Omaha daily bee., 1899-04-01
OTHER LANDS THAN orns.

tue century must DC NIt7llANu W IldhNN'
They are the Suez canal and the Mont ST.
Go;hard tunnel In the one case De Les
sens, in the face Of difficulties that appeared
well nigh unsurmountable, Joined the waters
OF the Mediterranean with these OF the Red
sea and gave new pathway to the worlds
commerce. and in the other French engi-
neers pierced the very backbone OF the
Hevetian Alps and brought France and
Italy practically to each Others door Great
as these engineering feats are they were
child's play in comparison with that upon
the execution of which Franco will probably
enter in the closing days Of the century.
This project is n railway across the great
Sahara desert. and more formidable one
1t is hard to imagine. The Union Pacific
railroad was great undertaking and
great work, and when completed the trans
Siberian line will be another great triumph
for modern engineering science. But the
two great works combined cannot equal in
magnitude the project of spanning the
Sahara with lines OF steel. As it's name
implies, the Sahara is vast sea of sand.
1t is ever restless. ever shifting, and how
a sClil roadway can be constructed on its
unstable surface Is more than the ordinary
lay mind can understand. The French,
however, are an inventive and enterprising
people, and If the sterile heart OF the dark
tires France may be trusted to do the work.
The ship Of the desert" the meek and
patient and tireless camel. has had his day.
The locomotive will supersede him as it has
superseded the stage coach. But the idea OF
a Mungo Park, a Livingstone or Stanley
travelling from Morocco to the Congo in
frst-class railway carriage is not entirely
without humor
The Germany Diet, or Reichstag might
be briefly described as the counterpart OF
the lower house Of our American congress.
1t is composed of 397 representatives, elected
by popular vote for five years in districts
designated by imperial law, and there is one
for every 1872, 900 people. Any German %
years OF age, not under disability may vote
and be voted for. The members receive no
compensation but are entitled to travel free
on the government railways The Diet de-
Cides upon contested elections, chooses its
own officers and frames its own rules. The
quorum is a najcrity of all the legal mem
bers, and the majority Of the quorum voices
the will of the house. Individual members
may not introduce bills unless supported by
number of colleagues (now fifteen). There
is absolute liberty OF debate, of which the
opposition never fails to avail itself. Mem
bers are free from arrest unless appre-
hended in the commission OF crime. There
are certain points in which the resemblance
of the Diet to the United States house OF
representatives fails. Treaties with foreign
powers, which relate to the enumerated sub
jects of imperial legislation, made by the
emperor with the advice and consent of the
council require the further confirmation OF
the Diet. Accordingly, no treaty can bind
The government to pay money without the
consent OF the peoples representatives.
NJ. de Freycinet whose long association
with the French war Office is sufficient as
surance of his knowledge of the facts, de-
livered very practical and instructive ad-
dress in the chamber the other day on the
subject of military espionage. He protested
vigorously against the common assumption
that the safety of the country was endan-
gered by the existence of countless traitors
or that the military attaches are licensed
spies. AS matter of fact, he declared, the
number of important military secrets was
small, and very few officers had information
about them They referred chiefly to new
explosives and new types of guns or rifles.
He then went on to say that "a sort of
patriotic shudder lays hold of men when the
idea is expressed that the secrets of mcbil-
ization have perhaps been betrayed. Now
these secrets are reduced to very small
matter. The scheme of mobilization as a
whole is written on the territory The
railways, the ports the magazine stations
the magazines of concentration, are so
many stages of the mobilization. Everybody
knows them, and we cannot prevent it.
We know in the same way the foreigners
scheme of mobilization. We know exactly
the number of days at the end of which
his armies will be brought together, just as
he knows the Dlmhpr of 6e fnr
ours There are, it is true, some special
points, certain places at which stronger
numbers are collected than at others and
these may be an advantage in not divulg-
ing. AT the same time, we are well aware
that this amount is very little, and its i'm
portance should not be exaggerated" In
conclusion, he declared that even If at
taches were spies, their official position
would make them far less dangerous than
the unknown political agents who worked in
complete secrecy.
Continued discomfort among the Uit-
landers in the Transvaal is forcibIy ex-
pressed in the petition to Queen Victoria
said to bear 2l,00O signatures, asking for
protection for the subjects of Great Britain
The reforms promised by President Kruger
have not been extended to the political
status and property rights of these British
denizens in the Boer repnblc. The re-
pulse of the raid led by Jameson may have
caused sense of arrogance and a feeling
of reprisal among the citizens of Dutch
blood. But if Cecil Rhodes is succeeding
at Berlin in obtaining railway and tele-
graph concessions through German terri
tory, he may enlist also the influence of
Emperor William who has manifested such
pronounced sympathy with President Kru-
ger, to obtain some reasonable political
amenities to British subjects in the Trans
vaal.
Herr Schonerer, leader OF the Panger-
manIc, or nationalist, group in the Austrian
Reichsrath has issued an appeal to his fol-
lowers, which says that "for various reasons
it appears desirable that the secession of the
first 10000 converts from the ani-German
Catholic church of Rome should take place
soon as possible" Consequently, he ur-
gently requests those of his compatriots
who intend to change their faith to send
written declaration to that effect, If possible
by the end Cf March. No one knows how
many conversions to Professionalism and TO
the Old Catholic faith have taken place
but the movement has assumed proportions
that are causing alarm among the clergy
- ----------------------