Washington sentinel., 1898-06-25
ENGLAND.
A POSSIBLE DANGER IN EASTERN
EUROPE.
London SDectakor.

i
II is said that Alexander Obrenovltch.
the Young King of Servia, has fallen into
a condition of hsalth which causes acute
alarm in his family and among his SUBJ
Jects' Indeed, it is asserted, in a way
which is unusual when kings are the
subjects OF diagnosis, that there is no
reasonable hope Of his permanent recov.
cry. We do not usually notice such
statements, more especially when the y
are peremptorily denied. as this is by
the Minister of Servia, but they remind
the world Of the forgotten fact that peace
really hangs upon the life of that young
man. King Alexander Of Servia has no
heir, his father Milan being declared to
be impossible" and his death, there
fore would leave the throne of the Ser.
Wan kingdom open to any powerful
pretender. 1t is hardly possible that,
under such circumstances, Russia and
Austria should not support rival candi.
dates, and not very difficult to foresee
who they would in all probability be.
The Russian Government. always keenIy
interested in Servia as being essentially
Slav, would put forward Prince Nicholas
Of Montenegro, whom it has always
favored, and now regards almost as a
Prince of the Imperial house. He him.
self makes no secret of his ambition,
and it is said, promises the Servians that
ifhe is elected he will restore the ancient
though shOrtlived glory of the Serbian
"Empire"-that is, will stretch his
dominion over Bosnia nd Northern
Bulgaria, and seat his kingdom at once
on the Black Sea andlthe Adratic. The
Prince is a man Of ability aud ambition,
he lis accustomed to govern, and success.
ful in government, and he can dispose
Of forces which, if not numerous, are
Injured to war. and are dreaded through.
out the Balkans and in European Turkey
for their bravery and their devotion to
their chief AS the only crowned Slav
except the Emperor Of Russia, he would
be a most formidable candidate, and
would, it is hoped, be most acceptable
to the Servians, who are possessed with
the idea that they ought to recover their
ancient patrimonY, and, above all, to
reach the sea, To the Austrian Gov
ernm mt, on the other hand. such a
candidsture would be most unaccept-
able. The Hapsburgs are always SEN
sitive, and with good reason. about the
freedom of the Danube, which DaniIo
dynasty seated in Belgrade would be
able at will TO threaten, and always hope
that an extension to Salonica would give
their subjects the means Of becoming
rich through Asiatic trade. With Servia
in :he hands OF enemies, and Bosnia
threatened, that extension would finally
be barred They have no intention OF
surrendering Bosnia, which they have
turned into flourishing province. or OF
renouncing their claim to equal infu-
ence with their secular rivals in the
whole peninsula. They would be almost
compelled to occupy Servia ioi them
selves, as the Servians fear they will one
day do, or to support candidate Of their
own, who could only be the King Of
Roumania, who is the one Prince in
Eastern Europe possessing both more
capacity for military enterprise and
larger resources for war than the Prince
OF Montenegro, and the only one in
whose success the HohenzolIerns would
feel something more than a "benevo-
lent" interest. Such a rivalry would
mean war in the near future even # both
empires we're bent on peace, and it is by
no means certain that they are bent on
peace as decidedly as they were year
or two ago,
The present rulers OF Russia under the
Gear are new men with great desire to
distinguish themselves; a nd though they
have achieved, as they have publicly
acknowledged, brilliant success in the
Far East, where they have extended
their ice bound empire down to open
water, they are not altogether contented
with their position. They are
anxious to prove to all Eastern Europe
that Russia is still the one power to be
conciliated. and they perceive that they
have Just now a singular opportunity.