The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-03-13

missioner general ready to erect a
statue of Lafayette in the grounds
if only he could get the space on which
| to set it up? The minister of com
merce and the minister of foreign
affairs Wed with each other in paying
exceptional compliments to the COM
missionerS of the United States. Nay,
it was even limited that in 1899 Ameri-
can goods would be admitted to France
under the minimum tariff, reciprocal
! concession being, of course, anticipated
on the other side.
DEWEY'S WORK A REVELATION.
The war was a revelation to the aver
age Frenchman. When Dewey Destroy
ed the Spanish fleet at Manila the scales
began TO fall from their eyes, and they
saw men as trees walking" When
Cervera's fleet shared the same fate off
Santiago, they realized that new ma
val power had been born into the
world, inheriting from the destiniess as
one of them put it, the good fortune
that has always attended the English
on the seas. Early in the war a re-
port that the American fieet had been
destroyed and Admiral Sampson killed
threw the Partisan populace into a
paroXysm of delight. In those days no
one disguised their sympathies with
Spain. But nowadays they all agree to
forget all that, and they are already
convinced that there were never such
friends of the Americans as the French
and never had been since the world
began.
The proposed cars peace conference
may postpone the immediate outbreak
of a war of revenge for the revindica-
ton of the lost provinces of Alsace and
Lorraine, but it certainly does not do so
more decisively than the French had
done already by their great exhibition
of 1900. That exhibition is itself kind
of peace conference. When France in
vited Germany to exhibit her goods in
the great show OF the new country, she
acquisced in the status quo. OF course,
she did not guarantee Germany the un-
interrupted possession forever of her
lost provinces. Neither win she do so
by accepting the cars invitation But
she did give Germany the very best and
most substantial security against
sudden French attack that any one
could desire. These and other consid-
erations have had their weight, and the
molnentary irritation against their Rus
sian ally has already abated.
The question as. to whether the
French people are longing for revenge
and the revindication of their lost
provinces is one on which the most
widely diversed opinions are expressed
There is. however, substantial agree
nent among men of all shades of opin-
ion that while France vigilantly main
tainS all her reserves and is resolved to
take advantage of all the opportunities
which fortune may send her to regain
her old provinces. she will never of her
own motion or on her own initiative
make war on Germany. a leading
French statesman with whom 1 was
discussing this question Expressed in
the very strongest terms his conviction
that no French ministry will ever take
the initiative in attacking Germany
THE risk would be too great, the sac
rifices too immense If Germany were
involved in war elsewhere-ah, then,
that would be another matter. But as
long as Germany is at peace we shall
not lift a finger to disposses her.
This helps to enable us to understand
what a powerful security for peace the
ineradicable yearning for the lost
province has become in Europe to-
day.
WAR FEELING VERY STRONG.
A shrewd and experienced observer in |
Paris, on the other hand, told me that
the popular feeling in favor of war was |
stronger now than 1t had ever been |
since 1870. The lessons of that terrible |
year have been forgotten. Paris is now
in the hands of young men to whom |
the bombardment OF Paris is only |
matter of history and of tradition Bis /
marck is gone. All the great generals |
who conquered France are dead The |
Fre-c army was never stronger or, /
better equipped than now. If the |
French saw their, chance, they would |
not hesitate for a moment If, for in
stance, the Russian emperor but held !