The times., 1899-03-16
IN of his army. Judging from our dis

upon the effectiveness OF his country MIL
itary arm as constitutional chief of state
should. and wait for the patriotism OF his
fellow -countrymen to mend the mistake.
The parallel is obvious Our President
has been compelled to accept n scratch
army and get along with it at time when
the most ample and efficient establishment
would not have been less than the interests
or honor Of the nation call for. In this
case. to be sure, he is partly to blame. The
whole country was angered over his ap-
parent protection of Algerism, and the men
in Congress, irrespective of party. who
would naturally have stood behind him like
a stone wall, in insistence for a full army
scientifically organized, were dispersed and
disgusted, first by the open crudity and
by the consciousness that any plan of
army reform to be under the administra-
tion of Alger would only make things
worse than they were and are.
Still President Mckinley is the war
lord" of the American people, just as the
Kaiser is of the German nation, and pa
triots, whatever may be their apprehension
of Algerism, do not like to see his hands
tied when he has rebellion on his hands,
and many other legitimate reasons for
wishing to be backed by a reliable army.
In the end he will have the support of his
cOuntrymen in any necessary movement or
action. just as the Kaiser will of his people
The position of the German government
is not unlike that of ours in another i'm
pOrtant respect The majority of the vot-
ing people of America are opposed to the
outrageous fiscal system which the Repub-
| lican party, as the agent and ward Of the
trusts and monopolies, has fastened upon
them. Even their masters see that the
doom of the Chinese tariff system has been
settled by the events and results of the
/ Spanish war. Yet, for the time, their
voices are silenced, and they cannot have
commercial freedom because of the sugar
and allied trusts; neither can they have
the Nicaragua Canal because its construc-
| tion is opposed by the great transconti-
mental railway magnates. They must wait.
and, as to the tariff must appear in the
eyes of the world as the foolish, provincial
! enemies OF intelligent trade intercourse.
because the selfish power of aggregated
capital in control of legislation is against
them.
The situation is much the same at Ber-
lin as it is at Washington. The Emperor and
the thinking people of the Fatherland are
generally reported to be willing and ready
TO meet this country on a reasonable basis
of live and let live, both as to direct trade,
and the interests of the two nations in
the East and elsewhere. But Germany, too,
has its Sugar Trust and its other octo-
pus influences. The Agrarian party, which
uniformed Americans have been apt to
think something like an organization of
peasants, is, in fact, grand combination
of all the ultra-conservatiye. outlander
hating, provincial, and landed aristocracy
elements Of the Teutonic states. 1t op-
poses anything which would make Ger
many prosperous, if, incidentally the move
ment might depress the interests Of the
reactionary barons and great masters of
| local industry. 1t is this which has made
for sympathy with Spain and for antdgo-
nism TO American imports. just as the
Complementary element in this country
has sympathized with every European
political attack upon Germany. and with
every tariff proposition that would tend
to shut out the products of the German
people.
The day OF proyincialsm and Chinese
tariffs, SO far as the United States is con-
cerned. was practically brought to an end
when Dewey sunk Montojo's squadron in
Manila Bay and Schley did the same world
service in obliterating the Spanish ships
of Santiago. The trusts and monopolies
may for a little time be able to perpet-
uate the old order of things, but not for
long. Before the new century is in its
swaddling clothes America will be able TO
meet and trade with its neighbors on a
sane business basis, and we do not doubt
that the same will be true of Germany
| and other states with which We have been
on terms OF commercial warfare too long,
and entirely without reason