Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1908-11-18
GERsl.NNY's AWAKENING.

the people for Il government under con
siitutionaI safeguards Instead OF i'm
pcrial dicta Tho struggle has beef
going on ever since the Accession to tn
throne OF the present ruler. The oil
Emperor never thought Of taking a stel
without consultation with the Chancei
Tor, but one OF the very first efforts o
the young ruler was to carry on for
eign negotiations behind the back O
Bismarck When the old Chancellor ant
empire builder resented this, he wa!
simply dismissed in disgrace and .
chancellor was appointed who was will.
Ing TO be the servant OF tho Emperor
Times have changed. however, and the
Emperor has finally, been made to reac
the signs of the times CORRECTLY, and
from now on the imperial policies VIII
be subjected to the scrutiny of tho rep
resentatiYes of the people. The En-
Earor was wise in captivating. There
was in fact. no other way out of trou-
BILE and humiliation.
The recent viola9t outbreak IN the
German Reichstag shows that the press
and the people, while content with an
excessive imperialism as long as It
seems beneficial to the country as a
whole, are prepared to resent 1t when
its effects are regarded as detrimental.
The press dispatches show that de-
termined fight Is begun in the Retchstag
TO undermine the personal Influence and
power of Emperor William: that his
majesty and his policies are denounced
by members of all parties, and he Is
left without support; that Chancellor
Won Buelow declares he cannot retain
office unless tho Kaiser adopts differ
Z ent policy; that a Socialist speaker de-
clares Emperor William should be tried
for treason: that general fear
is expressed that the Kaiser's
q declaration concerning the Boer
war may precipitate trouble with
other nations; that parliament repudi-
ates statements of the crown and de-
plores the Kaiser's freedom of speech
and that Chancellor Won BueloW was
hooted and jeered by crowds as he
left the Reichstag.
These are extraordinary occurrences
for. modern Germany. While in an
Z Client times the individual Teuton was
the freest and most democratic In
. institutions of all men, the supposed
benefits from absolute unity have kept
the German people very quiet in re-
cent years about constitutional and
individual rights.
The present attitude Of the German
people seems less for the purpose OF
rebuking the Kaiser than it does for
asserting the civic right Of an enlight-
ened people, living under a form OF
government, that, despite many excel
lent traits, seems to fail in relation to
the greatest of all excellencies-the re-
sponsibility to the people of those who
are clothed with power.
At present the German opinion seems
to hold that the ministry should be
responsible to the national congress, the
Reichstag, instead of to the Emperor.
This is a great and significant break
with the -honored doctrine Of the
divine right of kings" which was
universally believed to be very strong
~ entrenched in Germanys habits of
thought
The long submission of the Germans
to the ascendency of the reigning SOW
ereign has been to Americans and Eng
lishmen a sort of perennial wonder. But
1t was originally brought about by the
shrewd diplomacy of Bismarck II
was his custom says the New York
Post. "to refer to his old master; and
he lost no occasion to cxalt the I'M
I,..,
a convenient fiction for the Iron Chan
cellor. AS between himself and the
aged Emperor, he knew perfectly well
which was master. In all important
matters, William 7 did as he was bid
by Bismarck. II was the Minister,
not the King, who ventured on the poll
cy of creating the Prussian army with
out the consent of the Parliament; it
was Bismarck who dictated the terms
of peace with Austria much against the
royal will; it was he who altered Will
'iam's Ems dispatch SO as to make
war with France inevitable: and 1t was
Bismarck who, as Chancellor of the
Empire. imposed his policies upon the
Emperor, under the guise OF being an
obsenuious servant"
Since Bismarcll's day, however, the
fact that no such national crisis has
existed as lnenaced the German ma
ton Their that. perhaps, no other such
chancellor has arisen to WELD We'll that
absolute power which the aged Emperor
appeared to WELD: and that the tact
Of the present Emperor does not seem
sufficient to enable hin. successfully to
WELD the vast power which he seems
TO have inherted-ail these considera-
tions have combined 10 prepare the ma
ton for taking the great step which
viii result in a ministry RESPONSIBLE to
the Reichstag and not TO the Kaiser.
y The En1peror's own ideas OF his office,
as expressed eleven years ago at the
dedication OF the monument TO William
/ at Coblentz. were that kingship in
Volved responsibility to the Creator
alone''-a responsibility from which no
mere man, no chancellor or minister.
no popular parliament, no people. can
absolye the ruler and prince"
OF PUBLIC INTEREST.
~ 80