The Great Round World and What Is Going On In It, Vol. 1, No. 15, February 18, 1897

An interest in the Nicaragua Canal would give England a right to use both the short water-ways of the world, and, with her great navy, it would give her rights that might be very dangerous to us.

The excitement about the Canal has taken away all hope of the Treaty being acted upon by Congress this session. When it does come up, the Senators intend to have it so worded that the Nicaraguan affairs cannot be interfered with by England.

The idea of the Treaty seemed a splendid thing for us, and all lovers of peace will grieve if some satisfactory understanding is not arrived at; but we must not neglect our own best interests.

There is a good deal being said about King Oscar of Sweden and Norway being chosen as the umpire, in case the members of the Arbitration Committee are unable to agree.

Many people are saying that King Oscar would not make a fair umpire, and that he would lean to the side of England in every matter that came up.

A treaty was made in Stockholm, in 1855, between Sweden and Norway, and France and England, which they say binds King Oscar to agree with England.

This treaty said that the King of Sweden agreed not to sell to Russia, or allow her to use, any portion of his kingdom; and that if Russia made any offers for land, the King of Sweden was to tell England and France at once.

England and France, in return for this, promised to help Sweden with men and ships in case of any trouble with Russia.

This treaty is not binding any longer. France has put it aside, and has made friends with Russia on her own account. It would not be possible for her to keep to her agreement if she wished to.

The old agreement being broken, England and Sweden will have to make a new one, to bind them together again.

Nothing has been heard of such a treaty, so it is to be supposed that none exists.

In this case, there is no reason why Oscar of Sweden should not be the umpire chosen.

It would, of course, be more agreeable to us if the umpire were not a European ruler. England would be sure to object to an American umpire, and neither Asia nor Africa could give us a person capable of filling the office, so it looks very much as though the only person to be found, who understands diplomacy well enough to be of use, would be a European sovereign.

If the umpire must be such a person, King Oscar of Sweden is the most desirable of them all.

He is, besides, almost the only European ruler who is free to accept the office.

The royal families of Germany, Russia, Denmark, and Greece are all related to England, and therefore could not be chosen. Austria and Italy are too hemmed in by other countries, and too much bound by treaties, to be free to give any decision that might offend Europe.

Sweden and Norway are cut off from the rest of Europe by the Baltic Sea, and for this reason have not needed to burden themselves with as many ties as the other powers of the Continent.

King Oscar is moreover a quiet, sensible man, who would be likely to help the Committee to arrive at wise and just conclusions.

There is another advantage in choosing King Oscar. The royal family of Sweden is only eighty years old, and has not those centuries of traditions behind it, which make other royal houses so difficult to deal with.

Oscar II., the present King, is the grandson of the famous French Marshal, Bernadotte, for whom Napoleon secured the throne of Sweden and Norway.

He is a man who loves learning, and encourages clever people, and is very simple in his ways.

His eldest son, Prince Oscar, wished to marry one of the ladies of his mother's household, Lady Ebba Munck, but she was not a person of sufficient rank to marry the heir to a throne.

A prince, you know, cannot marry any one he chooses. There are very strict laws about this, and the marriage of a prince is not considered a marriage at all, unless his wife is of royal blood.

King Oscar told his son that the marriage was impossible, but when Prince Oscar said he would rather give up his right to the throne than the lady he loved, King Oscar permitted him to do so, and made a special decree, allowing the marriage of his son with Lady Ebba.

King Oscar could have prevented this if he had chosen, and it must have caused him much pain to have his eldest son give up his right to the throne, and to know that, if he and all his other sons died, neither Prince Oscar nor any of his sons could ever come to the throne because of this marriage. But he loved his son better than his pride, and so Prince Oscar married Lady Ebba, and Prince Carl will be King of Sweden and Norway when his father dies.

Oscar of Sweden did a most kind and amiable thing for some of our countrymen last year.

A party of Americans were travelling in Norway, and two of them, Mr. and Mrs. Youmans, of New York, were drowned in one of the lakes. They were driving, and the horses becoming frightened, backed over the bank into the water.

Both Mr. and Mrs. Youmans were much respected and loved, their goodness and charity were unbounded, and much sorrow was felt when the news of their dreadful end was cabled to this country.

King Oscar not only expressed his sorrow for the accident, but ordered that a marble monument should be placed on the spot where they had met their death.

During the twenty-seven years that Oscar has been on the throne, his country has been peaceful and prosperous.

From Cuba, the news comes that another gunboat has been captured.

The story of the capture is that the boat, the Cometa, had been sent to a certain post on the coast to prevent the landing of any filibustering parties.

The Cubans found that the vessel anchored at night, at a spot from which she could easily be attacked from the shore.

One night they opened fire on the vessel, struck her in several places, and damaged her. During the confusion on the ship, several boat-loads of Cubans put off from the shore and boarded the Cometa.

A terrible fight took place. The commander and half the sailors were killed, and the rest surrendered. The Cubans then burned the vessel.

This news comes from the Cuban side.

The Spaniards deny that any such fight took place, and the Admiral of the fleet declares that he will have the Cometa come into Havana harbor, with all her flags flying, to show that she has not been burned.

It is so difficult to get at the truth of these reports.

The news of General Weyler is, that he has left Havana once more, and is marching through the western end of the island, to convince himself, and the authorities in Spain, that the rebellion is over, and the island has been pacified.

He declares that he has not met a single Cuban in all his marches, that there are no insurgents round Havana, and that sugar-grinding will be begun very shortly.

This is what General Weyler says of himself.

The Cubans, on their side, say that it is true that Weyler never sees any of the rebels, for the simple reason that he knows perfectly well where they are, and carefully avoids going anywhere near them.

They had a great plot laid to make him aware of their presence.

They prepared an ambush for him—which means that they set a trap for him. Weyler was walking into it, and in a few minutes would have been surrounded by the Cubans, who had planned to take him prisoner, when unfortunately one of the Cuban guns went off. The Spaniards were instantly warned that they were in danger, made a hasty retreat, and the Cubans lost their prize.

The Cubans are in strong force round Havana; they are further than ever from being pacified; the rebellion is by no means over, and Weyler's telegrams are not deceiving any one any more.

The General is not in favor in Spain, his reports are no longer believed, and he will most likely be ordered home before long, and some one else be sent to Cuba in his stead.