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EVENING LEDGER-PHILADELPHIA, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER
1912.
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PtJBtIC LEDGER COMPANY
xsrnus . k. ccims, Pbbsidmt.
Oeft. TT. Och, 8eortiary; John C. Martin, Trtaurer
Charles II. Luitlntlon, Philip S. Collins, John H. tVtt
lltmi IMrectora.
I .i-i . ii ni. rm HI llll
; ftblTOniALBOArtDf
Ctica II. K. Crjatis, Chairman.
P. lU.iritAt.RY fiheeutlva Bdltor
JOHN! 0. ff AttTW general nualnets Manager
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' ' '" '
rillLADELrilU, WEDNESDAY, DECEMDEIt 9. 191.
" ' i , .
If America Should Be Attacked
MILITARISM la a species of national In
sanity. Its. chief characteristics aro n
thirst for glory and a lust for conquest. It
creates and reverences a military casto that
looks with contempt upon all civilian pcoplo
and pursuit. All legislation, all diplomacy,
All railroad construction and all taxation aro
bent toward making an invlnclblo army.
The idea overshadows, dwarfs and subor
dinates everything: else, whether social,
moral. Industrial or political.
America can never tolerato militarism. Our
Ideals, our habits, our institutions, our tem
perament and our mature Judgment aro
against It. But to avoid one extreme wo
need not bo to another. Frcsldont Wilson Is
in favor of strengthening: our State militia.
Five bills have been already Introduced Into
Congress with a view to correcting our un
preparedncsa. George Wharton Pcppor has
protested vigorously against our blind relf
satlsfactlon: "If wo aro to havo peace, wo
must also have the power to demand It.
Because the Stars and Stripes has never
bowed to a belligerent Power does not say
that we shall continue to bo tho powerful,
peace-loving nation wo are today. All I say
Is that we aro unprepared, nnd without any
good reason for that condition."
The Kuropean war Is opening our eyes. If
Belgium could bo prostrated In a few days In
pita of tho most solemn treaties no nation
Is absolutely safe. Americans are not asking
for a vast standing army that will swallow
a billion dollars a year for maintenance and
withdraw a million men from produotlvo oc
cupations. Such an Idea Is unthinkable. Tho
present agitation In Congress end through
out tho country Is for a calm, thorough and
absolutely honest Investigation of, our ability
to protect our homes and our flag If they
should bo attacked by a foreign foe. Tho
request Is nothing but natural prudence.
Put It Up to Villa
THE President has ordered troops to Naco.
In that locality, within tho last 60 days,
17 American soldlors havo .been wounded by
Btray bullets from tho Mexican sldo of the
boundary.
In ordinary circumstances outrages of this
sort would plungo tho nation Into wild
jingoism, and no Administration would bo
able to resist the demand for prompt action
In defense of our rights. But of what use
would It be to get angry with children? It
1b far better to exhibit patlonce.
Tet Sunday, according to reports. General
Villa paraded through the City of Mexico
at the head of 40,000 troops, and the Iron
hand of the former bandit holds firm all
along; his northern frontier. He knows. If
southern Mexicans do not, the might and
poWer of this nation. Firm treatment, we
surmise, ungorbed In rhetoric, would Induce
him so to guide tho conduct of his soldiery
that American territory would not hero
after bo a target for their rifle practice.
Practical Education Appreciated
TTTHEN 88,000 boys and girls, young men
W and young women ore willing to give up
'their evenings to. study, the Board of Educa
tion In Fhlladelphlacan feel sure that It has
struck the right vein. This year's attendance
at night eohool Is 80 per cent, higher than
last Tear, and tho remarkable Increase is
Attributed to the addition of trade and voca
tional subjects to the purely acodemlo
studies; Even tho young realize that modern
Ufa ''ft a bitter struggle for existence In
which the unfit are quickly eliminated; any
rdd or qualification for future supremacy
that our educational authorities can provide
Is seized with eagerness and enthusiasm.
