| Show THE GERMAN ADVANCE X THE THE TARIFF AS A FACTOR BY FREDERIC J J. J HASKIN I-f I as 88 wa was waa the political genius PREAT I of Bismarck he would not have I G T bo been n able to unite Germany Into J J a compact imperial state had it not been for the tariff The customs customs cus cus- toms union or 01 formed between be between be be- tween 1828 and 1836 made Prussia the center conter of oC commercial Germany by content consent consent con con- sent tent o of all the Germ Ger- Ger m a Do n states out Austria long before any of or the non non- R states ate would have toler tolerated a suggestion i- i r l of oC Prussian political political L f cal The I customs parliament or z o 0 1 11 I p I which m mot t In Berlin Ber lin in for I Its Immediate ato purpose purpose pur pur- pose the tho revision of WI the treaties constituting const k Asi the tho zolle rein It was composed com posed of oC two chambers chambers cham cham- bers the upper one oner R r I e pre presenting the tho several se states and Frederic HasKIn the lower composed of deputies chosen by universal suffrage e of ot the people It was the first national assembly in Germany which recognized both the principle of oC state sovereignty and the doctrine of oC popular control of government govern govern- ment meat and was modeled frankly on the lines of the American congress In It was represented all o of the states ex except ox ox- Austria and all aU of or the tho German people peo- peo plo pic except the Austrian It did revise the constitution of the but It also did much more It pro proved to tho the south Germans that their commercial interests were too much In common with those of r th the north German German Ger Ger- man c to permit further po political political po- po differences It furnished an object object ob ob- ob- ob lesson Jesson in the tho practical workings of ofa a a. national nation a parliament The ment resulted In tho the Imperial constitution tion of the German empire Just as the Annapolis convention on interstate commerce commerce com corn merce resulted In the constitution of ot the United States of America It n was as tariff reform that forged the chain which for the tl first t time timo bound up the material interests of oC all Germans outside 0 of Austria as those of oC ono one na na- na tion When that economic union was accomplished nothing reT remained for BIsmarck Bismarck Bismarck Bis BIs- marck to do but to provide the tho dramatic situation which would appeal to the patriotic imagination of ot the people to bring about political union That prince of oC stage managers t two o years later made some sonic erasures In a telegram sent out from rom Ems Eras tho the theatric situation he be had planned resulted the became an empire and the tho an Imperial legislature A certain German Gennan publicist Karl Marx by name developed the theol theory of ot economic eConomic eco ceo determinism In furthering his propaganda of socialism It hardly c. c can ln be said that he discovered the tho fact that the tho bread and buttes question was as atthe atthe at atthe the bottom of oC all great political and even eren religious upheavals There Is evidence evidence evi evi- dence deuce to show that Confucius and King Solomon subscribed to this theory some som years rears before borore there was a n Germany Gennan to produce a Karl Marx But It was not Confucius in his philosophy nor Solomon Solomon Solo Soo- mon In his wisdom nor yet Karl Marx in his dreaming who ho was first to apply to the problems of practical governmental o administration the knowledge of ot the fact act that all mankind Is divided into two political po po- parties one parties one hungry and naked and the other filled and clothed Bismarck was a n Junker junker-a junker a born aris aria He Ho ed that the princes of oC earth with their aristocratic retainers should rule the tho people of earth Ho He never was a d democrat and he never was able to trust the people to do anything wisely wIsch even in their own behalf He Ho tolerated some forms of democratic government gov gov- nt because he had to do 80 so but he sought always to control the masses bv liv appealing to their imagination which they possessed pos In abundance nce rather than to their r reason ason which believed believed be be- be they did not have Bismarck probably did not believe e inthe in inthe I Ithe the divine right of kings s. s but ho he did be be- be lieve that it was bettor both for princes and people to leave the control contra of government government gov Jov- In the tile hands of the princes Believing this he ho examined Into the history of the past post and consulted the tho spirit of oC the age the age the Zeitgeist Zeitgeist Zeitgeist-to to to discover discover dis dis- cover how tho the rule of princes might aught best befit he guaranteed In perI perpetuity lIe Ho found that th princes ah a always s 's must fear feRr two things the things the greed of other and the hun hunger pr of the people Ho He andall and nd all nil his fellow Germans were suffering under un un- der cler the accumulated burdens bUrden of a n. thousand thousand thou thou- sand oars ears of or Will war among their princes The Zeitgeist told him that the most splendid 1 princely throne In Europe ha had 1 tottered and fallen when th the Paris mob cried in vain for bread Ho had seen reen his hia own people peo when he was a bo boy riv th their lr rulers because they had no food f He had heArd the infuriated 1 cries of the workmen in En England Vh when the they overthrew o the th corn orn laws humiliated tho British aristocrat Other men of hl his time also fiR saw and hoard heard tIie things but only Bismarck attempted a rational remedy The