MY SHIP.
(Song of m Pessimist.)
I wonder when the day will come
For which I've waited long,
When all my sorrowing is done
And life is one glad song,
When every debt is off the slate,
My promises made true,
When I'll be good and wise and great
And have a cent or two;
When care and grief have passed away
And peace ana joy begin:
Upon the glad and happy day
When my fair ship comes in.
MATRIMONIAL SELECTION.
THAT we girls of the present
day are a vast improvement
upon what our mothers were;
that we take a more practical,
a more sensible view of life; that we
have jettisoned nearly all those silly,
artificial conventions by which the
Victorian woman set so much store, no
candid observer will deny.
Yet, even now, some of the aforesaid
Billy conventions still survive, and one,
the silliest of all; I mean the relation
of woman to man In the preliminaries
which lead, through courtship, to wed
lock.
Nearly forty years ago Darwin
startled the old wives of his day by
exploding upon them, as a bombshell,
his novel theory of natural selection.
I, too, in my smaller way have startled
some old wives of my generation by
torpedoing them, so to speak, with
my novel theory of matrimonial selec
tion. But I must tell you all about
that theory; why X formed it, and how
I carried It into practical effect.
First, then, as to why I formed it. I
had not been "out" many months
when it occurred to me to inquire into
the reason of the absurd custom by
which the right of selection and pro
posal lies exclusively with the man; to
ask myself why it was that he should
be free to pick and choose, whereas
she—his equal In many things and Ills
superior in most—should have to con
tent herself with being picked anil
chosen. And when I came to look
Into the point—to inquire the "why" of
It, I discovered that there was no
"why." but that it was merely a mean
ingless convention—an empty custom,
existing because it existed, and ob
served because people were foolish
enough to observe it. Nay, it was
more than meaningless—lt was rotten,
it was iniquitous. If marriage means
anything to cither party (a point, per
haps. open to discussion, upon which
I will not here embark), it means more
to the woman than to the man. To
him 'tis but an Incident, to her ft l a
career; to him 'tis still the same old
tune, with variations; to her 'tis a
brand new piece that has to he learned
and studied ah initio. Of this fact the
name process is emblematical. Let
liim be Mr. Smith, let her be Miss
Jones. The.v marry. What of him?
He remains Sir. Smith to the end of
the chapter. What of her? Her
"Miss" becomes forthwith converted
into "Sirs.." her "Jones" transformed
into "Smith." Her former name and
style know her no more. In one word,
he Is the absorber, she the absorbed.
Now to be absorbed the process of
absorption is far more momentous than
to the absorber. That is axiomatic.
It therefore follows that if cither one
has a greater liberty than the other in
the field of selection, that one should
be the woman. But in practice—by a
most absurd convention—tilings are
precisely the reverse. Man, the ab
sorber, can select and propose to any
number he likes of the whole fair sex.
Woman, the absorbed, is limited in her
choice to just those few men that may
see fit to propose. While he lias thou
sands to pick from, she lias only units;
and those frequently the wrong units.
That is the worst of it. She may see
the man who Is just suited to her;
whom she knows she could make hap
pier than any other woman could; who
would, in a word, he the ideal mate
for her. But lie is not among those
who have proposed to lier. Therefore,
he is not within practical politics. She
marries some oue else as a pis aller.
But the reformer who doesn't begin
by adopting in practice his own doc
trines is 110 true reformer. He is a
quack, a charlatan, a humbug. I am
not that sort. My motto, like Straf
ford's, has always been "Thorough."
"As a first step." says 1 to myself,
"toward transferring into woman's
hands the initiative in matrimonial
selection, I will exercise that initiative
myself. Others, when they see my
success, will follow my example; and
soon the benighted custom by which
my sex are trented as mete passive
proposers will have been relegated to
the limbo of exploded fallacies."
I first mentioned my resolve to mam
ma. I did not expect support from
the amiable lint obsolete old dear; and
I certainly did not get it. Mamma
was aghast. Her liair almost stood on
end; or, rather, it would have stood on
end had it been hers to do so. I did
not mind mamma's displeasure, how
ever. Was it not the fate of all re
formers to bo misunderstood, abused,
derided by their own families? Be
sides, was I to be turned aside from
my liigli emprise by a mere outburst
of obsolescence? No, Indeed! "Hs In
such pinpricks thnt your whole-hearted
revolutionist finds, not an obstruction,
but n stimulus. So with me. It
spurred me on. I resolved to open my
now campaign without a moment's
delay.
