England has been spending a very busy week celebrating the Queen's
Jubilee.
On such occasions, when the attention of the world is centred upon a
country, it seems to be the custom to publish startling rumors, to keep
up the excitement.
The Jubilee has been no exception to this rule. The wildest reports have
been circulated.
One account declared that the Queen was totally blind, and would not be
able to enjoy any of the festivities prepared in her honor.
This was promptly contradicted, but was soon revived with the addition
that the story was "strictly true," but that London was hushing it up
until the Jubilee was over.
Following closely on the heels of this came a new story, that Queen
Victoria was about to abdicate. This story stated that the Prince of
Wales would not be crowned King while his mother lived, but would occupy
the throne.
Abdication is the act of giving up or relinquishing the right to hold an
office. It is the same as resigning, but the word is almost without
exception used in the case of a sovereign or ruler of a country.
Abdication should be an act of free will on the part of the person who
resigns.
Queen Liliuokalani claims that she is still the rightful Queen of
Hawaii, because, though she signed an act of abdication, she says, she
did not do it of her own free will, but was forced to sign by the
present government of the islands.
As to the story of Queen Victoria's abdicating: she is now seventy-eight
years old, and she may well be wearied with the cares of government, but
she cannot abdicate unless Parliament is willing that she shall do so.
England has, in the past, had many troubles brought upon her by unwise,
weak, or wicked kings, and when James II. fled to France the English
people felt they had had enough ill treatment at the hands of kings, and
determined to take away absolute power from future kings.
The people had some cause to be afraid of too much power in the hands of
the king at that time, for James II. was the son of Charles I., who had
so mismanaged the country that the people finally had him beheaded. He
was also the brother of Charles II., who had been called to the throne
after the death of Cromwell, and who had spent the years of his reign in
every kind of folly and wickedness. The English people made up their
minds to stand no nonsense from James; so, when he showed himself
utterly incapable of ruling the country, the nobles invited William of
Orange, the husband of James' daughter Mary, to occupy the throne.
When his last hope was gone, and he saw that he would be obliged to fly
the country, James showed the people how wise they had been to get rid
of him.
He had dissolved Parliament and disbanded the army, so that there was no
form of government in the country, no army to preserve order, and, as he
thought, no possibility of calling a government together, because he had
thrown the Great Seal into the Thames River, without which and his
signature, as he supposed, no acts would be legal.
James II., sworn to protect and preserve the rights of the English
people, tried by these acts to hand them over to anarchy and mob-rule.
But Cromwell had given the people some lessons in governing without the
help of kings, and so Parliament overcame these difficulties, as you
will see if you read the history of England.
Because of the difficulties the King had caused, Parliament passed
certain new laws, limiting the power of the sovereign.
The sovereign of England therefore rules subject to the will of the
people, and it is said that the British government is one of the most
perfect forms of republican government existing.
The Jubilee festivities began Sunday, June 20th, the actual sixtieth
anniversary of the Queen's accession to the throne. This was celebrated
by thanksgiving services throughout the entire kingdom and its colonies;
the Queen and her family, the Members of Parliament, and the officials
throughout the kingdom and the colonies, attending divine service.
On Monday Her Majesty went to Buckingham Palace, her London residence,
and received the notable foreigners who had come to do her honor, and
the officers of her various governments throughout the world.
Tuesday was the day of the great procession, when the Queen rode in
state through London to take part in the public thanksgiving at St.
Paul's Cathedral.
This service was held on the steps of the Cathedral, the Queen remaining
in her carriage, surrounded by her family, her guests, and the
soldiers--joining in the service of praise with her people.
It must have been an impressive ceremony--in the midst of a vast throng
of princes, nobles, and soldiers in splendid uniforms, this quiet little
old lady in black, listening with bowed head to the prayers, and then
raising her face to smile on her people. The prayers being over, the
crowds, that had silently watched the service, with one voice joined in
the fine old anthem, "God Save the Queen."
The Queen was escorted to and from the cathedral by the most brilliant
array of princes this century has seen. Thirty-six princes, representing
nearly every monarch on earth, rode three by three to escort Victoria.
Before leaving Buckingham Palace to go to St. Paul's, the Queen sent a
message of thanks to every part of her vast empire. Arrangements had
been made that Her Majesty should personally despatch these telegrams;
wires had been laid and everything arranged, so that when she pressed
the button in the palace the telegrams were sent forth to her colonies,
straight from the royal hand. In three hours replies had been received
from all but three of the forty-three colonies to which her message had
been despatched.
