The times., 1899-07-14
TALE OF TWO BHRLINERS
How a Rising New York Diplomat
Nearly Lost "a Job.
The Newly Appointed Consul to Ten
crine, Canary Islands, Confused
With Man Inyoiyed In Trouble
on nm Ocean Steamcr-An Amusing
state Department Error.


hangs tale. Sol" it is supernuous TO
state, Is one of the most widely known
citizens of Greater New York, a man CT
parts, and a Republican politician of abil
ity and influence. His fame. moreover.
as a visa observer and commentator upon
political events long since passed local
bounds and has made him national char
acter of prominence and standing. His
practical service to the Republican party
in the cause of the single gold standard
during the long-to- -be-remembered cam
paign OF 1896 brought him to the attention
OF President Mckinley, who on March 8,
1873 issued to him commission setting
forth that reposing trust and confidence In
his integrity, wisdom, and patriotism, he
had appointed him Consul OF the United
States to the Canary Islands in the King
| dom of His Majesty Alfonso of Spain.
Armed with this open sesame to official
| life with all its mysterious possibilities in
that far-off land where the inadequacy of
| the Consular fees is compensated for by
! the delights of the climate which there
attains as near to perfection as anywhere
on earth Sol purchased his steamer
ticket. That is as far as he went toward
/ the poetic isles of the Canaries, for the
war between the United States and Spain
came along. and while President McKin-
| leys trust and confidence in Sci and all
| the other patriotic Americans who had re-
ceived like appointments TO Spanish ros-
sessions remained unshaken Their commits
sions were of necessity revoked. Time
passed, and the glad day came VIII n,
peace having been restored, except in the
| Philippines, it became the Pleasant duty
OF President Mckinley to reannounce his
1 a Ef those 10
to his official bosom in the happy days be-
| fore the war. But when the lists were
made public the name of So.omon Berlin
| er was missing. II did not appear, how
| ever, that any aspiring patriot had been
named to set sail to the b-ue Canary Is.es
with the proud purpose of SO conducting
| the diplomatic business OF the Un!te1
States as to make him worthy of the 500
per year which grateful and ap-
preciative Government provides for its
trusted representative, there, and SO
''Sol' took hope, and his friends
set about learning why he. enc
| Of the bulwarks on the party, had
been chosen for sefiicial sacrifices. The
mystery was revealed by the confidential
| files Of the State Department which told
| to the President and Secretary Hay ro-'
| mantle story,
The department mail brought to the Sec
| letter dated on the 9th Of that month
| from Solomon Berliper's son asking for in
! formation as to the fate of his father, who,
+, the writer said, had been seriously injured
by fellow passenger during the previous
month on the steamer Columbia en- route
| from San Francisco TO Honolulu. The de-
partment had no knowledge of Solomon
| senior or Junior. or Of, the fact that the
| former had been injured on a steamer or
| elsewhere, and SO the, letter of enquiry
| was Forwarded to the Consul Gsneral In
Honolulu for Investigation and report. Sew
| erai weeks elapsed and then on another
| bright morning, this time in December, an
| official document came through the de-
partment from the Consul General contain
| ing the information sought for by Solomon
! Berliner's son. The report set forth that
| Mr.. Berliner's wife and daughter accom-
panied him on his voyage across the broad
| Pacific and that there were on board two
other passengers who were destined to be
directly involved in q life of Berliner's
family, and especially in Soils diplo-
matte career. One of these passengers was
| Russell Colgrove; the other his brother
Will All became well and pleasantly ac-
quainted-too well and too pleasantly, per-
haps-for on Sunday, September 4. 1898, a
dreadful thing happened. VIII Colgrove
| emphatically and possibly impertinently
demanded that Solomon Berliner return to
| his brother Russell sum OF money which
| he had borrowed.
| II is only fair 20 state at this juncture
| that the testimony taken on board the
ship at the order of the Consul General is
not entirely clear as TO whether the climax
of the quarrel was caused by demand for
| a return OF the money or by ungallant al
| lusion to the all too devoted attentions
| which, according to the testimony, was
paid by the Messrs. Colgrove to the ladies
! Beriiner. Solomon told Will Colgrove to
go to some unpleasant place, or elsewhere
Mr.. Coigrove responded by seizing a be-
! laying pin, the weapon always used in
! fights, real or imaginary, aboard ship and
| smashing Mr.. Berliner over the head Here
| the Consul Generals story abruptly ends,
| except that he adds a postscript in the form
\ Of Solomon Beriiner's ante -mortem state
| ment, duly sworn to and subscribed to by
| the ships notary. Beginning with the
customary words, Believing | am about
| to die" Solomon relates the facts sub
| stantially as above set forth. But leaving
| existent the doubt as to whether love or
| cash caused the trouble, lie tells of an
| amount OF money deposited in the San
| Francisco Bank that he desires to go to
| his daughter Rose, and calmly resigns
himself TO oblivion.
| Whether Solomon did actually die, and
| II so, whether his daughter came to her
I
| formed and does not vet know. With the
| practical officials sufficient unto the day
/ is the evil thereof, and so when the names
of those who had been appointed Consuls
| in the Spanish territory in the blissful days
| of peace and who had not realized on their
| good fortune. were laid before the Presi-
| dent to have diplomatic honors for a second
time thrust upon them, Solomon Berliner's
| name was missings With a promptness
| possible only when truth has been malign-
| ed Solomon BerliasF. of New York City,
| business man, politician, statesman. and
| diplomat, made known TO the President OF
the United States and his Secretary of
State through his Influential Republican
friends, that he never had a wife nor. con-
sequently. daughter; that he never cross
ed the Pacific Ocean IN the steamer Colum-
| bia or by any other means of conveyance,
and that in fact he has never launched his
| body upon any ocean since the day. more
| or less remote when aa a boy of thirteen
| he landed on the shores of America. where.
under the boon of, democratic institutions,
| he has risen from the humble station OF
| friendless emigrant- to-that of the diplo-
matte representative nap the United States
at the Canary Isles. so it has all ended
| happily. Truth has been vindicated once
more sol" will receive his renewed
commission tomorrow and all that remains
| Is to discover the identity of Solomon Ber-
| liner No @ Did he; die OF his wounds and
| was he hit with Delaying pin, because
he declined 10 pay borrowed money, or be-
cause he resented the partiality shown to
his wife and daughter by fellow passen-
| ger on the steamer Columbia en- route to
| Honolulu In September. 1882 Anyone pos
sessng information on these points will do
patriotic act by forwarding the same to