The first thing to do, of course, was
to pick out my man—my ideal mate.
That was simple. In fact, I had al
ready had my eye on him for some
time. Ills name was Charles Wilton;
his age, thirty-five; his pedigree, un
exceptionable; his person, prepossess
ing; his manners, agreeable; his pur
suits, athletic, and his moral charac
ter above reproach. Moreover (but
this is Incidental, and in no wise In
fluenced my considerations!, he had
I sit beside the restless sea
And list to the billows roar,
To wonder when they'll bring to me
The bliss I'm waiting for;
But as I call to mind how fate
Pursues her tickle way.
And usually brings too late
The gifts for which we pray,
I sigh and bow my weary head
To hide my deep chagrin—
I know I'll be a long time dead
When that old ship comes in.
—John Wallis Clearman, in Life.
lately inherited from his father a for
tune of £200,000.
That, then, was done. My ideal mate
was selected. Next to apprise him of
my selection and to invite reciprocity.
This took a bit of thinking out. I
thought it out. The result of my re
flections was that I decided to seek
expert advice; to pick up wrinkles from
one or other of my married friends. I
pitched on Dollie Dulverton, who had
been lately absorbed by young Catti
stock, of the Bays; and to her I went.
After unfolding to her my scheme in
general outline, I said:
"All that I wish to do, at the first
going off, is to change the personality
of the proposer, not the method of pro
posing. One must not attempt too
much all at once. Therefore, I have
come to you to ask if you can give me
any useful tips, based upon your own
experience as a past proposee."
"Ah," said Dollie, smiling, "you wish
me, in fact, to coach you up in the
manners and rules of good proposing?"
"I wisli you to tell me," I answered,
"what phraseology Mr. Cattistoek
made use of when he proposed to you.
It may serve me as a useful line."
Dollie thought for a moment or two,
picking up the threads of recollection.
Then she rejoined:
"Very well, my dear, you shall have
a precise account of all the circum
stances. The affair took place at Lady
X.'s dance. Frank began by remark
ing that the room was devilish—he
begged my pardon—confoundedly hot.
I acquiesced. Have you made a note
of that, my dear?"
"Go on," I remarked, with some Im
patience. "I wish to get to the kernel
of the nut. These little preliminary
breakings of the outer shell are Im
material."
"Nay," answered Dollie, "you can
not get to the kernel without these
little preliminary breakings of the
outer shell. It is an Integral part of
the process. However, I will proceed.
Frank's next observation referred to
the floor, which he declared to be a
ripper. I concurred. Tlien he said,
give him such a floor and a partner
whose step suited Ills, don't you know,
and, by Jove, what more could a fellow
want? I said nothing. I only looked
hard at the toes of my satin shoes. 1
knew now what was coming, and that
the less I interrupted the quicker it
would come. Frank cleared his throat
and tugged at his mustache. Then he
embarked upon a confused and un
granimntie.nl rigmarole, in which
'Partner—step suited—ball of life
heaven on earth,' were the only distinct
anil Intelligible expressions."
Dollie paused.
"And that's all," she said.
"Do you mean," I demanded, "thnt
he never asked you, lu so many words,
to marry him?"
"Never! Without another remark—
we were In a corner of the conserva
tory behind two oleanders and a plas
ter Apollo—he took me In his arms. I
offered no objection. So there we were.
That settled it."
"Well," I said, after a brief reflec
tion, "I shall meet Charles Wilton at
Mrs. Z.'s dance to-morrow night: and
I will see what can be done—if I get
the opportunity."
"'lf,' my dear?" cried Dollie. "There
is no 'if' in the matter. The proposer
makes ills opportunity."
"I suppose he does," I was fain to
admit. "There arc a good many things
to learn about (his new role, after all."
"It is an art and has its technicalities
like every other," she replied.
Which was so undeniable that I
agreed to it without comment.
Next evening, I went to Mrs. Z.'s
dance. There, as anticipated, I met
Charles Wilton. I cast about how 1
should make my opportunity. But
this proved to be unnecessary. He
asked me if I would sit out the fourth
waits with him. I did. The ground
being tints cleared, it only remained for
me to put into practice Dollie's man
ners and rules of good proposing.
I began:
"Don't you think the room—er—very
hot?"
Now he ought to have acquiesced.
But lie didn't. lie answered, instead:
"Do you think so? I find it just
comfortable."
