The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1897-04-15
ENGLISH SUPREMACY.
Degeneracy Of British Diplomacy
shown In Many Instances.

Degeneracy Of British Diplomacy
shown In Many Instances.
Henry Norman, the well-known
writer on eastern topics takes a very
gloomy view Of English prospects in the
far east. Indeed, he goes so far as to
declare that English supremacy in that
section of the globe has gone past hope
Of recovery; that English diplomacy in
Asia has been outwitted at every point,
and that the real center of diplomatic
action for many months past has been,
not in Paris or ST. Petersburg or Lon
don or Constantinople, but in Peking.
An anonymous writer in the same re-
ewdeclares that not only England, but
China, has been outwitted and deceived
by Count Cassini, who secured the con-
cessions which have practically made
China a Russian province. Ii Hung
Chang is also accused of having de-
ceived the English diplomatists and
betrayed the interests of his own coun-
try. If this writer is to be believed, the
concessions which have given Russia
complete control of Manchuria, the use
of the finest seaports in that part of the
Pacific in time of war and the opportu-
nifty of establishing her power over the
whole of the empire, were secured
without the knowledge of the English
foreign Office, although apparently
under it's very eyes. This allegation
bears with peculiar heaviness upon a
ministry which has always claimed the
exclusive possession of a vigorous
,;,,-
istry is now charged the relegation of
England to position of secondary i'm
portance in the far east. Her supremacy
for the moment seems to be gone and
her influence has been seriously shaken,
with probable disastrous results to her
commercial interests in that part of the
world. What Lord Salisbury can do to
retrieve the diplomatic defeats of the
last year remains to be seen, but the
record of the conservative government
50 far not only at home but abroad. has
certainly fallen far below the prom
ises which were made for it when it
went into power.
In view of the rapid changes OF re-
cent months in the diplomatic relations
of the great powers, the London Spec
tator makes the interesting suggestion
that the greater powers of Europe di-
vide themselves into two classes; Eng
land and France representing in diff
ferent ways and degrees the democrat
ic principle that people should govern
themselves and should decide their own
policies, both domestic and foreign;
Germany, Austria ard Russia represent
ing the conservative and monarchical
principle that countries should be gov
erned by their rulers independently of
the wishes of their people. These i'm
peral powers are pledged by their very
constitution to resist popular move
ments wherever it is in peril. The in
terests of these two groups, the Spec
tator thinks, tends historically to bind
the component states together. In 9TH
er words, the natural tendencies and
sympathies of Germany, Austria and
Russia would impel them to common
| action. The Spectator thinks that the
area of territory now open to occu-
patton and reorganization. by the great
powers could be divided in such a way
ls to give the nations composing these
two groups plenty of work to do for
many years to come without serious col
lision with each other. In view of the
present alliances. this suggestion may
seem to be purely academic. On the
other hand, there is logical element
in it which may predict the reorganiza-
tion of the alliances of the greatpowers
at no distant date in the future.-Con-
temporary Review.