Old Glory Still More Glorious
THJtEB months ago any American would
havo said that to add another tinge of
glory to the Stars and Stripes was as
-unthinkable as to odd a new tint of beauty
to Jho rose or a sweeter fragrance to the
violet Yet it has been done.
In sad, gore-stained, trampled Belgium
men uncover their heads, women murmur a
prayer of gratitude and little children
courtesy when they sea the Star-Spangled
Banner. America has saved them from
starvation. The great western nation which
they bad known only as a giant of indus
try has been transformed into an angel of
Warcy the messenger of heaven to their
awful need.
That glvs our flag a place in the sun
'Of which all Americans may be proud.
. Piffle and Buncomhe
t4JTlSfjV JndivlduaU can stand prosperity,
"j?Thy jose their heads. The nation has
JfcMM guilty of the some weakness in char
acter. Oie the wheels begin to bum, the
parasitee, who have nothing else to do, be
gin wWoing. Whan they 4a't fUH they
eeeid, when they don't scald they criticise,
Ofutt when they don't criticise they begin i
Kep. Indeed, to o p4opt pwprty is
jtttejt ojwwluniv evidajte of JwmoruUty that
m IMtt ft " awwiw tby lMWta to nwa
jud tpwsnt in the nwnoor ot rnHyjv youth
aot Utwufb BueidjiB tfcolr Unuwta.
W Jm hm jeifcfljwrHy Ut?tKid into
(HR IwtoaytUp of & ffa 4t rf itatnt
ytatwm iftwetd ordinarily ialibor
alt Miad. Tt hre-. ajd-inoute axjwrt
at a coiiJ:ty fwr &vtr fuaon a cuoiti ref'eii
liiV uittue thti LvriHia tit our u.Uiml
twiiiaRr tjiim stinuwrvA m ttue Ie
ivin ujr hv lk tttm & J$
mmk jm k te ta mwj a M
st. .j iwiwi ftm trvm &m
alarm. The historians may call this tho era
of hysteria, or they may lghoro It alto
gether, following the example set by a dis
tinguished Governor of Pennsylvania who
wrote a history of tho Commonwealth and
gave not a lino to some Administrations.
It Is fortunate for tho country that tho
President has permitted some of, his ad
visors to do most of the talking, and 11 Is
fqrtuhalo, too, that Mr. Underwood led tho
rtlnjorlty In the House. Perhaps there was
nothing for the President to do but give
certain, friends who had been dealt to him
plenty of rope. In politics oven an Idealist
must mix with the bed-fellows that he finds.
Yet thoro aro Increasing numbers of citizens
Who are nauseated by tho endleBS piffle nnd
buncombe that are being bandied about as
philosophy nnd statesmanship. Tho repu
table press of tho country did what It could
to banish tho patent-mcdtclno craze of a
foty yearn a.Ro, but thero seems nothing to
do now but let this Insonsato folly, which In
lato years has been passing for reform nnd
progress, run Its course, It tho preclplco
Is not near It ought to be.
Brumbaugh the Bravo
I want to stand, llko tho Clreok youth.
with tho mnjorltyl Hut If needs bo, 1 xvlll
atanil with the minority. 1 Intend to koep
every plcilgo I made In llio campaign.
i)r. smrtin a. urumunuBii.
THE words of a bravo man nnd a strong
man! They ring out a challongo and a
warning to all the legislators who may bo
tempted to play peanut politics and shelve
tho vital Issues. They peal out ns a "for
ward march" to such as havo vision and tho
genius of. constructive statesmanship.
Pennsylvania put Brumbaugh Into tho
Governor's chair with a purpose. His plat
form was self-made, clear cut nnd emphatic.
If tho Legislature at Marrlsburg will not
rally to his leadership, If It becomes ob
structive or rofractory, the people of tho
Commonwealth will rlso In shamo and anger.
