still making, over Bismarck's disclosure
that from 1884 to 1890 he was dealing with
Russia behind the backs of his partners in
the triple alliance.
I call this a disclosure because that
name is given oft everywhere, but hardly
anything about it is new. Its substance
was printed in my Young Emperor"
book (seconu editionl in 1892, and was
perfectly well known at the time for the
simple reason that Bismarck was engaged
in telling it to vbody who would
listen. So much has happened since,
however, that 1t had been forgotten, and
now when Bismarck has again got his
shouting fit on and bawls it from the
housetops once more every body is par
alyzed with amazement. The excitement
about this so-called revelation is, however,
purely journalistic.
The diplomats and foreign offices have
known all about it for years, and they
long ago discounted it's i'm portance. Aus
tria at the moment IS not very warmly
disposed toward her German ally, but this
reiterated proof of ,Bismarck's falseness
has little 10 do with that fact. No Aus
trian statesman doubts that Emperor Will
liam, since be threw Bismarck out of Office
in 1890, has behaved with scrupulous
honor toward his allies, SO far as double
dealing with hostile powers is concerned.
The trouble now worrying Vienna and
Rome does not go back to Bismarck and
the eighties, but belongs very much to the
present. Little by little new situation
in Europe has grown up in which he
German Empire stands to lose great
DEAL if not indeed everything, and has
nothing to offer her allies that they can
not more easily obtain for themselves.
Italy has perceived for some time and not
without hints from London. 1t may be
guessed that the German friendship for
which she pays such an enormous price is
really OF more harm than good to her.
Now it is apparent that Austria is ask
ing herself II this is lot true in her case, too,
and the restatement of Bismarck's treach-
cry comes to infiame Austrian popular
opinion in an nti-German direction Just
at a moment when such an expression of
public feeling provides the Aus trian for
eign office with an excuse in case it de-
cides that 1t wants one for reconsidering
its whole policy. If any other German
than Bismarck had done such thing as
this at such a time he would have been
arrested and interned in a fortress over
night. Unhappily, Bismarck cannot be
s1lenced by any means summary or other.
There is a certain compensation, however,
in the fact that Germans of all classes are
shamed and disgusted by this particular
performance of his and are led to think
better of England than they did, merely
because he declares that his one object is
to induce Germans to regard England
as their sole enemy. Not only have
the German press ceased their at
of a sudden and excessive, almost
painful, affability shown by German Off
cials toward the British representatives at
Berlin. This is what might have been
predicted at any time in the past month.
WilIam's anti-Engiish experiment was
1oredoomed to disaster. England had
always more cards to play than he could
have and his efforts to isolate her or
rather to terrify her by the menace OF iso-
latIon have ended in his facing the likeli-
hood OF a concert OF the powers against
himself.
French Cham Der the first of next week on
the Eastern question, instead of post
poning 1t. as it was at first understood he
would do. This raises the presumption
that he has something weighty to say,
but expectation may easily b. disap-
pointed. II Is not difficult to talk by the
hour on this subject, and still not to say
anything, as N. Hanotaux himself has
shown before now. 1t is still suspected
here, however, that the basis for an az
glo-Franco-Russian arrangement has been
found, and that, very possibly, England's
position In Egypt is going to be reg ular-
ize by inviting France to occupy
Morocco. Since that possibility was
mooted in these dispatches q week
ago, numerous hints to the same effect
have been dropped in semi official quar-
ters both here and abroad, and the sueges-
ton is at least as we'll worth keeping in
mind as anything the past fortnigh ht has
evolved. The revelation that General Gal
Henne's new regime in Madagascar is to
mean martial law in the most comprehen-
sive form makes thoughtful Frenchmen
more nervous than ever about the whole
adventure in that island. The drumhead
conviction and execution of two leading
Hovas whom General Laroche mad
specially invited to assist the French in
restoring tranquility is said to have
amazed and depressed the European resi-
dents there, and 1t certainly raises appre-
tensions in France that Madagascar will
turn out to be a bloody and ruinous in
cumbrance.
Challemel Lacour possessed such an
extraordinary capacity for personal un-
happiness that it long since became his
principal claim to distinction in the ewes
of the French public, and illusions to il
could not even be kept out of the speeches
made at his grave yesterday. When a
youth he was convicted of felony. and
though this really created influential sym-
patny Ior the son, ana made possible his
splendid academic career, he always be-
Iieved that people were thinking of moth
ing else. When he rose in Gam betta's
wake to political eminence his soured tenn
per and surly manners quite neutralized
the value OF his notable intellect. He was
too gifted to be denied official advance
ment, but people hated him the more as
he progressed, and he returned the feeling
with increasing virulence to the end. He
was honest and he died, as he was born,
In poverty. The republic will enshrine
his memory as that of a Spartan Demo-
crat, but his hatred of the church was
about the only emotion he held in com
mon with the radicalism in later years.
Cardinal Hoheniohe was a striking con-
trast to Challemel- Lacour though he
grew in later life to be an extreme Liberal.
and his sudden death is a knockdown
blow to the progressive wing of the Sacred
College. Hohenlohe would not. of course.
have been its candidate for the Papal sue.
cession, but both socially and politically
ne was by far its most powerful supporter
in Rome. He never dissembled his desire
to have the Vatican come 10 terms with