The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1898-08-04
Bismarck's s Death.

statesman and diplomat of German
history, died Saturday night. In
Europe he was considered one of the
-FOUR greatest and most brilliant ex-
amples of constructive statesman
ship of the nineteenth century-Lin-
coin, Gladstone and Cavour being
the other three. His life and career
nave been 80 inseparably interviewer
In German history since 1s47 that
such history would be as incomplete
without extended treatment of Bis
marck as would that of England
without Gladstone, Italy without
Cavour or the civil war of America
without Lincoln. Physically, Her
cules; mentally, prodigy; yet these
were not the characteristics that
made him one of the famous as we'll
as the most powerful subjects of ORR
entail governments-a subject who
challenged the administration as
we'll as the alarm of European mon
arches and empires while he con-
structed of chaotic German states a
government which is famed not only
for its military standing, but for its
seat of learning and science as well.
But the more distinctive character
istics of Bismarck were the dominant
energies of his soul. The one pur-
pose of his life seemed to have been
the union and solidification of all the
German states into one grand en-
pire, and his zeal and determination
in the work merited and achieved
complete success. The hero of
twenty-eight duels within eighteen
months of his university training, he
early developed the intrepid cour-
age, the decision of character, the
indomitable will and the dogged per-
severance which in later life so well
served his purpose, for present Ger
many is the product of his sword
and his constructive statecraft. But
Bismarck was great only in force of
character and diplomatic skill, the
latter, to his credit, being without
the least taint of demagoguery.
Aristocratic by nature, his opinions
and motives were in little sympathy
with the people, whose emancipation
and progress he steadfastly opposed
He believed in a strong government
and a weak people, a we'll equipped
standing army and q penonized pop
ulace. His policy as announced in
his early political life was: ''It is
not by speechifying and majorities
that the great questions of the day
will have to be decided, but by blood
and iron," and to the day of his
death he was known throughout the
world as the imam of blood and
IRON" But such policy cannot long
prevail in the light of civilization,
and even now Bismarckian Germany,
acco: ding to its present emperor,
depends for its very existence upon
n standing army. The best men of
the country are taken into the army,
leaving the productive force and en-
ergy at a minimum. which condition
| 10 OOuL0 oOOACA VI AalCA " % bhC
vitals of any government. 1t is only
a question of time when Germany
will bathe her soil in the blood of
revolution. and right will then pre-
vail. Then and not until then will
Prince Bismarck be correctly judged
according to his deeds. But the
main lesson in his life is that he sue
ceeded in what he undertook, and
his decision of character and uncon-
querable will are worthy of emula-
ton by every American youth, albeit
they should be founded upon higher
! motives and applied in a different
observation-disclosures Register.
A fatal cyclone swept over Wash