The Jubilee celebrations were continued through the week, with state
dinners and concerts, and an address from the Parliament on Wednesday; a
visit to Eton College, the royal school, on Thursday; a review of the
fire brigades on Friday, and of the navy on Saturday. A pretty busy week
for a person of seventy-eight years.
The celebration was considered very remarkable as a demonstration of
naval and military strength.
Fifty thousand troops marched in line on Tuesday, and at the naval
review England was represented by more war-vessels than any other power
possesses.
Troops had been sent from British colonies in Asia, Africa, North and
South America, and Oceanica. From all quarters of the globe people of
many races, colors, and languages came together to acknowledge Victoria
as their Queen.
The Jubilee week must have been a proud season for Englishmen--they had
a fine opportunity to show the world the power of their great empire.
* * * * *
The Irish members of Parliament persisted in their refusal to join in
the Jubilee ceremonies.
When it was proposed in the House of Commons that an address of
congratulation be sent to the Queen, the Irish members made a scene.
They protested against any message being sent, unless it contained a
statement that during the sixty years of Victoria's reign Ireland had
been subject to much suffering and deprived of her rights, and that
therefore the Irish members of Parliament were dissatisfied and unable
to join in the celebrations.
The House of Commons would not entertain this, and a motion was passed
that the address should be sent to the Queen.
The Irish members continued their protests after the vote had been
taken, declaring it false and absurd to present the address when it did
not express the sentiment of the House, but only of a portion of it.
* * * * *
Captain Boycott has just died. You are probably familiar with the name,
and with the meaning of the word "boycott," but it may interest you to
know what a very young word it is, only seventeen years old, having been
coined in 1880, and that it derives its origin from this very Captain
Boycott who has just passed away.
He was a captain in the English army. After a while he sold out his
commission, and settled down as a farmer in Connemara, Ireland. He
became the agent of an Irish landlord named Lord Erne, and it was his
duty to manage the estate, see to the sowing and gathering of crops,
keep the houses on the property in repair, and collect the rents from
the tenants.
The Irish had long been complaining that their rents were too heavy, and
that their landlords did nothing for them in return for the money
collected. There was a good deal of truth in these complaints; the
landlords hardly ever went near their estates, and seemed to care only
for the money they got from the tenants. The whole conduct of affairs
was left in the hands of the agents, who were obliged to grind the money
out of the tenants to supply the wants of their masters.
It does not appear that Captain Boycott was more severe than other
agents, but he does seem to have been less in sympathy with the
peasants.
There had been a long period of bad harvests followed by a famine, and
the tenants could not pay their rents. They begged that their back rent
might be forgiven them, and their future rents lowered.
All over Ireland similar demands were being made. Irish agitators, as
they were called, were holding meetings all over the country, advising
the peasants to make these demands. Among the men who addressed the
people were Charles Stewart Parnell, John Dillon, and Michael Davitt,
all members of Parliament.
Excitement had run so high that the peasants had murdered several agents
who refused their demands.
Mr. Parnell and his friends urged the people not to commit crimes, but
to refuse to pay the rents demanded.
These leaders bade the people stop buying from, selling to, or working
for any landlord who refused to listen to their demands, and to prevent
others from having any dealings with them.
This is what is called "boycotting." Captain Boycott was its first
victim. He not only refused to lower the rents, but, according to the
story of the peasants, he reduced the wages of his laborers by a system
of petty fines.
Acting on Mr. Parnell's advice, the laborers refused to work for him,
and the tenants refused to have any dealings with him.
It was harvest-time, but the crops were left rotting in the fields,
because no one would lend a hand to gather them. The farm servants left
the farm, and there was no one to feed the cattle or milk the cows. The
country people round would sell neither food, clothes, nor medicines to
any of the family.
The peasants cut Captain Boycott off from the rest of the world, and
kept him thus isolated until the Government had to interfere.
A gang of laborers was sent down, under the escort of a troop of
soldiers, and gathered in the crops, and when the work was done, under
the protection of the soldiers, the Captain and his family were taken
from their home and safely guarded until they reached Dublin.
In describing this most extraordinary affair there was no word which
properly applied to it, and so the word "boycotting" was coined, after
the man who first suffered from the system, and in the new editions of
the dictionaries "boycott" and "boycotting" appear as regular words of
the English language.
* * * * *
We may have an Arbitration Treaty with England after all.
President McKinley is in favor of an understanding between England and
the United States, and it is said that a new treaty has been prepared.