Tills departure from the rules of the
game rather puzzled me. What was I
to do? I decided to ignore it and pro
ceeil as though it had not occurred.
"If you ask me," lie answered, "I
should say that there is a trifle too
much beeswax on it."
This reply was still more upsetting.
However, I made a bold dash.
"Given such a floor and a partner
whose stop suits one, what could a girl
want more?"
He was not silent. lie did not stare
at tlie toes of his pumps. He did not
(evidently) know what was coming.
Instead, he answered genially:
"Don't matter a button-top to me.
The only dancing I ever do is to walk
through a square. But I dare say that
what you suggest is very jolly for those
who like it."
This was too vexing. It quite killed
my opening for that metaphor about
"The Ball of Life" and "Heaven on
Earth," so I was brought to a stand
: still. Soon nftcrward lie took me back
to mamma; and the chance was gone.
Evidently Dolly's method was no go.
Anil on thinking it ovvf I saw vrhy it
was no go. It was because it was an
allusive method. Now the allusive
method is. no doubt, very sound for a
man, and for this reason: Woman
knows him to be a proposing animal;
she is, therefore, on the qui vive; she
leads up to it. But a woman proposing
for the first time, as I was doing, is in
a very different position. The man,
naturally, never suspects her inten
tion (having always regarded her as a
mere passive proposed; he cannot
make out what she is driving at, and
so her allusiveness is lost on him.
"Yes," said I to myself, "there is only
one way—the direct way. I must treat
him as one treats children. I must bo
plain, literal, precise. I must say
what I mean in the most simple, un
equivocal language. Yen! I must, as
it were, propose to him In words of one
syllable. 'I love you. Will you wed
me?' There can be no mistake about
that. It is the formula that I shall
certainly adopt."
We next met about four days later.
It was in a tea shop in Bond street. I
was drinking chocolate alone at a
little table. There was a bunch of
hyacinths in a vase on the table. He
came in; he saw me; he took a chair
opposite to me. Greetings were ex
changed. I looked about. No one was
near. Ilere was my chance. Bravely
I began:
"I love •"
There I stopped. The "you"—simple,
easy little word—would not for some
reason come out. It stuck in my throat.
"Well! What do you love?" he in
quired.
The "what" Irritated me. Was ever
such incorrigible denseness? A woman
would have had the sense to say
"whom." as n matter of course. But
he had invited a neuter, and a neuter
he should have, if only to punish him.
"I love—hyacinths," I said, crossly.
Yet even hero there would have been
away out had he possessed an ounce
of perception. He had only to say, as
a woman in like case would have said:
"Happy hyacinths!"
Then I should have remarked:
"I always associate you with hya
cinths."
But what do you think the opaque
creature did say?
"Don't care for 'em myself? Smell
too strong."
It was really impossible to do any
thing with such a perfect miracle of
obtuseness. So my second chance was
lost.
However, a reformer who gives in
after two failures is no reformer. I
must try again. I must be still more
simple; still more elementary In my
language. After all, the "I love you.
Will you wed me?" formula was what
logicians would call a complex proposi
tion—a combination of the categorical
"I love you," which in view of what
followed, was really superfluous. I
would only retain the essential por
tion, viz., the interrogative "Will you
wed me?"
Four plain words of one syllable.
Surely, these admitted of no ambiguity
or misapprehension.
Our next encounter was in Piccadilly,
on the north side, near Devonshire
House. I was walking west, he east.
We met face to face. I held out my
hand. He took it. Now was the time.
I made the fateful plunge.
"Will you "
Would you believe it? At that su
preme moment, by the cruellest stroke
of luck (surely the stars in their courses
were lighting against me), I swallowed
the wrong way, and had a violent chok
ing fit which lasted for two minutes.
It was too exnspernting. To be put
off—just at' tlie critical point—by a
silly little affair of the windpipe. Of
course, I couldn't complete my sentence
after that. It would have been like
finishing one's best story when one
has been interrupted in the middle.
So when Charles Wilton, having
waited in polite sympathy until I had
done choking, remarked:
"You were about to ask me "
"To come to tea to-morrow after
noon," I replied, feeling obliged to
say something.
"With the greatest pleasure," he re
joined.
When I returned home I found—to
my satisfaction—that mamma would be
out the following afternoon.
"I shall see him alone. And this
time I will succeed," said I to myself,
setting my teeth resolutely.
1 should have succeeded, too. There
is 110 doubt about that. But an un
looked for accident again baffled me.
