The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-07-31

earth, the Social Democrats nave grown ana
| handful. In 1880 they may have been half a
million. In 1890 they mustered million and
half, despite the sternest repression, the
| ton of Socialist meetings and the mprison-
ment of Socialist leaders.
| 1t is curious. though too much may have
| been made of it. that at the birth of the
| Social Democracy Bismarck was on the
| friendliest of terms with Ferdinand Las,
! salle the founder of the movement, and
| even sympathized with it. LaSSalle, of
| course, believed in state socialism, which
| the chancellor himself has since openly ad-
/ vocated. The original plan Of German So
| cialism was strangely changed by Kari
| Marx, and in the end. as we know, the
| Marxist communistic movement swallowed
| up Lassalleism, with it's more peaceful aims,
| its, perhaps, utopian dreams of the final
regenerati ton of the working classes by par
| liamentary methods.
| by the Liebknechts and the Bebels, who scott
| at parliaments and voting urns. ana VINO
theory that Might outweighs right" as
| Bismarck could be.
| They vote at the elections, it is true. but
only to count their strength and to impress
| the country by the figures. Thew send their
delegates to the Reichstag, only in
order TO have rostrum f Gol hif n TO to
| ciety. They are for main TO. for the
| confscation of property of the Implements
of labor; for the opening of national work
shops; the normal working day; the abolition
of kings, emperors and states; the negatlon
of God and much more of the kind They
scorn liberalism of the Richter pattern as
| much as Lassalleism and Schultz-Delitsch-
| ISM I'VE are the people, is their cry. All
| for labor. Nothing for oapital!'
IN THE REICHSTAG.
| Time after time Bismarck Numbered
| against them, clamored or appealed for CO.
| ercion, and proclaimed his creed. Force
| against force Cold steel and jails for social
rebels. He was not orator as the word is
/
! he ever a rhetorician. But as debater he
had few equals. He impressed you by his
| simplicity directness and very bluntness. If
he could but have refrained from his nat
| ural tendency to bully and deride his adver-
| saries he might have done far more. He was
never much of a conciliator.
In 1877, during the debate on the army bill,
/ which caused such panic in Europe and all
| but led to war, the Reichstag had proved
| rebellious. 1t had refused to vote the in
| crease in the forces, which had been de-
| manded by General Won Schellendorf, even
| after a solemn adjuration of Count Moltke
| who had warned it that to refuse might
mean another war;
! The chancellor mad come up to town from
| FREDERICKSBURG and was expected to address
| the Assembly The excitement was prodi-
| gious, and the rush for seats in the tr1buneS
| unprecedented. The house was packed, eX-
! cept in one corner high up toward the left
| the corner reserved for the rebelllous depu-
| ties of Elsass-Lothringen. His little Excel
| lency bespectacled and brooding usual,
| sat in his place in the center Presently,
amid the hum and chatter, was heard the
rumble of carriage wheels. There was
| pause And the next moment, amid muir
| muir of Der Kanzleri Der Kanzer! a
| huge, tall, upright form, clad in blue uni
| form, tightly buttoned to the neck, from
| above which there emerged the head of
| man who at once impressed one as a born
ruler of men-the head of the mighty chan
| cellor.
| The chancellor took his seat on the raised
| platform, laid some papers on the desk be-
| fore him and opened his speech, one OF the
| errro f.a-f hn had do and n
moment all else grew small and seemed to
vanish He began in a quiet and easy way,
| talking to himself rather than to the house,
as If he were discussing a nice point over
a pipe and krug, and not quite sure OF his
| own arguments. AS he went on he grad
ually warmed. Words, plain and to the
| point, seemed to come to him. And when
| some interruption at last stirred his wrath
| he grew not only interesting but eloquent
| All his eloquence that day, however, did not
| help. The army bill was rejected. When
| next he stood in the rostrum ne was armed
| with the decree of dissolution. And the
| cheers which greeted him as he drove from
| the Reichstag are still remembered. He re-
turned once more a few weeks later-ehief
| of the majority which for three years there
after obeyed his bidding.
| GOOD STORIES OF THE PRINCE.
| One day during the Franco-Prussian war
| King William and Bismarck were detained
at railroad station, and as they waited in
their carriage, a crowd gathered around and
began to cheer for the German troops. Sud-
denly the shout was raised:
| "Hurrah hurrah The Bismarckians have
won another victory"
At these words King William grew pale,
and. turning to the chancellor. asked inn
patiently: What do these people mean?'
| Bismarck pretended not to hear him. and
| for several minutes not word was ex-
changed between the two. Finally, how
ever, as the train moved on the King said
! bruSQuely: These folks ought to remem-
| Der that the troops are mine and not yours. "
Bismarcks family enjoyed this story
greatly, and whenever the chancellor shows
| himself particularly overbearing and haugh-
| ty, his wife has only to utter the words
| Remember the Bismarckians" to reduce
| him to a becoming state of humility.
| No one in Germany was more gallant than
Bismarck. When his son was married he
kissed his daughter-in-law's hand, and to a.
md great pleasure in kissing young ladies'
| hands he said: My old master used to say
that when lady kisses ones hand IT is an
official intimation that you are an old man.
| AS long, however, as you are allowed to
carry their tiny hands to your lips depend
where in your VEINS On another occasion
| he was caught in a storm as he was stroll
| ling through the woods near Kissingen and
a servant girl ran out of restaurant and
| offered him an umbrella. He thanked her
| courteously. and, taking her arm, escorted
a kiss, which she accepted with good grace
! saying: You have done me great honor
prince To which he replied: "On the con-
| trary, it is / who am in your debt for be-
lieve, my dear you have indeed given me
/ great pleasure"
Like many other great men, Bismarck
was somewhat superstitious II hope there
| are not thirteen of US for dinner" said his
cousin, Count Bismarck Bohlen. one day to
| friend, counting the covers at the table.
| mo, that's right, for the chancellor has an
! objection to that" Another day. when
| there were really thirteen at table, special
/ pains We're taken not to draw Bismarcks
/ attention to the fact, as his family knew
that it would make him low spirited On
| Oct. H. 1870, General Boyer met the chan
cellor at Versailles to negotiate on behalf
! of Bazaine, but as soon as Bismarck re-
| membered that 1t was the 14th day of the
month he exclaimed: THAT is the date OF
Hochhirch and Jena. ard no business should
/ be concluded on that day." Perhaps it oc-
| Cured to him that this 18th of October was
/ a Friday. Again, in 1852, he writes from
Blankenburg to his wife. i had not as good
/ sport at LetZlingen this time had three
/ years ago. lit was a Friday" and some
| months later he writes to her frlm Halle.
| Il kept cogitating all during thu journey
/ yesterday whether after all Il was tnot FRI
| day. IT was dies nefastus. at any rate.