The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1915-06-03

y
magne and myself have founded great
empires: but on what did these creations
of our genius depend? Upon force. Jesus
alone founded his empire on love, and to
this very day millions would die for
him." Who would have died for Ma
poleon, tie distinguished prisoner at St.
Helena?
Healthy egotism, which at this dis
lance seems more like sweled head,
since the closing day of last July has
made millions of desolate home, millions
of cripples, and destroyed billions of
treasure; which, had it been invested in
the arts of peace in the interest of the
masses, might have FASTENED millennium
on earth. On the contrary it has thrown
to the wind the sanctity of treaties in
the interest of healthy egotism, and in
the same interest has crushed weaker
neighbor, throwing innocent non-com-
batants, old men, women and children, into
the van to screen soldiers in action, rain
ed terror from the sky on innocent nom
combatants, routed Neptune from his
ocean bed to make room for discharging
torpedoes at unarmed ships of commerce
| and of travel, regardless of nationality,
hostile or neutral 1t looks as though
this healthy egotism, with its disdain
for "a scrap of paper" was going to be
catching in distant Asia. Healthy ego
tism has turned back the hand on the
dial of ages, and treated the world with
the barbarisms of thousand years ago,
dispensing them with the refined, the
cultured crueltes of modern science:
and for all this wreckage and outrage
we ask: Is there no retribution? We
calmly answer, yes. The judgment of
high heaven will surely find its expression
in the judgment of the world. 1t may
seem slow coming, but it is sure coming.
The world is large, and not all of its
brain, not to say heart, is in one race.
This order to get out of the way, for l
am coming, will sooner or later encount-
er the Illimitable; and not absolutism,
but government of and for and by the
people will prevail. 1t is in the order Of
Providence, which is above world en-
pires. The man, the government, the
power, that puts itself in line with that
trend, and only that, will stand fair in
the light of the ages. In that line Abra-
ham Lincoln lived and acted: and his
name and memory have become immor-
tai.
For encourage ment along this line, let
US compare the ages of the present
forms of the governments of the world.
| we WOulu dlIHFSG COIlJIlSllCS Will tI0
United States of America as the young
est of the great powers, but indeed it is
the oldest. Our boundaries have chang
ed, and we have gone through civil war,
but we are ruled today as we were ruled
in 1885, No other nation in the western
hemisphere can claim such distinction.
The government of Great Britain dates
from 1882, the year of the passage of
the first reform bill The changes in the
form of the British government, striking
as they have been in line with universal
sovereignty, the rule of the people, have
no parallel, however, with the remaking
of the powers on the continent of Eu-
rope. To the fifteen years between 1860
and 1875 date the existing establishments
of France, Germany, Austro- Hungary
and Italy. Republican France and I'M
perial Germany are of the same age.
The Hapsburgs have ruled since 1924,
but Francis Joseph has ruled Austro-
Hungary on the present basis of organ
lied and sanctioned government since
1867 Limited Italy" proclaimed its
kingdom in 1861, and wrestling lVenetia
from Austria in 1866, established its
present European boundaries.
The ancient kingdom of Spain became
a constitutional monarchy in the opening
days of the nineteenth century: more re-
markable, Cor two years she became
republic. and her present kingdom dates
from 1875. The kingdom of the Neither
lands dates from 1878, when the congress
of Vienna granted it independence, with
the house of Orange for sovereigns.
Belgium began its national existence in
1880. Sweden, as kingdom, dates from
the congress of Vienna, but the separa-
ton of Norway from it, and the found
ing of the independent kingdom of Nor
way dates from 1905. Of European
states Switzerland is old. Her small but
sturdy Alpine states formed loose fed
GRAFTON in 1903, and new federation,
modelled after the United States of
America, in 1848 A revision of her
constitution gave greater power to her
central government in 1874. Servia, the
oldest Of the Balkan states, broke away
from the domination of Turkey and be-
came an independent kingdom in 1868,
and a constitutional kingdom IN 1889;
Greece has been an independent kingdom
since 1882; Roumania since 1862; Bull
garia since 1885; Montenegro since 1878,
with constitution since 1905. The Re.
public of Portugal dates from 1910; Tur-
China is a republic organized but two
| JSaAo okos Inv SAhRAAN VI VAPt~AA Az A'S
older than that of Germany. Russia has
changed but little in form of govern
ment since Ivan the Terrible threw off
the Tartar yoke in 1854, till in 1905 she
adopted a constitution and organized
parliament. All of these powers have
gravitatsd to or towards democratic or
popular representative forms Of govern
ment, with one notable exception. Ger
many, federation of states, with leg
islative bodies, in the first half of the
nineteenth century, under the empire of
William and Bismarck, has fallen under
Prussian military and absolute rule,
though the Reistaag pretends to do bust
ness.
Dominating Austro- Hungary and Tur-
key, so that they might reasonably pray
for defeat rather than victory in their
late-sprung cause in arms, she deties the
rest of Europe, and virtually challenges
the world, asserting her preeminence.
If perchapce she bites or burns her own