Sir Julian Pauncefote has refused to take any steps in the matter until
the United States has made a formal offer to his Government, but it is
understood that he is as much in favor of the arrangement as the
President.
The new treaty will differ in many respects from the one prepared by Mr.
Olney. It will be expressly stated that all matters relating to the
Nicaragua Canal and the Monroe Doctrine shall not be included as
subjects for arbitration. (For Monroe Doctrine, see p. 210.)
It is intended to find out the feeling of the Senate toward the measure
before the new treaty is signed. A second refusal to ratify might make
bad feeling between the two countries.
It is not expected that the new treaty will be sent to the Senate before
December.
* * * * *
The terms of peace between Turkey and Greece have not yet been agreed
upon, nor has the amount of money which Greece must pay been finally
decided.
It is rumored that it will be about twenty-three million dollars, which
is the largest sum that Greece is able to pay. It is also reported that
Turkey is now willing to give up Thessaly without further trouble.
This may be true, but Turkey is posting guns on the mountains that mark
the frontier between Greece and Turkey, and is despatching additional
troops there.
An announcement has also been made that the Sultan has formed twenty
more cavalry regiments, and has raised the number of soldiers to be
recruited for the Turkish army to seven hundred thousand, which gives
him an immense number of fighting men at his command.
* * * * *
Little progress has been made with Cuban affairs, but they are still
moving slowly forward.
The Liberal party in the Spanish Cortes has declared itself in favor of
honest reforms in Cuba.
This party, which is led by Señor Sagasta, thinks that the reforms
offered by Canovas, the Prime Minister, are not sufficient to pacify the
insurgents. They think that a Commissioner should be sent out by Spain,
to insure to the Cubans real home rule, and bring peace and prosperity
back to the island.
The Liberals say that the first step in the direction of peace must be
the recall of General Weyler, and that the horrors of his rule must be
stopped at once.
Señor Comas, who had his ears boxed by the Duke of Tetuan, belongs to
this Liberal party. His friends are still so incensed at this insult
that they have issued a manifesto, refusing to have any relations with
the Government so long as the Duke remains in power.
This disagreement in the Cortes is a very serious thing for Spain. At
this moment, when there is so much dissatisfaction over the expenses of
the Cuban war and constant fears of a Carlist rising are entertained, it
is most necessary that the two parties should agree.
The fear of a Carlist rising is growing stronger. Only the other day a
large store of rifles and ammunition was found in a house in Barcelona,
one of the large cities of Spain. They had been stored there to be in
readiness for the Carlists.
Don Carlos has announced that if he secures the throne of Spain, it is
his intention to give home rule to Cuba; and the Spanish people are so
tired of the war, and the taxes, poverty, and sorrow that it has brought
with it, that this statement brought many friends to his cause.
General Woodford is known to have sympathized with the Cubans in their
last struggle for liberty, and to have made some very severe speeches
against Spain at that time.
The Madrid papers have mentioned this fact, and it is thought that the
Queen Regent may object to his appointment.
In the mean while some strange plans have been offered as a solution of
the difficulty.
From Washington comes a report that the Sugar Trust has offered to buy
Cuba, and keep it as a vast sugar plantation.
Gomez is reported to have said that Cuba does not want the United States
to go to war with Spain for her sake. All she asks is that she shall be
granted belligerent rights, and be allowed to buy and ship her supplies
without interference.
The Morgan Resolution (for granting these rights) has not yet passed the
House.
Some of the Senators who are anxious that it shall be passed declare
that they will force the House to consider it, by putting off action on
the Tariff Bill until the Cuban Resolutions are brought before the
House.
* * * * *
It seems that the _Dauntless_ has met the usual fate of sinners.
She made a successful trip to Cuba after her release from custody, and,
returning to this country, took on another forbidden cargo.
She escaped the cruiser _Vesuvius_ by hiding herself among the Florida
Keys, but fate overtook her; her boiler burst while she was off Indian
Key, and she was easily captured by the cutter _McLean_.
This time she will probably not escape so easily.
* * * * *
When the President sent the Hawaiian Annexation Treaty to the Senate, he
sent with it a message, giving reasons why the annexation of Hawaii
seems advisable.
His message stated that the idea of joining the two countries together
is no new one, that all our dealings with the Sandwich Islands for the
past three-quarters of a century have been leading toward this point,
and that for seventy years the government of the Hawaiian Islands has
leaned on the friendship of the United States, and annexation would be
only the natural outcome of the existing relations.