Before I had time to say a word,
Charles suddenly exclaimed:
"I say! By Jove! don't you know."
Those were his precise words.
Neither more nor less. Not much in
them, is there? But somehow, like
Mercutio's wound, they served'. He
took me in his arms.
It was like leaving out all the proof
in one of Euclid's "props," and jump
ing straight from the hypothesis to the
Q. E. D.
But the Q. E. D. was reached? True.
Yet see in what a position it placed
me. It destroyed forever my prospects
as a practical reformer in the field of
matrimonial selection. I could not
propose to Charles, being already en
gaged to him; nor could I (for the
same reason) decently propose to any
one else.
And, on thinking the matter over, I
have come to the conclusion that, in
the present backward condition of hu
man affairs, my scheme of reforma
tion is, after all, premature.
So long as a man can propose intel
ligibly by merely exclaiming: "I say!
By Jove! don't you know," whereas n
woman may make remarks ten thou
sand times more suggestive, and yet
fail to suggest anything; so long, I
sny, as this irrational state of tilings
ohtalns, the female proposer is simply
handicapped out of it. It is iniquitous.
But it is the fact. I therefore advise
my sisters, like wise women, to accept
the fact—and the male proposer.—
Truth.
BIG BORE RIFLES AND SMALL
The Small 1M NO L>ubt Itetter For All*
3:oucl Purposes.
The old dispute between big bores
and small bores is meaningless now,
because the most killing guns are the
high velocity nitro guns, which are
ail small bore compared with the black
powder guns. The best all-round rifle
is now the thirty-calibre nitro, not be
cause it will do ail that is claimed for
it, but because it makes so much flat
ter a line to everything within reason
able distance than any black powder
gun can do. The ball goes too much
to pieces on some shots, nud all that
I have tried throw ten per cent, of
balls wild, live slightly wild and live
badly so. But the swiftness of the
ball overbalances the other defects.
An all-round rifle is almost impossible,
and some sacrifice must be made.
Sacrlflce for flat trajectory is not al
ways a sacrlflce of accuracy, but often
one In favor of it. Between seventy
live and two hundred yards, the place
where most shots on open ground fall,
no black powder gun small enough to
be carried with comfort can make
up In accuracy what it loses In curve
of trajectory as compared with the
thirty-calibre nitro rifle. T refer to the
high velocity shell and not the smoke
less cartridges of the same strength
as black powder. The soft-nosed bullet
driven with the high power nitro is
the most killing form in which a hall
of equal diameter can be made for all
rouml work. Those of copper or steel
do not make a large enough hole for
most shots on the softer parts of the
body.—From Handling the Rifle on
Game, from Outing.
The Paper of To-Duy.
Only paper of the very best quality
Is now made from rags, the bulk of
that employed for newspapers and
book work being manufactured from
wood pulp. Other materials are also
coming into use to meet tlie enormous
demands for paper, and plants which
were at one time supposed to be of no
economic importance are contributing
their tiber to the manufacture. Among
the new materials may be named ba
gasse, tlie refuse of the sugar mills,
formerly a waste product, save that
It was employed for fuel. Rice straw,
long only used as bedding for cattle,
is also enlisted in the service of the
paper maker. Spruce is the wood now
generally used in making paper pulp,
and of this there is a vast amount not
yet drawn upon in the Dominion of
Canuda, which is only waiting for rail
way facilities to transport. In the
meantime, protests are being raised
against the quality of the paper made
from these substitutes for rugs. It un
swers the purpose of ephemeral litera
ture; but there Is good reason to be
lieve that It rapidly deteriorates, and
that books made of it will have but a
short life. It Is somewhat humiliating
for us to have to acknowledge that our
modern documents cannot compare in
permanence with those written on
Egyptian papyrus before our own his
torical period begun.—Chambers' Jour
nal.
The Henrlclieiiburjr Cnnnl Lock.
A novel and unusually powerful
elevator for lifting canal boats and
barges from one level to another is
situated at Henrlchenburg, on the
Dortmund-Ems Canal, in Germany. It
is capable of lifting a canal boat of
800 tons burden a dlstnnce of about
tifty-two feet In slightly over two
minutes. The elevator itself, that is
the trough in which the boat floats.
