Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1905-01-26
WASHINGTON LETTER.
from our Regular Correspondent.)
Washington, Jan. Dist, 1905.

Washington, Jan. 2lst, 100.
Editor Press
The message of President Roose-
welt to Congress, suggesting means
to promote foreign trade is in line
with his well-known views regard
ing the consular service. The
next four years will doubtless wit
ness such a strengthening and
bracing up in this service as has
never before been known. The
consular service of the United
States is one OF the weakest, if not
the very weakest, branches of our
civil service The unfit men who
have been sent abroad to repre-
sent us in commercial and semi
diplomatic capacity are perhaps
the worst ever sent out by any gov
ernment for that purpose. A ma
joritv of them have not known
even how to speak the language of
the country to which they were ac-
credited. A consul sent to Cadiz,
Spain, few years ago, was not in
the habit of wearing a collar in
this country and considered it ef-
Terminate and unAmerican to wear
one. He chewed tobacco inces-
sanity and was one of the most
slovenly slipshod men of his class.
Doubtless there is much truth in
Burns lines "a mans a man for
a. that but was not the man that
was under consideration, it was
the consul-thc person who repre-
sented us in an alien country
among people who had been edu-
Gated for ages to consider dress,
bearing and the graces the end
and aim of life and who measured
and judged our country by our re-
preventative. This Consul to the
old and aristocratic port of Cadiz
was doubtless an extreme type, but
we have many Consuls abroad who
are better only in degree. They
have been appointed without re-
gard to fitness-but on account of
kinship or because Of some political
service rendered. They have
never travelled and it is rare that
they know the language of the
country to which they are sent,
when it is considered that these
Consuls of ours, have to compete
with debonair educated and poly
glot consuls that England and Ger
many send abroad we have before
us the reason why those countries
take trade away from us in South
America, Mexico, Cuba and other
lands.
We do not pay our foreign am
bassadors or ministers abroad as
much as other countries, or as
much as ministers from these coun-
tries accredited to the United
States but recent administrations
have been taking advantage of the
fact that these places are eagerly
desired by rich men and Presidents
Cleveland, Mckinley and Presi-
dent Roosevelt have all favored the
policy of giving our multi-million-
aires a chance to die poor by APP
pointing them ambassadors.
Mr.. Whitelaw Reid has been in
Washington for ten days, enter
tanned by Capt. Cowles whose wife
is a sister Of President Roosevelt
Capt Cowles was formerly an at
tachc of the American ambassy in
London. Mr.. Reid it is we'll
known, is to be appointed an am
bassador to England. He was
formerly ambassador to France.
He has already secured Brooke
House, Park Lane, London, as a
residence. The property is a
splendid one and owned by Lord
Tweedmouth. 1t is the same
house which Mr.. Reid occupied for
a month when he was accredited
as special American envoy at the
coronation of King Edward.