Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-04-01
CREATOR OF THE
GERMAN EMPIRE
Bismarck Was Born One Hundred
Years Ago Today-His Work for
Social Legislation" - Gentle
Traits of the Iron Chancellor.
BY ROBERT HILDRETH

GERMAN Empire, although at that time. oil
course, he did not have so much of a name.
THE pilot" was dropped by the Emperor
William II in 1890 He died in 1898 The
creator of the empire and engineer Of the
Triple Alliance, he was, for a quarter of a
century the most important figure in Euro
pean affairs True it is that "the history of
the world is the biography of great men,
Bismarck, "thc man of blood and iron"
dsliked war, yet he saw it as an indlspensa-
BILE means to an end. Thrice he deliberately
brought on war for the attainment of that
end. Denmark, Austria and France estab-
lishcd the German Empire, and then the
Chancellors policy and task was peace and
the development of a social and industrial
order which should insure German indie
pendence and supremacy among the
| tions. He kept the peace of Europe-if not
for Europes sake, then for Germanys. He
| preached: I'VE Germans fear God and
| naught beside" and thus, has been
marked, "he read into German history his
own character"
A Fisherman in Politics
His physical qualities combined to give
him Titanic force. His was huge body
| and his brain on post-mortem examination
| was found to be greater than that of any
| known contemporary His intellectual quail
| ties, too, were massive, though his insight
and foresight were acute Many of his po-
litical acts have been called cruel and ruth
less. In his utterances he was often start
lingly, even brutally, frank. He was always
courageous. Never did statesman more thor
oughly dsdain falsehood He himself
proudly declared Lying I have never
learned, not even as a diplomat" His op-
portunsm mixture of caution with
boldness. He said: "I began very early to
be n hunter and fisher, and in both pur-
suits, waiting for the right moment is the
rule. which have applied to politics."
Triumphant though his dealings usually
were with men and nations, he knew defeat
in one notable instance at the hands of EN-
peror William I. to whom he was devotedly
attached. Within decade after the Franco
Prussan War of 1SI0-71 there would have
been another if Bismarck had had his way.
Bismarck, firmly believing in monarchcal
government, promoted French republicansm
by whatever means he could. He frankly
acknowledged that he did this in order to
keep France weak divided between fac
tions and unfit for war. The wonderful re-
Covery of France from her reverses, the ease
with which she paid the enormous indem-
nifty, the skill and efficiency with which she
remodeled and increased her army. all these
facts, Joined with the evidences of French
desire for revenge, caused him to think that
after all France might in future be able to
do some mischief to the new Germany.
Europe speedily became convinced that Bis
marcli was planning another war to cripple
France. No ruler of a European State was
more earnestly opposed to this scheme than |
Emperor William himself William and his
nephew, Alexander II of Russia, reached an |
agreement in conference which circumvented |
the eager Chancellor, who yielded in anger |
1t was the greatest check he ever received |
in his long career.
Bismarcks popular fame rests in consid-
cradle part upon his domination of the |
Congress of Berlin the most important
European conference since the Congress of |
Vienna, which closed the Napoleonc wars
In that body sat the most eminent states
men of the time and the German Chancellor
was both its president and it's master spirit.
out of that event of 1873, among other con-
sequences grew the Triple Alliance-Ger-
many Austria and Italy.
Service to American Union
From an extreme absolutst Bismarck be-
came tolerant of democratic institutions and
beliefs. In the period of this development a
strong influence was eXerted on his mind by
George Bancroft, then the American Minis
ter at Berlin. 1t is interesting to Americans,
also, that history records that while Ger
many in strong and effective sympathy
with the American Union during the Civil
War the Prussian reactionaries We're Bit
terly against u.s. they longed for the down
fall and disgrace of American republican,
ism; they glored in the anti-American
of Gladstone and Carlyle; they
besought the King to recognize the South
ern Confederacy-but all this Bismarck
brought to naught-he felt that no alliance
Germany and a nation based on
slavery was possible"
One result of his conservatism was mo-
mentous. To check the growing power of
the Socialists he made many features of
their program his own and laid the founda-
tion of the State socialism of the present
The motive of repression, how
ever. was not all The "laissez-faire"
theories to which he had once subscribed be-
came more and more offensive. The argu-
ments OF the Socialists for the centraliza-
tion OF all power in the State took fresh hold
on him. So his governmental humanitarian
ism was paternalistic.
He urged and secured the adoption OF the
most daring socialistie measure which had
then been adopted by any modern nation.
State insurance for worklngmen
was one OF the great achievements of Bis
marck. Like Gaul 1t was divided into three
parts insurance against sickness, accident
insurance and old age pensions Thus the
great statesmans name is linked impor-
tantly with social legislation" From his
conception of the States duty TO the work
Ingmen have arisen other forms of protec-
Iion. notably the system of labor exchanges.
Parable of the Flannel Shirt
In speech in the Rechstag in 1884 Bis.
marck said: Give the worlingman a right
10 work as long as he has health, assure him
fs ssHalr - I