Evening journal., 1896-09-17
CONTEMPORARY OPINION.
ENGLAND's co ITINENvAL POL
ICY.

ENGLAND'S co OITINENrAL POL
ICY.
The announcement that England in
tends nencefcrth TO deal with Turkey
on her own initiative, regardless of
the otner powers, is, If happily it be
true, to be welcomed With heartiest
acclaim. IL indicates a turning back
TO an cid but to q far better and mob.
Ter DO icy than has Of late prevailed
II willie nable the world to fix the ex
act measure Of responsibility, so far
as England s. concerned, for whateve
may hcncof3rth occur at CONSTANT
nople. There Is every reason 70 ex
pect IL will resul. in some radica
changes for he better. For IL is per
fectly well known TO all tne world that
England has been foremost in advis
ing, urging. and demanding reforms
and that sac would long ago have en-
forced her righteous demands with a
rtrong hand mad Il not been for that
wretched Invention of cowdrdice and
greed, the concert of the powers
When England sid the Armenian
massacres should stop Russia said they
should 80 on. Germany SAID ditto to
Russia, and England II preserve the
concert. acqpiesced. Such a concert
is a compact with the devil. II Eng
land has indeed broken away from It
she has done the most Creditable ac.
in her diplomacy for years
There can be, OF course, no pOsssibl
ground for complaint by the other
powers at such action by England Sha
breaks no faith with them In deciding
to stand alone. On the Otner hand 10
Is notorious hat the whole history
the concert las been marked Will
broken faith toward her. While sh
has scrupulcusly kept the agreemen
FOR joint action, they have ignored il
whenever Vt has served their selfish in
terests so 20 do. When England was
ready to send a fleet to TIE Bosphorus
to bring the Porte to ter ms and to save
Armenia, she refia aimed because Russia
urged the necessity OF joint action. Yet
at that very moment Russia was sec
reilly intriguing with Turkey, on her
own account, for the establishment of
a virtual protectorate over the latter.
The whole pretence at concert was.
indeed, a trick on the part OF some Of
the Continetal Powers to persuade
England to keep her hands or while
they secretly played their own games
Nor need England fear to act alone
( She Is the one power in Europe to dc
50. 1t would not matter If she We're
as has been said, without friend In
Europe. Her splendid isolation" is
really a source Of strength. Whether
or not she would be able again to
stand, as in the past she has stood
single-handed against the whole conti-
nent, may be a matter OF doubt. II
must be remembered at any rate, that
in these days more than ever before
war Is a financial operation, and that
after every other power had exhausted
all its capital and all its credit Eng
land would only just be beginning tc
draw upon her overfowing treasury
But It ia not conceivable that al
| Europe could be arrayed against her
1t is scarcely within the limit OF possi-
bilities that any serious coalition OF
powers could be made to attack her
| That any one power will go to wal
with her single-handed is quite be
yond the pale.
For what could Russia or Germany
| do? Either Of them would find he
navy driven from the seas in twink
| ling. her ports blOckaded and thei
Notifications destroyed, and her Who'll
coast at the mercy of the Irresistible
| British fleets France alone Nigh
hope TO make some stand against he
at sea, though it could not be for long
for the French navy is decidedly infer
ior in numbers to that OF Britain. But
! France has other fish to fry. For TWEEN
/ tv-fve years her one overmasterinf
| ambition has been to wreak revenge
| upon Germany for the Terrible Year.
/ For that she has built a great navy
! enroIlad a mighty army. and made
every possible preparation-fo that
and for that alone. She will not be di
verted from her aim She will not ex
mend in a war with England tn
| strength she has laboriously acquires
! for another and transcendently create
purpose. New York Tribune.