Is about 220 feet long and twenty-eight
feet wide. It is raised by a 150-horse
power electric motor, which rotates
four vertical threaded shafts, one at
each corner of the lift, and 011 each of
which is a threaded traveling blocU
supporting the trough. As these shafts
are turnod around by tlie motor the
four blocks are drawn up along the
threads, and carry the elevator along
with them. Five floats ill a tank be
neath the lock on which the elevator
rests balance the weight of the trough
and the water it contains, amounting
in all to some <IOOO or 7000 tons, so that
the energy expended 111 raising and
lowering is little more than that re
quired to overcome the friction. The
lock-gates are operated by electric mo
tors. The electric generating plant is
situated alongside the lock 011 the canal
bank.
"Long One Jiickasn."
Senator Elkins, of West Virginia, in
his young days was a railroad station
agent out West, his oltice being a box
car on a siding. He tells the story 011
himself that one day in checking up a
carload of immigrants' effects lie could
not find a bureau called for by the way
bill. He was in possession, however,
of a vigorous young jackass that was
not down in the bill. So he wired to
the shipping agent:
"I am short one bureau and long one
jackass."
The answer came back:
"You are O. K. That bureau was a
burro."
For the benefit of the Eastern tender
foot it may be explained that the burro
is a small pack animal of the jackass
species.—Portland Orcgouian.
.Know Where tlie Whip Cumo From.
Signor Marconi, of "wireless" fame,
is fond of dogs, and used to own a
cocker spaniel of unusual intellingonce.
The young inventor says that one
day he took this dog to a saddler's with
him and bought there a whip. That
afternoon the animal was disobedient,
and he punished it with the whip 110
had just purchased. Hut in the even
ing, when lie came to look for the
weapon, again, it was nowhere to be
found.
Just then there came a ring at the
bell. It was the saddler, the whip in
hand. "Your dog, sir," he said,
"brought this to the shop in his mouth
this afternoon and laid it on the floor
and ran off quickly."—New York Trib
une.
Danger of Wealth Shown.
By John J. B. Johnson.
possessions have value only as they may give pleasure or pre
vent pain. It is hardly necessary to enumerate how and in
how many ways they are supposed to be capable of giving
pleasure and preventing pain; each one knows for himself, and
it matters not that the knowing is so different. Nothing is
surer, however, than that possessions do not always give pleas
ure nor prevent pain. In many, if not the large majority of
cases, neither of these ends is attained. In sixty years I haw*
known many rich, some very rieli and a few ultra-rich, and my memory and
impression of the lot is that they average up on the wrong side of the ledger of
happiness compared with the mass, most of them having nothing of value, un
less perchance it be a good name.
In the doctrines of the orthodox, of all creeds and nations and in all times,
professing to deal with eternity, souls exist forever in happiness and in misery.
One soul in the lapse of unending eternity will enjoy more or suffer more than
all mortal beings that may live on earth or earths, planets or stars, no matter
how many there may be nor how long they may live, provided only that the
succession end. The logical conclusion is that one soul is of greater value than
all the possessions of all mortal beings.
The point I have to make Js whether it is reasonable to suppose so weak a
vessel could be loaded with so weighty a cargo on so dangerous a sea? It
Would look, having reference to the eternal verities, like the shipper was
lacking common sense and common prudence.
Love and Quarrelling.
By Margaret Deland. J
men and women who have lived long enough In the world to
gain wisdom by experience will be obliged to admit this strauge
Msad union of Love and Quarrelling; but every one of us who has
lived deeply enough to kuow that experience worketh hope, tflll
admit that when Love quarrels with its beloved, It is just he
cause this noble ideal of unity has run off the track, so to speak;
a virtue has gone to seed; a divine quality has developed a de
feet. The outlook for quarrelsome Love is not so hopeless wlsen
we can understand this. See how it would work if those two
squabbling sisters would either of them stop to remember that it
Is only Love, foolish, exasperating, unbalanced Love, that is responsible tor
the ill-bred domestic criticism that spoils the home life. If Jane once honestly
believed thnt Mary's love made her so unpleasant, she would stop aghast,
nmused, no doubt, and very likely touched; but almost certainly silenced. And
that would be the end of the quarrel.
To bring about this same friendship between people who love each other,
respect for each other's individuality is of course necessary; but such respect
Is, after all, an abstract thing, and cannot be cultivated in a moment. While
waiting for it to struggle through our stony egotism, there is one tiling we can
do: We can vow that unless duty seriously and lovingly demands it, there
shall be no unasked criticism between people who love each other! \
Think how it would make for peace if domestic criticism were forbidden atn
every breakfast table. Think of our own happiness if our brothers and sisters
will stop telling us unpleasant truths!—think of their happiness if we could
refrain from enlightening them as to their dress, or manners, or beliefs.—Har
per's Bazar.
jZ? JS?
