The Washington herald., 1914-03-15

, the good time when battle fIass shah
be furled and war drums heat no NOR.
peace, the first that . war-worn world
had known since moEarChical EUroTe
combined against the French Revolution
eight years before. Austria WAS ready
TO lay down her arms at NapoIeon's
feet. but her ally. Great Britain. whose
battlefield was the sea. had not telt the
heavy hand "f the cOnqueror II she
gave him peace on the water he would
be able TO re-enforCe his army in Egypt
and keep his foothold in the East
The British, therefore, sent the Aus
trians an extra subsidy for the continu-
ance Of the campaign against French in
Germany. which. however. was brought
to disastrous end by Gen. Moreau in a
great French victory at Hohenlinden in
Napoleon now showed hardly less skill
IN the game OF diplomacy than in the
game OF war.
He made his moves like an adept chess
man. He brought Austria to harder terms
than he had imposed at Campo Formio
two years before. closed an ugly quarrel
with Spain for Louisiana and promoted
feud between Russia and the Baltic
powers against Great Britain, which
broke out into. a naval war eliminating
in the Battle of Copenhagen
The British, with a population of IT,
ctVO found themselves abandoned and
alone in the long struggle with France.
which now numbered 100000 people.
Since the war began in 179e. the expendi-
lures Of Great Britain had risen from
sloeooo.eo a year TO SSO0.0oooo0, the in
come tax had been raised to 10 per cent
and the national debt stood at s., 10000. 600
Beneath those accumulated burdens
England welcomed the relief that peace
would bring. although looking upon IL
as hardly more than a brief truce. an
experimental peace. as her statesmen de-
scribed II. She did not yield until the
French had lost Egypt and until she
herself had little to lose from a breath
ing spell
But it was no more than a postpone
ment of the inevitable day OF reckon
frontiers of France. only to have them
rolled back by Jealous neiShbors under
Louis XIV. When the revolution was as
sailed by foreign coalitions, the repub-
French soil and enlarged the bOunda ries
and influence OF France more in six years
sixty. Il was certain that this immense
preDonderahce of France could not be
maintained by Napoleon without fighting
all Europe sooner or later. Nor could he
yield an inch of ground without risk Of
being driven from power at home.
The treaty between England and
France. which was signed at Amiens by
Lord CORVALLIS, of Yorktown memory.
and by Joseph Bonaparte. enabled Napo-
leon. however, to sheathe his sword for a
time and to exchange the camp of the
soldier for the council OF the statesman
4 Giant Among Kings.
An extraordinary condition of affairs
among the heads of the other principal
States of Europe gave Napoleon a great
advantage. Besides France there We're
five important powers in that day, and
three of them were ruled by monarchs
with unbalanced minds, while the rulers
of the remaining two were crowned
mediocritieS.
For a month at a time the progress Of
his insanity left George III incapable or
holding communication with the British
ministry. Charles w, King Of Spain
passed half his day in his workshop and
stables dressed in a laborer's blouse
while the remaining half ne huntedg in
the forest with hundreds OF horses and
servants, abandoning the government of
his kingdom to Godoy, the paramour of
his Queen. Paul. the Car of Russia was
prey to eccentricities and violent out
bursts that amounted to madness The
throne of Prussia was occupied by "a
weakling, Frederick William III, while
Francis ], of Austria. although a man
of strong character, was narrow
minded monarch bound to a dead past
Napoleon stalked into the company of
these royal incompetents a giant. He
fiattered the passions OF the Car and
bore himself toward the reigning family
in Spain as IL he had been appointed by
a probate court to be their guardian,
while the Prussian King yielded to his
mastery.
The republic saw its elected chief the
oyerlord OF royal Europe.
Copyright, 1914. by James Morgaa.)