The- TheIron Iron chancellor In complete control control con con- of Prussian politics and the trustee of the royal rights rights rights' of oC the tho princely line lino of rn resolved to remove tho dangers threatening tho the Prussian throne thron and the tho German nation He bound the rival princes and of Germany Ger many in golden chain organizing a German prince trust with the king of Prussia as the tho president dent and himself as chairman of oC the board Ho took In all the other German Ger Ger- man states as subsidiary corporations and guaranteed to their princes divi l sufficiently largo large to inhibit the possibility possibility pos pos- of an trust anti movement And then bolder than any uny man who had preceded ded him in any nation or in an any ago age he lie resolved to abolish hunger lie He believed that tho the same skill and determination de do- termination which had resulted in the tho complete amalgamation of or every ory Prussian Prussian Pros sian energy in In the Prussian army could be used to compel the creation of a a. great wealth producing m machine which would be as effective e In abolishing abolishing- poverty po as was the tho Pruss Prussian Ian army in fn destroying political enemies The spirit of the Prussian arm army organ organ- which was the spirit in Bis- Bis mareks marek's statecraft was the extinction of the tho individual will in the tho general will I Bismarck thought of oC the German people I as h he thought of the privates In the thc Pru Prussian army as army as mere parts of a ma ma- chine His error was as that he believed that tho the hun hunger er and cold of the people could be satisfied merely with food and raiment He did not know that men al always al- al W ways S 'S will be hungry that when they are arc filled with bread and meat they become hungry for or other things This was BIsmarck's Bismarck's Bismarck's Bis BIs- marcks marck's fatal error and In It is to be found the explanation for the discontent among tho the prosperous German masses of ot toda today In the half century Intervening be tween the do downfall of ot Napoleon apoleon and the advent ent of oC Bismarck Great Britain had enjoyed practically th the tho sole use of the steamship the railway and the great grent number of newly Invented mechanical de devices devices de de- vices for or manufacturing Germany had been torn with the petty quarrels resultIng resultIng resulting result- result Ing from disunion France was occupied with politics never knowing knowing- at sunset whether the dawn would find it Jt kingdom empire or or republic Tho The United States was held back tack by the great struggle over slavery and tho the natural difficulties of pioneering Great Britain had discovered that th the age of ot machines made of Ir iron n nand and brass and steel driven by steam also was as to be bo the ago age of machines made 1 of flesh and bone driven b by brains The Tho English machine sot ot up on this model was wasa a trade machine It extended all over tho the world and it brought to its controllers controllers control control- lers a n steadily flowing stream of ot gold But Its engineers who were ere wise enough to care caro assiduously for their machines of ot iron and steel and brass did not deem It necessary to devote devoto similar attention to their machines of ot fic flesh h and bone That was the British mistake About the time that Bismarck began to set his economic machinery in motion the Americans recovered from civil war be began an to take advantage of the possibilities possibilities of this newly found force of or or or- But t they ey applied it only to mone money making and not to mone money saving say sav ing They Instituted their machines in banking houses and carefully excluded them from the tho council cham chambers rs of state Bismarck did all that the British had done h he did all aU that the Americans were doing and then ho he did much more He developed around the Imperial throne of Germany a a. great m machine having haying four reciprocating parts parts parts military poll political economic and social social all all contributing and adding dally daily to th the power and the tho glory of the empire That machine made mado use uee of ever every Gorman German It had complete control control control con con- over o every man and It mado made each man do th the thing which seemed in tho the mind of or the state to be bc most necessary for the advancement ad of the mill military tar power of oC Germany German of the tho political influence enco ence of the tho of the economic economic eco ceo welfare of the tho state and nd of oC the social betterment o of the German race I- I For or the political economic and social or organization he lie ull used d aa M his hla principal Implement Implement Im Im- the tho tariff He took Into his hands the control of this agency of life lite and death to trade and so used ed It as os to tomake tomake tomako make mako the r represent present the highest high high- est cst material ml Interests of ot every kind and condition of men In Germany He Je had lund no free tree traders trader's conscience and no tariff barons baron's rapacity He Ho used intelligence In Inthe Inthe inthe the stud study of the tho tariff problem and skill In Its application Forty years have ha passed paRsed and now Germany German Is the most success successful Cui Industrial community on on onearth earth and considering Its natural resources and conge congested ted I population Its people suffer less les from front poverty than do the people of an any other nation And yet et the thc Germans are filled with political discontent Monday The Monday The German Advance XI The Thc The German Tariff Policy |