To havo a Governor with a posltlvo per
sonality Is a great assot to any Btate. A
man who can go right along alone, satisfied
with tho approval of his own conscience, re
gardless of the sneors and frowns of such
as aro not big enough or bravo enough to
go with him. Is tho ideal that enlightened
cltlzonshlp has always sought. Ills errors of
Judgmont or slips of strategy will bo for
given so long as ho Is known to be Incor
ruptible and unafraid.
However tho legislators may feel or act,
Doctor Brumbaugh can bo porfectly sure that
the rank and file of the peoplo will support
him.
Connie Mack, Napoleon in Defeat
CONNIE MACK Is nowhero moro Napoleonic
than in .defeat. His retreat from tho
Moscow of Beandom Is nothing If not spec
tacular In tho daring way In which he Is
preparing to make over the "greatest team
In the world." His strategic support of his
partners In organized baseball Is Just as
fine a specimen of his campaigning spirit.
Tho Athletics havo been a great team,
probably tho greatest In baseball, but It has
been admittedly an oxpenslvo team. This
year it combined Its high salary list with
tho awkward quality of playing so trium
phantly well that too few fans went to Its
massacres to balance the books satisfactorily.
This alone would havo dictated economy to
any other manager.
But tho spectacular manner In which Con
nie Mack has "ripped up" his team "waiv
ing" Bender, Plank and Coombs and selling
Collins means more than a daring move to
swell tho box offlco and a confidence In his
ability to find new Kddlo Collinses. Connlo
Mack has lined up squarely by the side of
his fellows in the two big leagues to fight
the so-called outlaws. Ho Is ready to bring
down his great "machine" to an organiza
tion that gives the rest of the American
League team a sporting chance. It Is cour
ageous work, with tho stomp of the man
upon it.
Dying Art of Owning Books
DOES the booklover buy books or borrow
them? At any tlmo but Christmas the
answer would point straight to the public
library. And even now the matter is Im
portant enough to the publishers for them
to organize a local book exhibition to stimu
late the declining desire of the public to
own the books they read.
Book reading and hence book selling Is
a very different matter from what It waa
before the big libraries, public and private,
came into being. They havo supplied a
dependable sale for almost any published
book, but they have cut down vastly the
number of copies sold of the more popular
volumes.
Headers have Joined through the library
the great co-operative movement of the past
B0 years that leads toward communal Inter
sts In pleasures as well as necessities. It
Is good; the average man gets a range of
reading that he could never afford If he
bought each volume. And yet there la the
pleasure to be remembered of buying, mark
ing, owning and living with the book that
has meant something to you, That quality
of companionship Is not to be given up for
any considerations of mere quantity,
Generalizations in Commerce
TRADE with Bolivia Is rich In opportunity
for tho business men of this country.
That Is what the Chamber of Commerce of
the United States says. In urging them to
activity. It Is much better than to say,
"Trade with Latin America," and so forth.
Let us not forget that recognition of national
entitles, either In diplomatic or In commer
cial relations, goes a long way to win
favor.
Commercially and industrially, Bolivia Is
different , from Argentina, Peru from Brazil,
and the people of Brazil, for Instance, have
a name for tbsmselves whloh is not "Latin
Americans," but "Brazilians,"
Nobody knew the value Qf meney better
than Proaklln, When a, youth h tried to
borrow some and found Wt-
CoagrftM awtt havo ben vry much in
terested to larn what UgUJatlan It jvW
sact during tte next few months, aad tfte
President was ttc man to tell them.
Tfaa ttwfe:
Mr. Mann, gf HHwiO
te that be
teamen to talk aenjje
be oubIi t to know
that M
wfcoaW iteiag like that
eould
be elected.
