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Show OUR RELATIONS WITH GERMANY. GER-MANY. (Editorial Correspondence.) Ominous words of impending trouble trou-ble between this country and Germany Ger-many have of late been heard in the congress of the United States, and in other places supposed to possess authoritative au-thoritative knowledge. For our part, we believe the utterances of Senator Lodge and others voicing sentiments similar to the Massachusetts senator have no foundation in fact, and were uttered for the specific purpose of In-lluencing In-lluencing public sentiment in favor of the purchase of large quantities of armor ar-mor plate at enormously excessive prices. , A mere glance at the present condition con-dition of nations convinces even the cursory observer that Germany Is the least likely of all foreign powers to interfere in-terfere with America. It seems, however, to be the popular thing to suppose that the Kaiser, the so-called war lord, is anxious for a light with the United States. This is particularly so since Admiral Dewey j issued his famous defi to the German I Admiral with the unpronouncable name, m Manila bay. But, unfortunately unfortu-nately for those who are desirous of keeping this government on a war footing for other reasons, there is not the slightest danger of any trouble between be-tween the United States and Germany. It is a pity that the demagogue should iind forum in the senate of the United States. No matter what the opinion of the i Kaiser be that Americans have formed as a result of his after-dinner speeches, no one has ever yet challenged his courage, his honesty or his sympathy with his people. He has never lost Fight of the welfare of Germans in America, and for that we honor him. He knows, none better, that their general gen-eral betterment redounds to German prestige at home. He has lost no op-y op-y roriunity to so conduct himself that the great German-American body could exist in America without loss of I caste because of any action of his. "VYe J pass by the incident of Manila bay as I so much rot, quite on a par with the utterances of Senator Lodge and his armor plate confreres. What the real attitude of William II is toward America can best be in- Xerred from an analysis of his deeds, I f - . and not by deductions drawn from newspaper clippings or unofficial sources. It is popularly supposed that William II is so taken with the idea of royal prerogatives as to be above due consideration of matters affecting his people.. Nothing could be farther from the truth. He has at heart, and intensely so, the welfare of all his peoplethe peo-plethe low and the high, as well. An instance of the sterling character of this man, his fairness and good judgment, as well as "paternal interest in his people, was brought strongly in evidence on the occasion of the reception recep-tion of a deportation of dissatisfied workmen. To the workmen he said: "Every subject who has a desire to express, has, of course, the ear of his emperor. I have shown this in giving you permission per-mission to come here and tell your wants personally. But you have put I yourselves in the wrong; your move-! move-! ment is against law, if only because : you have not abided by the fourteen days' notice required to be given be-j be-j fore striking. You have therefore broken bro-ken ycur contract.. Naturally this breaking of your engagement has irritated ir-ritated the employers, and does , them a wrong. Furthermore, workmen who did not desire to strike have been prevented pre-vented from working by either violence vio-lence of threats." He summed up the wrong they had done, but nevertheless promised to have the matter thoroughly investigated. investi-gated. It is needless to say that he kept his word. When the employers came before him, no doubt expecting ! sympathy as against strikers, they were taken to task more cuttingly still for their selfishness. "I beg of you," said the emperor, take pains to give workingmen a chance to present their grievances in a formal manner. It Is natural and numan that each one should seek to better himself. Workmen Work-men read newspapers and knqw the relations that their wages bear to the profits of the company. It is obvious that they should desire to have some share of this." When one ponders these words he cannot but wish that in America there was a tribunal that could speak with both the authority and the justice that marked the Ger-I Ger-I man Emperor's words to the disheartened disheart-ened workmen. In any case, this one instance shows how to be a man in the fullest sense of the term. In view of the charges directly and indirectly made by such men as Senator Sen-ator Lodge, and the Inuendoes promulgated pro-mulgated by Secretary of War Root, it is interesting to recall the expressed views and convictions of William II, as spoken to Minister Phelps. Among j other things, he said: From childhood I have admired the great and expanding expand-ing community you represent; and the study of your history, both in peace and in war, has given me particular pleasure. Among the many conspicuous conspicu-ous characteristics of your fellow citizens cit-izens the world admires in particular their spirit of enterprise, their respect foe law and "leir inventiveness. Germans Ger-mans feel themselves the more drawn to the people of the United States because be-cause of the many ties that inevitably inevita-bly accompany kinship of blood. The feeling which both countries entertain most strongly is that of relationship and friendship of long standing; and the future can only strengthen the heartiness of our relations." Such words as these, coming from a man whom even his bitterest enemies have not accused of dishonesty, must carry conviction to the densest mind. In the light of their true value the hidden meaning of warnings from such men as Lodge and Root concerning imminent trouble with Germany, become be-come easily transparent. A careful study of the character of William II wins believers in him. ' From the point of view of the Catholic Cath-olic there is 'much to commend the young German Emperor. He succeeded to the throne at a time when Catholics were suffering under the iniquitous laws conceived in the i hateful mind of the unrelently Bismarck, Bis-marck, who was destined to soon reil-ize reil-ize the humiliation that comes from ignominious defeat, which, in this instance, in-stance, was doubly galling because the hand that administered the blow was that of the young Emperor himself. William, immediately that he had ascended as-cended the throne, made it clear to all that he was to be the ruler of all the people. The oppressive laws which I his father's and grandfather's chancellor chan-cellor had enacted against Catholics were repulsive to the young Kaiser, and going directly to the root of the evil, with no desire to temporize or compromise, he removed Bismarck from office and made assurance doubly sure to his Catholic subjects that at his hands they would obtain justice, by appointing in the place of the mighty man of iron, a Roman Catholic Catho-lic to the office of chancellor. Thus did Bismarck, in spite of repeated and haughty asservations to the contrary, go to Cannosa. So we might continue indefinitely to I enumerate the acts that clearly and firmly establish the Kaiser's right to a high place among wise and discriminate discrim-inate rulers. The sickening and puerile pue-rile talk of some American politicians about the German Emperor Is ridiculous. ridicu-lous. Hoch der Kaiser has a meaning and a value In the mind of the German, and after all is it not better for the country whose people cry Hoch der Kaiser, than it is for a country whose people's political shibboleth is: "D the President." We think so. THOMAS H. MALONE. Paris, June 2, 1900. |