St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1896-01-31

pire should stretch from sea to sea,
purpose that has thrilled and
swayed all the czars. And today
the armies OF Russia marching south
ward and eastward, never retreating
until they have carried their border
line little nearer the sea, attests
that she is still ruled by the goddess
ambition of Peter the Great. She
may be holding an anomalous posi-.
ton today, with her back turned to
suffering Armenia. But | think she
is only blding her time. She is only
waiting for the Powers to become so
entangled as to be helpless, or for the
unspeakable Turk to so shock the
world by his atrocities that they
shall welcome any redress. Then the
hour for Russia will strike, and her
old ambition will awake, and her
armies will sweep across Asia Minor
and her standard shall float upon
the shore of the Great Sea. Thus
possibly the Eastern question may be
settled, not according to the plan of
publicists, by driving the Turk out Of
Europe, but by driving him out of
Asia and shutting him up in his beau.
tiiul prison at STEAMBOAT; under the
brightest skies to tester and rot, till
the stencil shall arouse Europe to
disinfect the plague spot and wipe it
from the face of the earth. But the
thing that is noticeable is this: that
there seems almost to be no tender
or human sentiment in European
cabinets over this terrible question.
Human ambition dominates all
their councils. Conquest, glory,
power To be chief among kings has
been and still is the great moving
purpose among the crowned heads of
Europe. Every move upon the chess
board Of the continent only reveals
the purpose to sweep the board.
Nor are we on this side the Allan.
tic-though kingless-much better!
The same spirit dominates US. The
strife OF parties, the debates of con.
gress, the appropriations, the subsi-
dies all show the same. Somebody
is seeking place and power. That
explains the movements of armies in
the old world and the movements of
senates and cabinets in the new
world.
But how much has all this cost /?
Think of the millions that have been
wasted in worthless appropriations
on this continent. Think of the cost
IN money and men Of the wars Of the
East, could write the sum you could
not comprehend it. Egypt, think,
was the first nation that maintained
standing army, and in that early
day she kept nearly 100000 men in
line, annually cut to pieces and an
nually recruited with the flower of
her youth. No wonder she is a worn
out nation, lying supine on the banks
OF the Nile. She has burned up her
manly resources in uncounted ceutu.
ries of war. But in addition, think
ii you can OF the vast armies of the
Assyrians and Modes and Babylo.
mans, who through long periods OF
the worlds history were slaughter
ing and being slaughtered. Think of
Persia, the greatest military power of
antiquity, with her Cyrus and Xerxes
leading their millions to bloody
death. Add to these the armies of
Greece, where every free man was
soldier and where the highest human
glory was found by dying in battle.
You remember the story of Leonidas
and his three hundred. What made
them immortal? Because with wild
and hopeless bravery they threw
themselves upon the millions of
Aerxes and died to a man, only one
escaped and he was executed because
he did not die with his brethren.
Under the domination of such a
spirit many millions must have
persisted during the long years of
Greek ascendency. No wonder that
great nation has faded into insignif-
canoe. Add to these the armies of
the Caesars that conquered the
world, and the armies of Hannibal
that for years balanced the proba-
bilities of supremacy with Rome.
Then think of the bloody hordes of
Goths and Huns and Vandals and
Celts and Franks and Gauls, that
kept Europe red with human blood
for so many centuries.
Then set down the more modern
wars, beginning with Peter and
Frederick. Frederick the Great be-
gan his seven years struggle with the
rest of Europe with 10000 men
These all persisted again and again.
and their places supplied from the
bleeding homes of Prussia and he lett
100000 we'll drilled men to his sue.
cessor. Think OF the centuries of
bloody struggling through which
Hungary and Poland and Austria
and Switzerland have waded, their
whole populations many times over
swept in bloody graves. Then there
is sunny France, with her Charlie
magnes and Napoeons, and Spain
whose floating armies have covered
all the seas. Napoleon had at one
time 100000 men in Spain and
100000 in Egypt, and he marched
into the SHOWS of Russia with
100000, a remnant of whom, only,
lived to return. Then add to these
the worldwide battlefield, over
which Christian England has extend
ed her forces of war, and the 5,OOO,-