Tf
The Wer m Europe wae wished en Eu
rope," eaya a dietiagutahed lecturer ind
wrtier In ;auch the Mtme way, we auppoee,
tfju tUe federal League waa winced ou Ur
t'dUfctcd Baexbali
ie mm u( grafter. u. ie PniMi
Motes eauld be ie.yrtea into wetbBp
ld r$tiueiita. vor mllitaiy t,tbliahraat
uuH-rla!iy wuuld be uif uinfe la the
WHEN YOU TRY TO
SEE THE PRESIDENT
No Bluffing tho Wary Tumulty De
lights nnd Disappointments of the
Almost Open Door "Bob" Henry,
of the Bleeding Heart.
nyfi.W.TOw'NSEND
"QBMNO the President" Is necessarily ln-
O volvcd In somo ceremony, some dlfll
culty, or elso the President could do noth
Ing'btlt "be seen."
President Wilson thought he could strip
this of nil ceremony, of all lets and hin
drances, nnd made a sincere effort to do so.
But It can't be ddnol The hold-over Whlto
House start of secretaries told Secretary
TUmulty tho scheme of an open door to the
President w'ns Impractical, If not Impossi
ble. Hut It was tried' out Just to establish
the fact ono WAy or tho other, and after a
short but sad experience the President's door
was closed, to be opened only upon appoint
ment. Secretary Tumulty bravely effected a com
promise; ills door Is kept opon almost I Of
course, before ono gets even to the secre
tary's ofTlco he is closely scrutinized by two
uniformed orderlies upon entering tho offlco
lobby from tho White llouso grounds, and
next Is cautiously looked over by a man In
civilian dress nearer the secretary's olllcc,
and In this way tho merely curious are polite
ly turned aside. But those who havo or
seriously think they havo business with Mr.
Tumulty can rench hlmi or ot least reach his
offlco, without much trouble or delay. This
ofllco Is a big, comfortablo room looking
south to the Potomao and the Virginia hills,
and tho dozen or fifteen people generally
found wnitthg there can move about easily
without rubbing elbows, or meet In groups
without in their mysterious whisperings dis
closing generally tho mighty Import of their
missions.
No Secrets Allowed
If It Is a visitor's first Whlto Houso call
ho confidentially approaches Mr. Tumulty
In hlH turn, and smilingly unfolds hts desire
to "see tho President for a few minutes."
The secretary wants to know tho purposo
of tho sought-for lntervlow. Frequently tho
caller Is not inclined to reveal this Interest
ing secret. Nothing doing! Under polite sec
retarial pressure ho yields up the secret wish,
or thought, or purpose, or plan, or what
ever has hastened his footsteps to tho White
House, and then 90 times In 100, probably, It
Is discovered that ho should unbosom him
self to somo Cablnot officer, not to tho Presi
dent. If tho little preliminary examination
discloses tho fact that tho caller has a legiti
mate purpose, which can best be forwarded
by an Interview with tho President, or Is one
tho PrcBldont would want to talk with for
any reason, the engagement book Is consulted
and an appolntmont made for tho next day,
or tho next after, or possibly tho next week.
Evon tho Government officials, members of
Congress Included, must mako appointments;
but It goes without saying that Important
officials are wedged In promptly between
other appointments.
Tho President Is kept advised concerning
thoso ho is to meet, and if they are strangers
the alleged purposo of their call. By this
system It Is surprising how many people tho
President can "see" In the three or four hours
between breakfast and lunch ho devotes to
this work and work it 1st dally except on
Cabinet days.
Upiotting the Schedule
Occasslonally the President upsets the
schedule. He won't see somebody he waa
expected to see or ho will see somebody he
was not expected to see. An experience of
my own Illustrates this. A high school class,
the first class to bo graduated from the first
high school established In tho factory district
of Newark, N. J., was In Washington, and I
was having the time of his life showing the
class memwbers some of the sights and lis
tening to their comments. I piloted the crowd
to the White House offices, so that they could
at least Bee where the President worked, and
as some caller left his office the President,
through the open doorwaw, saw my regi
ment. Ho sent for a messenger to learn
"who those children are." He was Informed.
