Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-02-21
OUR GERMAN RELATIONS.

Hon. Carl Shurz, probably the great
est living German in a
lengthy and exhaustive statement in
the New York World, declares that the
numerous stories of German hostility
| to the United States in the Spanish war
and friction between Dewey and the
German navy in the Philippines are
| simply pure lies, that have been with
infinite cunning started and circulated
| deliberately and Systematically for the
benefit of the ears of the American
| people. And Mr. Shurz bluntly lays
the blame for these falsehoods at the
doors of the scheming English, backed
! by the lingo politicians of this country.
The venerable German-American
| statesman says:
In all my experience, which covers
| long period, 1 have never witnessed a
more audacious, reckless, persistent and
| methodical effort to excite the public
mind to hostility against a foreign nation
| by downright lying, artful distortion of
facts, or crafty ins.nuation. Nor has this
effort been without effect for there are
many otherwise reasonable persons in the
| United States who thus were made to be-
| lieve, and who do believe even now that
the German Government, in accord with the
| feelings of the German people, had since
| the outbreak of the Spanish war been
| constantly plotting against the United
States; that German fleet had been sent
| to Manila to aid the Spaniards and to
prevent the Americans from taking the
| city because the Germans wanted a part
of the Philippines for themselves; that
! Admiral Dewey and Admiral Diedrichs
| had been constantly at daggers points;
| that Admiral Dewey would have been
perfectly justified had he attacked and
sunk the German ships, and that even
now a war between the United States and
| Germany would be desirable to settle the
| accounts"
Mr.. Shurz might have added, by way
of forcible illustration, that this mis-
| chief-making spirit was nowhere more
manifest than at the recent Home Mar
ket banquet addressed by Mr.. McKin-
ley, where one of the notices displayed
were the alleged words of Admiral
latter must not pass the American flag
without seeing it.
| After stating the German position at
| length and quoting German statesmen
and the German press as to German
sentiment, all tending to prove the utter
| falsity of the stuff the American people
| haN cd Mr.
1T has been, to use a popular phrase,
! a bunco game of the most braZen kind,
which every self-respecting American
| should indignantly resent as an insult to
our national dignity.
who was responsible for these i'm
| postures? 1t is a fact which has been
| widely remarked and commented upon
| that most of the false or misleading
stories came here through news agencies
| under British influence. 1t would, of
| course, be foolish to think that Lord
| Salisburys Government IN any manner
| instgated or countenanced such vile prac-
| tees.
| But the circumstances of the case fully
authorize the belief that there were Eng
lishmen who wished the American people
| to understand not only that England was
! the only trustworthy friend the United
| States had in Europe, but that other
! European nations were insidiously conniv-
J ing against us, and that British watch
fulness and power were needed to protect
us against their hostility-au this to bring
| this republic more and more under Brit
| ish influence"
| This is suspicion that has occurred
to and been voiced by others than Mr.
Shurz. The latter, while announcing
his desire for the maintenance of the
friendliest relations with Great Britain
and disclaiming any wish to revive the
old game of twisting the British lions
tall still insists-and truthfully-
that any Englishman who, by such
| means as have been employed in this
instance, striven to excite dangerous
animosities between the United States
and any other power, is rather an en-
envy than friend to the American peo-
pie, and a disgrace to his own nation.
That the imposture has been so long
kept alive in this country is owing to
! two causes. First, there were great
many well-meaning citizens who by
the assiduous dissemination and repe-
tition of the false or misleading stories
| were made honestly to believe them,
and who then repeated them in their
| turn. And, secondly, the less scrupu-
! lous lingo element among us used them
for its own purposes" AS to the latter
element, Mr.. Shurz says:
! CAS- we know from experience. our