Omaha daily bee., 1899-02-12
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
United States Ambassadors Task in Samoan
Affair Not Difficult,
N0NC0MMlTTAL AS TO HIS INSTRUCT IONS
Popular Story that Germany Supports Agui-
naldo is Ridiculed,
IlNEIX lNIERESI IN EMEMIc AT MANI A
LIVELY INTEREST IN EVENTS AT MANILA
Majority Of Press Friendly, but Predictions
of Colonial War Are Made.
AGRARlANs cLAMoRING FOR TARIFF WAR
American Fruit Being Treated with
Unfnirness mt Tariff stations-Dr.
Gustav sieber. Alleged "Nilitary
Attache," Attracts Notice.

BERLIN, FEB. 11.-Unted States AM
bassador Andrew d. White has now received
detailed instructions regarding Samoa, both
by mail and cable. He declined to give their
nature, but said
IL do not see any reason to change the
opinion l have previously expressed that the
difficulties will be entirely adjusted diplomat
ically. My instructions have not made the
task OF coming to an amicable understand
ing more difficult. l have had several con-
ferences with Baron Won Buclow (the Ger
man minister of foreign affairs) during the
weok about Samoa, the Philippines and our
commercial relations. l found the German
government very conciliatory."
Mr.. White utterly disbelleyes the reports
that Germany has financially supported Ag
uinaldo and similar stories.
With reference to the latter allegations a
high government official said to the AS
Bociated Press correspondent here: "These
reports are utterly baseless, II is true tina,
q commercial syndicate for the export OF
arms and ammunition has existed at Hong
Kong for years, and is still doing a thriv-
ing business. It's members are English,
American, Japanese and Chinese, but 1t does
not contain single German The consul
OF Germany certainly does not belong to the
syndicate. nor is he in any way interested
On the arms and ammunition trade"
Events ut Manila Reelected.
American affairs have occupied a large
space in the German press during the last
week. The events at Manila have been fol-
lowed keenly and the press comments are
plentiful and varied. Generally speaking,
the papers are rather sympathetic to the
Americans, but fears are expressed that
the task of subduing the Filipinos will prove
harder than the Americans suppose.
The Vossche Zeltung, in an article wish
Ing the Americans success, predicts that
II President Mckinley insists on establish
Ing a rule in the islands he stands just on
the threshold of a colonial war of whose
dangers and expense, blood and money the
American newspaper strategists' have prob
= ably no adequate idea.
The Kreuz Zeitung says: "Whoever looks
over the situation calmly must admit that
the final victory of the Americans Is not
only certain, but desirable The Tagalos
are certainly incapable of self government
We are unable to discover in this Aguinaldo
VITO has played with more than hostile in
tentions between two powers-has any traits
Of real greatness"
The Zeltung adds that the relations be-
tween Germany and the United States are
improving and pays a high tribute to Mr.
White for his steady efforts in that direc-
tion. The paper next advises partition OF
the Samoan islands, Germany taking Upolu'
upon which Apia, the capital. is situated,
and which contains more than half the total
population of the entire group, and the
United States and Great Britain dividing Sa-
vail. Tutuila and Manua.
Agrnrian Press Abusive.
The commercial relations between the
United States and Germany have, however,
absorbed chief attention, partly on account
of the Reichstag Interpolation on the sub
sect today introduced by Count Won
Kanitz, the agrarian leader, with the ap-
proval of the government which hopes
thereby to exert pressure on the Washing
ton government, which 1t is claimed here,
is hanging back needlessly and interposing
obstacles in the way of q mutual under
standing regarding reciprocity.
The agraran press this week again
abuses the United States and the CEN
trists who backed the Interpolation print
in their mouthpieces, the Cologne Volks
Zeitung, long. aggressive article, referring
to american insolence" In tariff matters.
Among other things the paper saps: 'The
German market Is equally valuable to the
Americans as the American Is for us, es-
pecially since the American tariff policy sue
ceeded in excluding large part OF German
export from the American market. Amer
leans pretend that America has nothing to
lose and that 1t can frighten Germany by
increasing brutality. But we believe that
in the end they will find out they have
20 deal with people that will not be
frightened. But Americans by their total
disregard OF treaties have already injured
our exports so seriously that 1t seems nee
essary to show them that we can hit back,
otherwise they will behave worse and
and iniura than N tar
war"
Liberals Oppose Tariff War.
The entire liberal press takes the oppo-
site view, the Freisslnnige zeitung saying
the Interpolation is merely intended to ia
cilitate the policy OF internal improvement
for ths agrarians and the Taggeblatt
strongly opposes a tariff war.
The vexatious application OF the German
tarin on American imports has in no wise
ceased and during the last few months
American fruit has been treated with un-
fairness at all the tariff stations, particu-
larly Hamburg, Bremen and Emmerich. on
the frontier OF Holland.
The attention OF Mr.. White has Just been
called to case which occurred on January
s. when hundred cases OF the finest dried
California pears, consigned to a merchant
OF Dusseldorf were stopped at Emmerich
by the Germans, who advised the consignee
that the lot could not pass because the
san Jose scale had been found among the
pears. The consignee demurred and pointed
out that the pears were dried by the ap-
proved California method and that the
scales, therefore, must be dead and harm
less. The authorities replied a week later
that an expert had been unable to de-
termIne whether the scales were dead or
alive, but in any case 1t had been decided
that American dried fruit WAS calculated
10 spread the San Jose scale, unless SO dried
as TO render it perfectly dry, hard ana
brittle"
The eonsignee answered that such treat
/, nent OF choice California fruit would make
IL yalueless and unfit for food and called
attention 10 the scientific fact that no San
Jose scale could survive the California