"First class, first high school," eta, and told
the astonished messenger to bring the young
sters In. Picture the scene; without even
hoping to see the President they were to
shake hands with him Bpeak with him: Joy!
There was another side of the medal, so to
say. We entered and departed from tho
President's private office by a door connect
ing with the main corridor, but while the
children were receiving their smile and hand
shake from the President, behind another
door, that opening from Mr. Tumulty's office,
a very Important Senator sat. alternating
glances of rage at his watch and at Tumulty.
What was delaying him, he'd like to knowT
The Man From Home
Just now the President Is withstanding the
usual heavy session opening week assault.
The long siege Is ended; the trenches Issue
forth their devoted heroes; It's the bayonet or
clubbed rife now In the charge on the White
House. All for what? Curiosity Is the "pop"
animating the charge in most cases; office
seeking In a much less degree than la gen
erally supposed, because the mar who gets
to the President on an ofncesecklng quest
solely muBt first flimflam Tumulty, That can
not honestly bo described as an easy Job. It
has before now been remarked that the Presi
dent's secretary waa not born yesterday, nor
In Hoboken. This fact now being ot common
knowledge, the officeseeker goes elsewhere,
to "his member" or to the department!.
Although we are cautioned to make this
an economical Congress, I'm going In for one
extravaganoe. I want an appropriation to
hire a sympathetic artist to make a brief
series pf pictures ot "the big man from back
horn' with his wife and children; alt big,
feeling big that U, who go to the White
House with the certain expectation of having
a nice long chat with the President right off
the ba Fi' st pWture: Proud, even haughty,
entrance to the outside office; to be followed
by the series depleting gradual ooie of pride
and ha.ughtiaee down the scale until an
hejr, later, with pttaeteaed silen, they gladly
shake the hand ot the eop outside the office,,
Wlw sympaUyJ'eally telle them if Is preb
ajbly lJW eJp?ife busy day, and tbM was
the reason they get np further than ib or
d.erilts hia side of the messenger, this side
of the office of the assistant secretaries, who
are this sUe of the secretary, this side of the
President.' It would wake a great moving
picture shew. '
"Bob" Heury, of Texas, like swt good
fighters, is also a kiadly hearted man. ajad
that hiad heart of Me stt fc oHtftag u
oay tjt a Hepy. one re&dls, wte kept u
here about three weak toon thM without
hit activity we wo4 have feeea kept. Dur
ing those three weeks probably la than a
feliit&red ReprcseatMlves from the Morth
weal tu Hety aa4 spjt um.:at m ihl I
"NOW
wise: "Now, see here, Bob, you don't under
stand tho waya of Northern constituents.
You fellows from tho South have all got
your nominations, and that means your elec
tions. It Is different wHere the snow files,
and neswpapcra aro plenty at a penny apiece.
Aye, Robert, much different; our nomination
Is a step only to tho halfway house, or some
what the hither side of that We ought t6
be homo campaigning; we ought to be
hustling around tho districts saying 'howdy'
to the folks; wo ought to be spying out weak
places In our fences. Let up, Robert! Let
us go home so that wo may come back."
Then Robert would smile, lay a caressing
hand on one's shoulder and respond: "Oh,
you'll bo all right, old fellow. Your peoplo
are too sensible to trim a man who has done
as well as you have hero. Don't you worry."
Dut somo fifty of that hundred were trim
mod, and ono can almost see Henry's heart
bleed as he sees them first and ducks. He
allows that ho doesn't care to meet them Just
yet, for they lay their defeats to tho fact
that whllo Henry kept them hero last Oc
tober clovor young chaps of tho opposlto
party were making kindling wood out of the
sitting members' fences and dancing glee
fully around campflres fed by tho aforesaid
kindling. The while tho sitting member
well, he Just sat
THE HEN
The hen Is a large bird which files like a 1500
model tioroplano and Is supplied with a squawk
In plnco ot a brain.
