The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-06-24
NEXT TO BISMARCK.
The Passing of Germany's Most Pic
turesque Salesman.

NEW 1DEk evening RoSf.f
German papers have published one of
those gracious and graceful speeches in
which the kaiser eXcels. in ii he refers
TO the great service rendered to me. to
my house and to the country by DR..
Won Miguel and, in particular. conph-
menUS MIN upon tine new financial
oasis established for the Prussian state.
q paSls on the security OF which future
calculations and turther- improvements
may Continue TO be made Not only
as q token of the emberor's special
confidence" but also in order that DIR.
Won Mlquels great experience and dis
IlnSuIShed ability may be preserved to.
the state, his majesty noTnfnates him
lifelong member. OF the Prussian her
renhaUs.
So passes into. political obscurity the
most picturesque and curious OF Ger
man statesmen, one might also add the
most powerful for. though little known
ABROAD, since Bismarck fan no ono
least of all Count Caprivf and Prince
aOnenlohes has welded One-Quarter of
Dr.. Won MiQpeIs authority Since the
KAISER came 10 the throne there has
been no room in Germany for Rich
elleu- He who would rule as Dr. Won
Ndl4uel had tne ShreW dness to see, must
( pc a FatheL Joseph, standing behind
the throne ana well out OF sight. That
was why he clunS to the cOmUaratiVaIv
humble post OF RUSSIAN finance min
iSter and refused to put himself for
ward Tor The vice chancelIOrship or
even the chaBCellOrship. Had he sue
ceeoed Caprivi or HohenlOhe he would
OF course, have become the emperor S
chlet minister but at the same time he
would nave ceased to be his majesty's
confidential adviser. 50 long as the
: KAISER IS alive the chanceNorship of the
& German empire compared with what
bismarck was able to make OF it, is
and must be a dignified sinecure
Ut. Won MtquelS position, considering
what Germany is and what his career
mas been, might fairly be described as
4 phenomenal. If, as Cardinal Newman
used TO preach. Ito be perfect is To
nave changed often, DR.. Won MIGUEL
IS perfection itself, for he has boxed
the entire political compass and fought
Tor and against every party in the
state He has been in turn revolution
airy, conservative and reactiOnary; in
4 transigeant and oppOrtunist, an ardent
republican an advanced imperiaHst. a
demagogue Of demagogues ana a mod
crate wing, socialist and COM
munfst, a reformeF and free trader, as
well as the rising hope OF the stern and
unbending agrarians; an atheist and
an1-Clericai and a member OF an evan
geIlcal synod. Even in a life that has
already lasted seventy-three years
there has hardly been time for more
transformations In the REVOLUTIONARY
year OF 1S4S he was q student at Heidel-
bers. and, like all other German
youths, up 70 mis- neck in plots and CON
spiracies. When the people OF Baden
rose against their grand duke he was
the first to join them, and being a
sound organizer, as wen as q clever
( tail1er and fighter, made himself 50 con
Sp1cUOuS among the rebels that the
ducal government, among the terms of
peace, insisted on the Punishment of
Johannes Miguel. then a boy OF barely
~. From Baden he went to Paris,
Joined the famous Communist league
and under the influence Of Karl Marx
was rapidly developing into a PROBES
sional cOnspirator, when an Opportune
attack of cholera gave him leisure Tor
reflection.
Accordingly he changed his tactics.
/ though not his ideals and decided to
enter the service of the state.