New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1906-01-07
King Leopold Seems To Be the Verge of Actual
Strife England

and powerfully portrayed in all it's horror in
his book relating his quest and relief of Emin
Pacha Such q measure as this on the part of
the Anglo Egyptian authorities is equivalent to
an act of war. 1t is certainly incompatible with
the normal relations of two powers professedly
friendly. and inasmuch it has for its avowed
object the rendering of the Lado Enclave and
the Bahr-el-GhazaI province untenable by
King Leopold's representatives. it only be
construed in the light of utimatum.
For the latter King Leopold has been prepar-
ing for some time past. 1t is perfectly clear that
he does not propose to permit himself TO be
ousted from the situation which he has been al
lowed to assume on the western banks of the
Upper Nile and according to trustworthy adj
vices received from the Anglo Egyptian authori-
ties in the SOudan ana confirmed from Brussels
1t would seem that in the Lado Encave alone he
had assembled a force Of something like ten
thousand seasoned troops, well provisioned and
splenddly equipped while scattered in every di-
rection along the banks of the Nile and its I'm
portant tributaries strong hexagonal shaped
forts, armed not alone with Maxims, but also
with Nordenfeldt guns and ordnance Of char
acter to admit Of stubborn defence. That King
Leopold does not expect to fight alone, and de
ponds upon support. first of all moral, and then
material from Germany is shown by the con-
cessions which he has made in connection with
tie rectifcaton of the frontiers between the
Tsuton possessions in Africa and the Congo
Free State which are coterminOus for q con-
siderable distance Whether or not these hopes
Of Leopold are destined to be realized remains to
be seen. Germany's trade with Great Britain
is Of 100 colossal a character TO admit Of war
being lightly undertaken, which would have the
effect of bringing to a standstill the commerce
between these two powerful nations, and ruin
ing thousands Of their respective industries.
This is a fact which it is we'll TO always bear in
mind III connection with the Anglo-German war
scarcs which have been so frequent in the last
twelve months But still King Leopolds Atrl-
can deals with he German government would
furnish the latter with still stronger
ground for making its voice heard in any aTmed
conflict between Great Britain and the ruler
of the Congo Free State than it could claim
for Intervening in Morocco,
Ii does not altogether bode well for the pros
meets of any peaceful settlement between Leo
pold and England the subject of their din :
ferences in Central Africa that Lord Lans-
downe's Younger brother. Lord Edmond Fitz-
maurice who has Just been elevated to the
peerage. should have become the Under Secre-
1arv OF State for Foreign Affairs in tho new
Liberal administration and it's representative
in the House of Lords. For he has never made
anv secret of his distrust of Leopold, and in his
recently issued memoir of the late Lord Gran
zille not only ridicuIes the Belgian monarch's
pretentions 10 philanthropy III connection with
his Congo Free State enterprise. but likewise