Nobody who has watched the hon In her blun
dering progress through life has any respect for
her Intellect. Sho has been severely criticised
by all who have seen her mothering a china egg
with Intense devotion or running SS yards In
order to get to a road In time to cross It in
front of an automobile. We laugh at the hen
as we roughly pluck her from the radiator
through which she has tried to fly, and allude,
with ribald Jest, to her punk mental equipment
as we toss her In the ditch. Then wo put on
all speed and race over a railroad crossing,, a
winner from death by only one small silver of
a second. We are much wiser than the hen,
but have a difference about showing It at
tlmoa.
The hen Is distinguished not merely by her,
low, retreating forehead, but by her maternal
Instincts. She Is a profuse and enthusiastic
mother. It is her ambition to collect a dozen
eggs of her own production and to set upon
these until they explode Into chicks. Ruthless
man, however, foils her by stealing the eggs
as fast as she lays them. Many a hen goes
through life with a puzzled air, laying hundreds
qC eggs and never getting a single egg ahead
on her Job. The Incubator has driven the
hen out of the mother business, but thus far
nothing can compete with the hen In produc
ing eggs. Sh has a monopoly of the trade
and gets her revenge upon man by going off
the job -In winter and consuming mill feed
In luxurious ease while the price of eggs avi
ates and Congress appoints committees to
probe the high cost of living.
The hen cannot sing and Is not handsome to
look at, but she has one talent Uiat has en
deared her to all mankind. She dies more
beautifully and loathsomely than any other
fowl. When a hen has resolved herself Into
her component parts, each fried In egg and
corn meal, she has produced one of th? most
perfect bits of gastronomic poetry,
Because of this the hen Is like the politician.
We love her best while reciting her obituary.
George Fltch
Why la a Diplomat?
From the Nav York Evening Post
It cannot be said that this has been 4 banner
year for diplomacy. As an Insurance against
war. It has been tie ghastly a failure as has
Invincible armament It a diplomatic negotia
tion was ever more shockingly mishandled than
that leading up to the European combat, jvt do
not know where to look for 1U record.
TO THE SPIWT OF BYRON
"The Nlobe of Nation-"-Childe Harold.
Thou more than poet. Freedom's laureate,
Byron! Altho' some tyrant hand should blot
All page that to her are consecrate
Uy loyal bard thus doomed to be forgot
Who should despair it thlie were quenched
notT
Ob, for thy voice, when the world's heart Is
wrung
At Honor made a barraqk-Jst and plotl
To what Invective hadat thou given tongue)
Mourner ot Rome, what dirge for Belgium, hadat
thou sung)
What ot her children ravaged from her heart-'
Those cities prow) of let and fair of mien;
Ucge, that eradUd Clalleroagne; that mart
Of many rich Antwerp; old Malice;
And royal Brussels sa&tfd like a queeni
Bruges tha ' malodloui, and flowery Ghent,
And wise lyouvalnl Oh. Byron, hadat thou
seen
The tears end terror, who could be content
By leaser song tbaa thin that grief and blame
be WeutT
Revered Is Valor ey, but Honor oiofo,
A ere of eeaturifs detb History save
Caeaar's "brave Betetaae": fer how many a
ftce$e
afaaU ae the wwd Uuee to the Teuteaa gave
When t4 Battle dlehjaapr r tlM gftyet
They fcaatt, heeM they toe Pt4r te trtfn,
H&n'e wthth asf $ Me nat, Make Mm
stave.
woes theme (or tie, ere. Wager of njt
'Strife.
Te astomw thou haeet pMured hhatiee at th
life'
-liMtun Unlet nwi Jvcatut.ui tee Iadeenai.t
f
YOU CAN DELIVER THE GOODS"
NEUTRAL ITALY SKATING ON THIN ICE
An Italian View of the Increasing Difficulties of Avoiding General Con
flict Mediterranean Interests and National Tradition.