The Treaty has been published. It provides, in addition to the clauses
regarding the debt and the public lands (about which we told you last
week), that all existing treaties between Hawaii and foreign nations
shall cease, and that no further immigration of Chinese shall be allowed
to Hawaii, nor shall any of the Chinamen at present living in the
Hawaiian Islands be allowed to visit the United States.
These two clauses are objected to by both the Chinese and the Japanese.
China declares that if Hawaii is annexed it will become a part of the
United States, and protests that Chinamen living in Hawaii shall
therefore have the same right to come to the United States that they
have to journey from one State to another.
Japan has entered a formal protest against the annexation.
She claims that she has perpetual treaty rights with Hawaii; that is to
say, that her treaties can never be ended. She declares that the
Annexation Treaty must not have any clause cancelling existing treaties
with other nations. Such a clause would seriously damage her interests.
This protest from Japan comes in some degree from injured feelings.
Japan complains that throughout her disagreement with Hawaii she
recognized the interests of the United States, and caused copies of all
papers relating to the matter to be sent from her embassy to this
Government.
Despite this courtesy on her part, she was kept in complete ignorance of
the Annexation Treaty. When rumors of such an arrangement reached her
minister, he went to the State Department to make inquiries, and claims
that Mr. Sherman did not give satisfactory answers, but seemed purposely
trying to keep Japan in ignorance of the true state of the case.
Mr. Sherman replied to this protest that there can be no such thing as a
perpetual treaty.
According to his point of view, a treaty, no matter how strongly drawn,
must end when one of the countries that made it ceases to be a nation
any longer. Should the Senate ratify the treaty, Hawaii will become a
part of the United States, her life as a nation will be at an end, and
her treaties will cease with her.
Mr. Sherman reminds Japan of the treaty between Japan and the United
States that will go into effect in 1899, and which will give her the
same privileges she had with Hawaii. He adds that if she is not content
to wait the two years till the United States treaty begins, arrangements
can be made to cover the intervening period.
* * * * *
There is a good deal of gossip over the fact that Mr. Sherman put his
signature to the Annexation Treaty.
From various speeches in the Senate, and from statements in his memoirs,
it was believed that he was strongly opposed to the annexation of
Hawaii. It is rumored, indeed, that Queen Liliuokalani based her
strongest hopes of regaining her throne on the belief that the Secretary
of State was opposed to the treaty and would use his influence to
prevent its being ratified.
Mr. Sherman, however, states that while he was opposed to such a step at
one time, the trouble between Hawaii and Japan has caused him to change
his mind, and he now thinks annexation will be most desirable for all
parties concerned.
The ex-Queen of the Sandwich Islands, Liliuokalani, has also sent in her
protest against the Treaty. She objects because "her people," as she
calls the Hawaiians, have not been consulted, and also because no
provision has been made for her.
This protest has been filed in the State Department, and will be
attended to in due course.
Notice of our intentions with regard to Hawaii has been sent to the
various foreign powers, and so far no other protest has been received.
* * * * *
Christian Ross, the broken-hearted father of Charlie Ross, has just died
in Philadelphia.
You are all probably familiar with the story of little Charlie Ross, who
was stolen away from his home; but it seems well to tell it you again,
for it may serve as a warning against making chance acquaintances in the
street.
Charlie Ross and his brother Walter were playing in front of their home
in Germantown, Pa., when two men drove by in a buggy. The men promised
the boys a ride if they would walk up to the top of the hill on which
the house stood.
The boys ran gladly up the hill, and then, when they were safely out of
sight of the house, the two men took them up and drove off with them.
They gave them candy, and kept the boys happy and amused until they
reached the town. Here they gave the older boy, Walter, a quarter to go
and buy some more candy, and while he was in the store drove off with
Charlie.
All this happened twenty-three years ago, but from that day to this
Charlie Ross has never been found.
His father was frantic with grief, and a careful search was made for the
child, but no traces of him could be found.
Some days after Charlie had been stolen, a letter was brought to his
father, saying that the boy was being held for ransom, and would be
returned to his father on the payment of twenty thousand dollars.
This money was raised, and would have been paid to the brigands, but
that the police stepped in and insisted upon their right to manage the
case.
Mr. Ross had been warned against allowing the police to interfere. The
thieves had written to him that if he did so they would kill the boy.
The Mayor of Philadelphia offered the enormous reward of twenty thousand
dollars for the recovery of the boy and the arrest of the persons who
had stolen him. Notices of this were printed in every language, and sent
all over the world; but though numbers of people were working to gain
the great reward, Charlie Ross has never been found.