The Physical Training
of Our Children
By Dr. T. D. Wood, Director Pliysical Culture, New
York.
training should always aim at improved courage,
self-control and will power, and It should from the very bs-
P ginning strive to dovelop other social instincts and the better
nature of the child, so that he will he unselfish, helpful to
those about him and ready always to co-operate, and thus be
prepared for the larger work in the world after ho is matura.
The first factor necessary for the proper physical trainin&'ol
the child Is the full appreciation by the mother of the Import
ance of that phase of the child's training. The second factor
is the knowledge of his organic physical condition.
It is folly to suppose that so delicate a machine as the human body
will take care of itself, will keep in perfect condition without attention.
There should, accordingly, also bo a properly educated teacher.
If physical training is to prepare the child better for his life in human soci
ety, for his work in the great world, it must help toward the attainment not
only of physical health, but of every desirable characteristic and qunlity whlcli
the child should have.
Physical training should counteract every tendency to bad position and
posture in order that the body may he kept and grow straight and symmetrical.
Physical training should make possible a more perfect mental development,
tbat will power, courage, self-control, should be effective and a very beneficial
way; that the moral and social qualities should alwuys be gained even from
the very earliest years.
In the physical training of the child, as in all education, the two persons
most concerned are the mother and the teacher. The proper physical training
of the child can only be accomplished where the school is concerned with all
of the Influences which affect the child at home, and the home Is also' intelli
gently concerned with all the influences which uffeet the child at school.
Jc?
Germany and the
Danish West Indies
By A. Maurice Low.
ijimifc. ERMANY'S political intrigues have more than a passing interest
w vt for the United States at the present time. If the secret history
55 S of tile Danish West Indies treaty negotiations were ever pub
"* iljin,, * lished, it would probably be discovered that Germany bad a
$ 0 very large finger in that pie. One Is inclined to ask why Dan
• • mark, after having apparently welcomed the thought of ridding
herself of the incubus of the Danish West Indies, should sud
►' denly discover that they were of value to her and defeat the
treaty. The answer might be that Germany was possessed of sutHcient influ
ence at Copenhagen to bring nbout a reversal of sentiment. Nor would it be
difficult to discover her motives'. Germany, in addition to seeking a foothold
in South America, is extremely anxious to obtain a point d'appul in the Car
ibbean Sen; and the only place, in which she can plant her flag is the Danish
West Indies.
Germany gains two things by preventing the transfer of the Danish West i
Indies to the United States. So long as St. Thomas and the adjacent islands k
are under the Danish flag they are not in the possession of the United States/
and in statecraft, as well as in some other things, much may be gained by de
lay. No one knows what may happen in the course of a few years. Undoubt
edly, next to owning the islands herself, Germany prefers to see no change
made in the proprietorship.
But there may be another reason why Germany regards the existence of
the status quo as in her favor. That she would like to absorb Denmark into
ilio German Empire is not open to question. There are people, of course, who
Insist that such a thing is absolutely impossible, not because of any opposition
in Germany, but because the Danes are too bitterly hostile to Germany to
become Germdns. They have not forgotten the seizure of Schleswig-llolstoin.
But that, after all, is the past. Remembering the close dynastic tics existing
between England and Denmark, and England and Germany, it is not a fanciful
stretch of the imagination to conceive that the German Emperor may he
tiying to induce his uncle to use his influence to create a sentiment in favor of
Denmark's becoming part of the Gorman Empire. Emperor William is per
haps not unwilling to pay for this service; but exactly what ho can oiler to
England is not apparent at tlds moment.
Supposing Deumark should he merged into the German Empire, wlint then i
becomes of Denmark's West Indian possessions? The obvious answer would I
be that they would follow the flag. That would be a transfer of
from one European power to another. A transfer of sovereignty In the waters
of the New World would be a violation of the Monroe Doctrine. Would the
United States so regard it in the circumstances? Au extremely interesting
question would be raised If that should happen, and a question that might
not be so easy of solution, especially if at that time, as already suggested,
Germany possessed a navy superior to that of the United States, and felt
that she could afford to disregard the warning of the latter country. That is
a phase of the West Indian negotiations that lias been given by men whoso
business it Is to give serious consideration to the question.—The Forum.