By A. A. BEKNARDY
THE detached attitude of Italy In tho pres
ent European turmoil has been the oc
casion for so much international gossip, ever
since the beginning of the war, that possibly
a hint of Italy's own mind from Italy's own
and exclusive standpoint may not como
amiss.
Tho offlclal formula for Italy's behavior
In this contingency Is "watchful and armed
neutrality," nnd It has been furthermore
officially stated that for no reasons except
those concerning her own vital Interests, and
Inspired therefore by a "sacred national
nelflshncss," will Italy suffor herself to be
drawn out of her neutral position to the
advantage or damage of any belligerent
party whutever. Of course, even so, Italy's
neutrality Is a precious asset to both con
tending sldos; so precious. In fact, that It
Is hardly convenient to any of them to com
plain loudly of the situation, lest the change
may make It worse.
Pressure from All Sides
Stories havo been current, perhaps a little
too highly seasoned by popular Imagination,
af Imperative telegrams sent down from
Berlin to nome; of wrath of enVoyH. who had
apparently cherished n bit too fondly tho Idea
of a meek and submissive Italy upon the oc
casion of a German command, and so forth.
Some Gorman firms also have undoubtedly
gone much too far In the tone ot their com
munications, or rather threats, to their Ital
ian correspondents; and to this day tho whole
of Italy Is flooded with protests, publica
tions, self-sung German praises, all of which
the keen and quiet skepticism ot tho Italian
peoplo dollvers coolly to the waste baskets of
public opinion without further ado, but, rea
sonably enough, not without eomo private
opinion as to the good taste ot such mani
festations. The German press In general
and by force of habit and an excess ot self
esteem not usually overklnd to Italy, has
been (after some day's ot early and hopeful
enthusiasm, and thereafter some violent
attempts at a sincere expression of subse
quent disappointment) kept fairly under
control.
France's actually kind treatment ot Italy's
fleeing emigrants has gone far toward deep
ening the naturally friendly feelings between
the two sisters of the Latin race, which had
suffered some estrangement at the time of
the Libyan war, when France had been a
close second only to Germany In' the disre
gard ot Italian rights and the contempt of
Italian aspirations, not to speak of the
encouragement to Italy's adversary, As their
excellencies Von Jagow and Von Buelow
have thought It convenient and desirable to
address Italian public opinion In the Interest
pt Germany, Charles Richet has spoken for
the Latin race and the necessity ot a, Latin
alliance against the Germanic Invasion, And
his appeal, that of a private citizen deeply
Interested in tho developments of history
and of the Latin face, has undoubtedly met
with deep approval among tho Italian public.
As for England, public feeling there
seemed, of course, desirous that Italy should
Join the Allies as soon as she sees her way
to It the sooner the better, England's old.
time friendship for Italy In tho days of her
struggle for independence is tactfully re
called, and the beginning of Cavours politi
cal triumphs, the participation ot little P)ed.
mont In the Crimean War. Winston
Churchill, in" a recent Interview granted to
an Italian newspaper correspondent, has
clearly expressed the Idea that a restoration
of the national prfnoipla must follow the war
and, modify the map of Europe a the first
and (premost result of vtotory over the Aus-tro-Qeraaa
hegemonic aspirations; and that
"this or none" Is the. time for Italy to push
forward, by direct Intervention In the con
flict, her claim tq the ethnically and his
torleHy Halloa; districts of Trent, Trieste
and the Dalmatian coast, which are how
under Austrian rule.
The National Ap!ratloa
This. Indeed, U the great aspiration of the
Italian national tradition, and one or the
Bifet Important Imum of Italy's hitleca i,
Istenoe, So much bo that, if Italy,'eufpil(y
is broken, t may he oa the very queeilei.