* * * * *
We told you last week of the new volcano which has appeared in Mexico.
The shocks have done a great deal of damage. The town of Tehuantepec has
been completely destroyed, and the people are living in tents on the
outskirts of the place.
Tremblings of the earth still continue to be felt along the Pacific
Coast, and the people are terror-stricken.
One very severe shock was felt in San Francisco, but little damage
resulted from it. Some of the California towns have, however, suffered
severely.
Nature seems to be playing some strange tricks this year.
The French people have been treated to a cyclone.
They seemed to be really indignant over the visitation. They had always
considered that cyclones were American institutions, and never expected
that they would follow the example of American people and find their way
to Paris.
This storm was a regular Westerner, sweeping down everything in its
path, blowing houses over, and destroying things generally.
Having spent part of its rage in France, it rushed across the English
Channel, raising such a gale there that many vessels were wrecked, both
on the English and French shores.
The storm crossed England and reached the Irish Channel, where it again
played havoc with the shipping. Admiral Lord Nelson's flag-ship, the
_Foudroyant_, was anchored off Liverpool. It had been touring up and
down the coast as a show-ship. The storm put an end to its journeyings
forever. It was caught in the gale, driven ashore, and is now a total
wreck.
If such storms are repeated, we shall have to tell our European cousins
how they manage tornadoes and cyclones out West.
In the State of Kansas, tornadoes are more dreaded than fires, and the
Kansas children are taught a tornado drill as our Eastern children are
taught a fire drill.
According to the statements we receive, the citizens take to the
prairies the moment a tornado strikes a Kansas town. As the children
cannot run as fast as the grown-ups, they have often been caught and
injured by the terrible storms before they could escape.
To prevent such accidents in the future, some one decided to build
tornado caves under the schoolhouses. These caves are large enough to
shelter all the children while the blow lasts, and the scholars are
regularly drilled in the methods of reaching these caves quickly and in
good order.
The teacher sounds the alarm, and instantly the pupils stand up, and to
the music of their own singing march down the stairs and into the cave.
Then, let the tornado rage as it will, they are safe.
* * * * *
The tailors' strike is over, and has resulted in a victory for the
strikers.
The contractors have signed the new agreement, and most of the tailors
are now back at their work.
This victory means a great deal to the workers. Their period of labor
will be reduced from fifteen hours a day to ten, and by the new scale
of wages they will be able to earn from $10 to $18 a week, instead of
from $5 to $10 as formerly.
The leader of the strike, Meyer Shoenfeld, has been working so hard in
the interests of his fellow-laborers that he is quite ill. At one of the
last meetings of the strikers he broke down in the midst of a speech he
was making, and was unable to continue.
When he heard that the contractors were about to sign, he insisted on
getting out of his sick-bed and going to the meeting, to make sure
everything was being properly arranged.
The success of the strikers will cause a slight increase in the price of
ready-made clothes, but few are likely to begrudge this when they
realize what an increase of comfort it means to the poor workers.
* * * * *
Austria and Hungary are not getting along as well as they might.
There are two reasons for this unfriendly feeling.
One is that Austria has asked Hungary to pay a larger proportion of the
common expenses of the two countries. It was arranged that Hungary
should pay thirty per cent. of these expenses, and Austria the other
seventy per cent., because Austria was much larger and wealthier than
the sister land.
Since these arrangements were made Hungary has become exceedingly
prosperous, and Austria now asks her to pay thirty-seven per cent. of
the expenses instead of the former thirty per cent.
Hungary will not listen to any arguments on the subject, and threatens
to separate herself from Austria.
These two countries are governed by one sovereign, and, like Sweden and
Norway, or the various States of our own country, have each their own
local government, but are united on all matters of foreign affairs,
national defences, tariff, etc.
[Illustration]
The Hungarians and Austrians are, however, people of very different
races, and, in spite of the years they have been joined under one
federal government, they have never grown to like each other.
The Hungarians are Magyars, and were originally of Asiatic origin. They
are a fierce, fiery race. The Austrians come of the same stock as the
Germans, and are of a much milder temperament.
Hungary is a conquered country. In the fourteenth and fifteenth
centuries it was a very great kingdom, but in the sixteenth century its
power declined, and, the king having died, Turkey and Austria fought
for the possession of the crown, Austria eventually gaining the day.
Ferdinand I., a prince of the Austrian House of Hapsburg, was declared
King of Hungary, and ever since then the Emperor of Austria has been
crowned King of Hungary.
