The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-02-04
LOOKING FOR TROUBLE.

LOOKING FOR TROUBLE.
 It really begins to look as if the Ger man ruler is pining for a scrap with the United States. He seems to chafe under the Monroe Doctrine, and if he can find any excuse for ignoring or defying it. he is pretty sure to do it, provided. however. he can get some of the other European powers to join him, for we do not believe he is such an idiot as to pro- yoke war with this country unless he sees that he will have help. And that re- minds us of a recent paragraph in a Ger man paper with an unpronounceable name, published at Vienna, which says:
 Germany will have to consider in good earnest the possibility of a conflict. Should Germany, Austria, Italy. France and Russia jointly decide upon radically solving the American question, England will be rich spoiis; the forty-five States and the six Territories would afford abundant compensation for the costly ar- maments. The powers will not be at a loss to partition the United States and treat 1t as territory of colonization.
 That may not be an official or even a semi-official publication. but 1t Is not without significance, as showing the trend of opinion in Germany. And 1t may be remarked in passing that the German newspapers are not in the habit of ex- pressing opinions which they think would be distasteful to the Kaiser. He is the ruler of the nation, in fact as well as in name. and if the large newspapers dc not really reflect his sentiments, they at least respect and defer to them.
 Of course. If the five powers first mem tioned should unite in a determined design against the United States, they would make it decidedly interesting. There would be something doing with a ven- geance, both on land and water, and much more so if they could get Great Britain to join the combination. It would be such a war as this old earth of ours has never witnessed, and the result would form an epoch in the history of the world. The combination would have pow erful navies, good soldiers and almost un- limited resources, and they could gather together such armies as would have made even Darius look small by comparison.
 But all the same we advise our Germa n contemporary not to pick out any home stead in Uncle Sans dominions and ex- pect to settle on 1t as part of those rich spoils' of which 1t discourses so unc- tiously. The old fellow is very much ''sot in his ways" especially when it | comes to giving up any of his real es- tate. He may not, in the eyes of some, have thoroughly equitable title to some of it. but ''he lows to keep it," all the same. and the nations of the old world would find themselves up against the hardest proposition any of them have ever tackled.
 We do not for a moment believe that such combination as that suggested by the Vienna paper is possible; for some, | at least, of the nations mentioned are not | on the most amicable terms with each | other, and we do not believe that even the cohesive power of public plunder, | or the anticipation of it. could unite such | discordant clements in such fraternal bands as would offer any hope of suc- | cess. Suppose, however, they should en- | ter into such a coalition, how long would | 1t be before two or more of them would | fall out, and fly at the threats of each other like hungry dogs over a bone? Avarice and greed are strong factors in | determining the acts of nations, as well | as of individuals. Ii nothing else came up to cause the hair-pulling, 1t would be dead sure to open when 1t came to a dl- vision of the spells.
 But would there be any spells to divide | Our readers remember the familiar story | of the little boy who was eating an apple which he refused to divide with his envi. ous comrades. When pressed by one ot was: There ain't goin' to be any core That, In our opinion, would be the resul, | of such war as contemplated in the ex- tract. So far from finding 1t an easy mat apprehend that the nations in the com- bination would be too sick to care wheth- CT anything was divided or not. They would feel more like going to the hos pital than dividing out the United States
 But there seems really no reason tc doubt that Germany wants to gobble UT some of the South American countries and would be glad of an excuse for trying conclusions with the United States. Be. fore trying it she would do well to read the story of the bull and the locomotive
 At the same time. all lovers of human. ity will unite in the wish that all diff. culties may be amicably arranged.