Its sreat laiaertaaee la e eyes of the
ejd ieae he be Vofht V the Hu
Ufht but a short Use g let a very deAaRe
4 J4hy way; briefly tkgH Oft the Austrian
tant Where have been seat against Huaaia '
Avutru.il tuidiere of Italian nationality; that
H. Austria uetct hetenlny te the A4rt
atlu aud Aipm novices subject to Auettlati j
rule. Incidentally, a few thousand qf them
have fallen Into the hands of the Russians as"
prisoners of war. But Russia, with a very"
clever move, now refuses to consider them'
as Austrlans. Tho Czar steps forth and orders
his Ambassador to Romo to offer them as a.
token of friendship to Italy, If Italy will un
dertake to hold them, so that they will not
return to serve under the Austrian ,flag. Nut
urally this last clause, upon reflection, has
made tho whole thing Impossible, in the light
of both tho Italian rrlvato n,nd public lavtf
and tho International conventions. And a
neutral Power can neve." be too caroful about
its movements.
Tho offer of tho Czar In Its present form
has therefore been respectfully and thank
fully, but necessarily, declined. The senti
mental part of It, If we may call It so. and
the incidental recognition of the, Russian
Government of tho Itullan ethnlcrl and his
torical characte: ot certain Austrian prov
inces, has been deeply appreciated1 by the
Italian nation as a whole; and cannot but en
hance ihe friendly sentiment that Italy has
felt for Russia ever since the Czar himself
camo to RaoconlRl, the royal Italian .summer
residence lit Piedmont, to visit King Victor
Emmanuel and Queen Helena (who, It mUst
be remembered, had spent many happy years
of her early youth at Potrograd), and es
pecially slnco tho Libyan War, when Russia
not only abstained from tha unfriendly dem
onstrations In which other nations rejoiced,
but was tho first to recognize and ratify the
Italian sovereignty over tho former Turkish
possession.
Where Italy's Vital Interests Lie
It will be readily grasped even from this
Incident how thin Is the Ice over which Italy
must skate in tho course of her neutrality
If she wants It to keep or to break exclusively
at her own pleasure or Judgment And It is
hard to say how formidable the pressure has
been, ot threats or snares, of sentimental or
other Inducements on the part of t..e various
powers directly or otherwise interested in
present or future events.
Of course, It is obvious that the great Ital
Ian Interests do not He In the fields of Prance
and Flanders, of Prussia or Poland, closely
though her prestige and position as a Euro
pean Power may bo connected with the re
sults of general action In those fields. The
vital Italian interests He Ii, the Medtterra
neap and on the Adriatic coast; and thence,
eastward. Naturally, therefore, the keeping
up of Italian neutrality becomes more dlffl
cult and the Italian attitude more dependent
upon tha trend of events, as the confiagra,
tlon extends to the Balkans and Constantino
ple; or as It descends toward the Buex Canal,
on account of the communications with
Italy n eastern African colonies. Eritrea and
the Italian Soroalllahd. In other words. If
Italy must enter tho fight, she can do so
only with good reasono of her owj and with
a view to her own interests not because Geri
many and Austria promise that they will
kindly allow her the French coast of Tunis
f ,be?!Ufl 1france nlly Wlt" " can
pick the Dalmatian tlt-blt. out of the Aus,
trian polla-when they ore neither Prance's
nor Austria' to bestow. .
During this period ,.? expectation and In.
octlon-unleaa jt may be called oi preparation
been tuwine over and over all the aspect oi
the quest on-neutrollty or flghtt The m.
bimy of stair. .Idlng with the AuetroOer-
Utent Remain, the other chance.
The Nationalists, of course, say w...
They want Trent. Trieste and the DImatn
coat. as a mlnimurn ht their pregraTaaJ
i ?J?L ?! MtjrrM(u, influenee.
Sa ouJtfonf UrWer ' ' E"
era questions, and so forth, are conidert
desirable and would be wYjcooW tmUUn
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