New-York tribune., 1905-03-26
LONDON NOTES.
War Without Historians-A Popu-
lar Consul General.
London. March IL.


,nondents have been kept in the background
,,5 have not been allowed either to know what
.ras eoinr on or to have free use OF the wires.
nnIv a few OF them remained on the ground TO
vvstness the ten days battle the Hun and the
Eha. and what could they have seen when the
fighting was conducted along front OF seventy
-,iIesq These who have already returned are
.be authors OF books on the campaign, but not
one Of these volumes. thoughtfully or brightly
ss Il may have been written, is much more than
q record Of personal experiences and observa-
ton limited in scope. without doubt the war
correspondent has had his day. and viii be with
ont employment In future campaigns. The
wires are required for exclusively military pur-
poses and he is IN the way while he is hang
ing about headquarters, where he may find out
secrets which the staff consider It dangerous to
share with the outside world. He cannot send
10 HIS newspaper thrilling accounts OF battles or
well Informed comments on strategy and tao
tics; and when his employers have made lavish
expenditure Of money without receiving an ad-
ecuate return for their enterprise he writes for
his publisher a compilation Of his diaries and
impressions, which is poor substitute for mill
tary history. The advantages OF secrecy and
silence have been so obvious In the Japanese
campaign that the fate OF newspaper corre-
spondents may be regarded as sealed for future
front in another campaign, and publishers will
have 10 make other arrangements for war
Books
The governments have been represented In the
Far East by military and naval attaches
charged with the responsibility Of reporting
upon the campaign The American government
has had at least half dozen experts, military,
medical and naval. at the seat Of war; the Brit
Ssh fighting services have been equally well rep
Ha-rr
ciaIists for the use Of the German. French. Ital-
fan and Austrian armies. The material for
military history viii be in the notebooks of
these special attaches; but the etiquette Of the
service requires them TO submit colorless ac-
counts which will not cause offence when pub
ushed and the writers do not escape official
censorship, their reports being edited an& re-
yised in the War Offices. Moltke laid the foun-
dations OF his military reputation when. as a
Prussian captain, he was attached to the head
quarters staff Of the Russian army and served
With It during the campaign OF 1S28-'29 against
Turkey His report on the Russian operations
contained military criticism worthy Of the
future field marshal who was to lead the Ger
man armies to victory. Many books were writ
ten about the Russian-Turkish campaign Of
1S7T-7S brit If was reserved for en- American
staff officer ! write the best critical account OF
the war, ane. ne was enabled to do it because he
was allowed to go TO St. Petersburg, where he
could have access to the official reports The
only trustworthy history Of the Prussian-Aus-
trian campaign of 1866 compiled by Ger
man officers under Noltke's direction. library
Of correspondents books was made up after the
war IN South Africa, but military students con-
sider the official report Of the German staff Off
Ger the most impartial and valuable summary of
the campaign. If the foreign officers at the
Russian and japanese headquarters in Man
ehIria do their work scientifically and their re-
ports are not unduly edited, there will be at
least the raw material for a history Of
memorable war If the modern method Of
directing armies in the field precludes the pres
ence OF war correspondents. the services of for
eign staff officers VIII become indispensable as
critics, commentators and historians.
Consul General Evans's retirement from office
is sincerely regretted by Americans. who have
come to regard him as thoroughly representa-
tive man and an ideal head Of the consular ser
vice IN the United Kingdom. Never has the
business Of that important Office been dispatched
more Systematically than during his term. and
merchants who have had daily intercourse with
him have had no cause for complaint Of delay
ineficiency or inattention. business man him
self he has known how to conduct his office
with precision and orderliness; and whenever
INQUIRIES have been made respecting the Gus
information in an authoritative way. He has
been at once a tariff expert and a natural de-
fective with a talent for exposing impostors and
unraveIling mysteries. Ordinarily. American
consuls grunble when they receive letters from
correspondents in every State Of the Union ask
ing for information about everything under the
sun and they make short work OF the beggars,
adventurers and inpostors darkening their
doors. Consul General Evans has not known
the convenience of a waste basket in effecting
E rapid clearance Of a desk. He has answered
letters with painstaking care, and has been un-
willing to dismiss even trivial inquiries without
a courteous acknowledgment. He has shown
great skill in detective work and has thoroughly
enjoyed hunting down a2venturers who were
imposing upon the creduliLy q merchants and
Americans. Frank In his manner. cordial in
welcoming all callers and shrewd in his judg-
7rent Of men, he has been a keen and efficient
official who viii be missed in st. Heien's Place.
He has been as popular with Englishmen as with
Americans, and his impending departure is re-
Rretted on every side.
The consular reports of the American service
have gained a reputation for enterprise and
thoroughness throughout Europe. Many Of these
commercial reviews and industrial studies are
the work of trained journalists. who have en-
tered the service with habits Of close observation
end a good literary style. Occasionally the OBJ
lection IS raised by American merchants abroad
that the consuls tell supernuous truth and do
more harm than good. Experience has warned
these critics that opposition is excited whenever
American manufacturers are introduced too
llosiIy IN foreign markets. and that the less that
IS said about these triumphs OF Yankee compe-
titon the better st VIII be for the trade. Some