The Hungarians have never felt satisfied with the Austrian rule, and
have frequently revolted. The last rising was in 1848, under Louis
Kossuth. This rebellion was put down with the help of the Russians.
Last June a great patriotic celebration took place in Hungary, and this
possibly roused the national feeling so strongly in the hearts of the
Hungarians that it has made them a little more restless than usual.
This celebration was called the Banderium, and was to celebrate the
thousandth year of Hungary's existence as a kingdom.
The nobles of Hungary met together in Buda-Pesth, the capital city of
the country, and went in procession to the Houses of Parliament, and
swore allegiance to the battered golden crown which Pope Sylvester II.
had given to the first King of Hungary, one thousand years before.
It was said to have been a most wonderful and stirring sight to see
these nobles "dressed in the clothes their ancestors had worn, carrying
the banners under which their grandfathers had fought, weeping with
emotion around a battered golden crown," a relic of the days when their
fatherland was great and powerful.
The description given by Mr. Richard Harding Davis in _Scribner's
Magazine_ for March, and from which we quote the above statement, gives
a living picture of this grand festival. There can be little doubt that
such an occasion must have roused the patriotism of these people to
fever heat.
Whether this be true or not, it is certain that the Hungarians have been
harder to manage, and that their dislike of the Austrians has been
steadily gaining strength.
We spoke of a second cause of disagreement. It arises from a measure
that was intended to conciliate the Hungarians.
This measure was an imperial edict, ordering that every official, in the
districts where Hungarian is spoken, must be able to speak both the
German and Hungarian language within five years.
This has given great offence to the German-speaking part of the
population; they cannot see why they should be forced to learn
Hungarian, and the Hungarians insist that no officials can properly
govern a people unless they can speak their language.
These two questions have set Hungary and Austria at variance with each
other, and it is feared that Hungary may not be satisfied until she has
severed herself from Austria, and once more become an independent
kingdom.
* * * * *
There is fresh news from the Greater Republic of Central America.
We told you on page 222 that Guatemala and Costa Rica would be glad to
enter the federation, but could not do so without the full consent of
their congresses.
Word has reached us that Guatemala has signed the treaty which makes
her a part of the new Republic.
Costa Rica has not joined as yet. It seems that she has a little private
feud on hand with Guatemala, and is not ready to make up her mind to
join any federation that holds her enemy.
She declares that she is the most prosperous of the five countries of
Central America, and that she has nothing to gain by the federation. She
does not believe that the new republic will be a permanent affair, and
does not wish to join it until she feels more sure that it will be.
To assure her of their good faith, the four other republics have offered
to name President Iglesias of Costa Rica as the first President of the
Diet which is to govern the republic. But Costa Rica still holds aloof
from the combination.
The object of the federation was to bring about a more settled state of
affairs, and arrange for the friendly adjustment of all disputes with
foreign countries.
These five small republics, joined together with a common interest,
should play a very important part in the affairs of Central America.
* * * * *
South American affairs are still in a state of turmoil, and Argentina
has now been drawn into the quarrel.
It seems that the Argentine Republic is in sympathy with the rebels, and
has sent filibustering expeditions of men and supplies to them.
The Uruguayan Government became extremely indignant at this, and
endeavored to put a stop to such proceedings by invading Argentina. A
force of soldiers was landed on the coast of Argentina, and a vessel
flying the flag of that country was sunk by the guns of the Uruguayan
cruiser.
Argentina immediately replied by sending one of her gunboats to the
scene of action, and making preparations for war with Uruguay.
In the mean while the rebels have been gaining victories both in Brazil
and Uruguay. The fanatics under Conselhiero (see page 741) have beaten
back the Brazilian troops, and have recaptured Canudos. The Uruguayan
rebels, on their part, have defeated the Government troops at Rivera,
inflicting heavy loss on them.
* * * * *
There is a movement on foot to erect a monument to the memory of Harriet
Beecher Stowe, the well-known authoress, who died on March 5, 1897, at
the age of eighty-five.
[Illustration]
Mrs. Stowe did much for the advancement of American letters. Before she
wrote "Uncle Tom's Cabin," story-writing was in its infancy in America.
It is hard for young people to realize how the times have changed with
the coming of the many magazines and papers that we have to-day. Balzac,
Thackeray, Dickens, Dumas, and Hawthorne were publishing their wonderful
romances at the time Mrs. Stowe appeared as an authoress. She wrote many
other stories during her long life, although her fame rests very largely
upon the one book, "Uncle Tom's Cabin," of which many hundreds of
thousands of copies have been sold.