TaÌˆgliche Omaha tribuÌˆne. [volume] (Omaha, Nebr.) 1912-1926, 1917-06-26
The "Autocracy" as it appeared t,
E~uglishmen before the war. .

80 SEA ~ &*-NhNA 80 G
publication drought out in America
by the Grolier Society contains an
article dealing with the German
autocracy" one hears and reads so.
much about nowadays. It vas writ
ten by Charles Lowe, NJ. A., an Eng
lsh Historian. The following is an
extract Of the article:
at cannot be too emphatically de-
clared that William II. is not an alb
solute irresponsible ruler, like, for
example, Nicholas II. Of Russia. The
best way Of realizing his character
as a sovereign is to remember that
the German Empire is but the Eu-
ropean analogue Of the United States
Of America, a confederation of
twenty-five sovereign states-of which
three, the Free Cities Of Hamburg,
Lubbock, and Bremen, are republics
under the title of "Deutsches
Reich, with the King OF Prussia, ex-
o%ficio, as its perpetual executive
chief or president. Just as each
State in the American Union enjoys
its own legislature for the transac-
ton Of purely state affairs, so a
similar system prevails in Germany,
where each federal state has its own
bicameral diet, or Landtag, for legis-
lation on affairs not reserved for the
Reichstag or Imperial Parliament.
The Kings Of Saxony, Bavaria. and
Wuerttemberg, and the Grand Dukes
and Dukes Of the other federal
states are just as much sovereign in
their own territories-just as much
"kings in their own castles" so to
speak-as the King Of Prussia, with
the title German Emperor is in his
own special Hohenzollern monarchy.
The depth Of popular ignorance on
this head in England was revealed
when the Duke of Edinburgh sue
ceeded to the throne of Saxony-Co-
burg-Gotha, by the death Of his
uncle, and when he was written of
as having now "taken an oath Of
allegiance to the German Emperor,
ais if he had become his imperial
nephew's yassal.
Con the contrary, the Duke be-
came just as much Of an independent
sovereign in Germany as the King of
Prussia himself, who is only "primus
inter pares" among his fellow soyer-
eigns in the Reich. Outside Of his
own particular kingdom of Prussia,
William H., as German Kaiser, has
no more power of interference in the
civil affairs, say, of Saxony, Bavaria,
or Baden, than the Khan of Tartary.
Even in the Free Cities Of Hamburg,
Lubbock, and Bremen, the emperor
cannot step in to exercise the pre-
negative Of mercy, one Of the sym
bols Of sovereignty.
"To talk about the Kaiser as a
despot, an autocrat, an absolute
ruler, an irresponsible monarch, is to
talk nonsense. The truth is that
both as King of Prussia and as Ger
man Emperor William II. is a con-
s~titutional sovereign-if Of a peculiar
kind. When Englishmen speak Of
constitutional" government they
mean government by party, whereas
the German conception Of the same
thing is government according to q
written constitution, whether it in
cludes party see-saw or not. The
trouble with England's GLORIOUS con
stitution" is that is is in the nature
of a "lex non scripta", so that they
never really know where they are
whereas, the Germans always enjoy
the immense advantage OF knowing
so that in cases Of dubiety or dis
pute they simply have to turn to the
fredericksburg (constituion Of
the empire). And the same remark
applies to the Prussian constitution
the outcome of the revolution of '48
where the respective powers o.
crown and crowd were very carefully
defined; though, on the whole, the
balance of power is in favor Of the
king in his right Of absolute veto
"But as Kaiser he has no such
right, so that in this and some othel
respects, he is not so powerful as th'
President Of the United States. The
Legislative body Of the empire ma!
be said to consist Of two Chambers
the Reichstag, or National Assembly
representing the German people ant
r~eturnable by manhood suffrage; ant
the Bundesrat, or Federal Council
representing the Federal Sovereign
and Free Cities Of the Fatherland
Each Of these Chambers has Co
ordinate and co-equal powers. Tit
assent Of both is essential to the pas
sage Of an imperial law, and an.
Bill would be blocked by the veto o.
either. Apart from these two bodiei
the Kaiser himself, as President o.