The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-01-21
Opinion OF Diplomatic
Corps on Sherman.
II May Turn Out, However,
That They Are Mistaken.
The Senator from Ohio Embarrassed
BY Defective Memory.

| WASHINGTON, Jan. 81 SPECIAL THE
selection Of senator Sherman for secretary
of state in the Mckinley administration
does not give satisfaction among the diplo-
matte corps. But tho gentlemen who rep
resent at this capital the nations of the
world viii have 60 endure what they can
not mend. Their principal objection TO
Mr. sherman is that he Is embarrassed
with trcacherous memory. 1t is not easy
Tor him % remember tho details even OF
Important conversations The diplomatic
gentlemen fear that they win have endless
trouble with the new secretary for this
reason. They remember that during the
last months OF Mr.. Blaine service in the
state Department. when the great statesman
was i'll, he suffered the same trouble. He
could not remember. More than one for
eign minister found upon reminding tho
secretary Of what had been said TO him or
what he had said ona former occasion that
IL had wholly slipped his mind In the end
it became necessary for the ministers, in
order 60 avoid trouble 10 insist that short
hand notes should be taken of every inn
portHnt conversation. Mr. Blaine consent
ed To this, though not without some re-
luctance and "a sense of personal humilia-
tion, for he ultimately became aware OF
his failing. Moreover, the foreign minis
ters contrivod to carry on most of their in
tercourse with the state department. by
| means of written communications. They
] now say that for their own protection they
will do the same thing with Mr. sherman
| stickicrs for Form.
Another cause of friction between Secre-
tary sherman and the members of the dip
lomatic corps will be the determination
OF the secretary to turn over to his assist
ants, in SO far as possible the task of re-
cciying and comforting with foreign min
listers about routine matters Mr.. sherman
| has decided TO do this In order 10 save him
| self annoyance. He believes the bulk OF
| the work OF the state department can just
as well be carried OH by the subordinates
| of the Office as by the chief. In this he is
| no doubt right and Is instituting prece-
| dent which should have been established
| years ago. In no other foreign Office in the
| world is so much of the actual business
! transacted by the chief Official. But the
custom has grown up here and it will not
be with good grace that the foreign minis
ters consent TO transact their business with
| man OF inferior rank TO themselves when
the secretary himself is in the city. They
are great sticllers for form and for cti-
| quette these foreign gentlemen; but, of
| course, it.is not their function 10 select the
| official of our government with whom they
| shall do business.
1t has already become an axiom among
| the foreign gentlemen that Secretary Sher-
man is to be nm easy mark. They say that,
| SO far as his state department is concerned,
| President Mckinley Is going into office on
| crutches. But the men who are close to
| Senator sherman say these foreign critics
will not be long in discovering their'error.
| They are undertaking their antagonist.
| While it is true Senator sherman is wei
along in years and his memory is a tride
defective he is in full possession of his
logical faculties and his perceptions arc as
| keen as they ever were.
Old Men For Counsel.
"The men who imagine Senator Sher-
man is going TO be IA weak secretary of
state simply do not know what they are
talking about" said General Grosvenor of
Ohio Co me Dir. sherman win fool them
to the top of their bent If that is their opin-
ion of him. | know Mr.. sherman very
well. j meet him frequently, and we like
TO talk about public and party matters TO-
gethcr. When any one sits down 60 talk
with senator sherman, he needs all his
wits with him. IL he intends 80 keep up
his end and to be ~ match for the old sem
ator, he cannot go To sleep or become lazy
In his mental processes The senator is
not as much at his ease while on his feet
talking Co the senate as ho used TO be in
his younger days, for he docs sometimes
have to pause and think for word; but
this il nothing. He never was n fluent
speaker and he has not made his fame
with his tongue. But, take him in coun-
Gil, or sitting talking man TO man, and he
is match for tho keenest men the coun-
tries OF the world can send here.
il may not be generally known, but 1t
is true, that by this time most of tho for
eign offices In Europe are in possession Of
full information concerning the mental at
tainments the character, The temperament,
the experience, the trend of ideas, the
habits the strong points and the weak
points OF the man who IL soon TO be secre-
tary of state Of the United States. They
have "sized him up, rs it were, and from
this estimate of him will govern them
selves whenever important matters arise in
which they are Interested. Their effort to
classify Mr.. sherman Is not unique at all
in Diplomatic practice. They do this as n
regular thing, not only as to the United
states. but as to all the other countries of
the world
The Aim OF Diplomacy.
AS one may infor, the chief aim OF diplo-
macy Is to get ahead of the other fellow, in
which respect, / suppose, diplomacy rcsom-
blcs trade, manufacturing Jhc professions
and most of the activities of our human
family. But 70 does scCm little cold
blo0dcd for the Germans or the French or
the Italians to sic I'm Judgment upon our
now st,cr,tarv of state, % auulv2c him ns
one would race horse, and deliberately TO
lay their plans for getting the best Of him.
Secretary sherman may not find 10 prac-
ticablc 90 treat ambassadors I'm the fashion
which he pruscribes for mere ministers.
There Is a vast difference between an en-
bassador and minister. The former has
prrccdcncc everywhere ana is disposed to
insist upon his rights. At Paris some years
ago an American minister tried for two
weeks to get an audience with the foreign
SECRETARY, but he could not because there