AMERICAN AND EUROPEAN SUMMARY.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4264, 25 January 1901, Page 3

AMERICAN AND EUROPEAN SUMMARY.

THE NEW CENTURY, THE NEWSPAPER OE THE FUTURE. AMERICAN POLICY OF ADMINISTRATION. THE 11AY-PAUKCEFOIE TREATY, DIPLOMACY IN TILE BALKANS. (Per R.M.S. Alameda at Auckland.) SAN FRANCISCO, January 3. Thd year was ushered in with unusual vioiso and ceremony in America, owing to its irnpi.-rtance in ushering in the new century. The press gave extended accounts of the formalities at Sydney -n Hie inauguration of a new era for Australia, and the details w'tc read with marked interest because of a belief that the development of the Commonwealth concern - ; America in general, and the Uni'ed States in particular. hi New York Allred ILarmsworth, the .famous and remarkable* Journalist now ve-JUng this country, took charge of the "‘New Yoik World" for the day. An enormous edition, arranged according t ■ tlio Englishman’s idea of what a modern newspaper ought to he, was soon exhausted. The publishers or the ‘‘\Vcr*d will not, however, continue to print the paper according to flarmsworth’s idea of what a newspaper of the twentieth century is to heecme. The edition appeared'in thiit;' : twc-page form, reduced to ouo-half its size- and lacking some of the usual illustrations. News was given iu a condensed form, arranged with only I'cur columns to the page. The paper was found to bo convenient to handle, and tliis is ono advantage urged by .{■(armsworth. Newspaper men generally were unable to endorse this innovation, declaring that tho appearance of the paper was leo magazine-)iko. _ In 'he issue Mr Ma.rmsworth said, editorially; “Briefly, some of my claims forythe success o'f tho future newspaper of this kind are based on tho following points;—A ■Miring rf tho reader’s time; advantage to advertisers; convonienb shape for car and chair reading; neatness for carrying in the pocket. Nor would I confine tho scheme to tho news alone, although I hold that nows is cf the first importmice to a newspaper, and the chief items of news .should bo given with considerable fullness." In an interview on tho subject, Mr Hanuswortii said: “With tho newspapers of the whole world boforo mo each, week, I look in vain for any great and impressive stroke of originality ami daring. Wo still cling to tho clumsy and awkward shape in which our papers are issued, and tho man wiio has attempted to manipulate one of them on a windy day will best appreciate tho i'ereo of my remarks. Without novv machinery it would bo impossible to issiio iho newspaper of tho future in what is obviously its proper shape—a small, portable and neatly-indexed publication. Among newspapers that arel now, according to'my opinion, making progress, setting aside their ontiro lack of commercial morality, are some of the- French journals. They have always been noted for high literary excellence'. - , Tho an- | on.vmous editorial has never boon a strong feature of French papers, but j pure literature iu tho shape, of fiction or, criticism has always been a feature.” | The power of tho press is net what it j used to be, iu Mr Hamsworbh’s opinion. ; This ho declares is especially true of; England, where tho leader was formerly: road and quoted l by all men of intelligence. It is now scarcely glanced at. j The groat cry is for news, bub even in 1 this dissemination of news tho press has i loot its reputation. Mr Harmsworth | pays a high tribute to tho press of tho! United States, as being in some respects* in advance of the country. I

While Now York, San ’Francisco and other cities greeted the new year with tin' tooting of horns, the ringing of ■chimes and bolls, the singing,of monster choruses and watch mdotings of the! lied Cross and ether organisations, Chi- , vngo experienced her first ‘'dry night.” 1 An ordinance had Coen' passed ordering the midnight closing of all saloons and all places where liquors are sold, and despite the holiday the police had the .strictest orders to enforce the ordinance. Tho Mayor has boon criticised for tho firm stand he took in the matter, but has not permitted himself to bo shaken in his determination, Thetre shall be no discrimination in favour of any class in this matter. Patrons of grand opera are nob to bo permitted their glass of wine after tho performance while the ■working man is refused his drink. Cables from Romo declare'that the century was ushered in with religious ceremonies of unusual solemnity. Most of tho churches wore open until midnight, when their brills and those of tho capital pealed forth a greeting to t*»o neHv century. A most imposing ceremonial was held in the ancient catacombs of Domitilla. Tho function was splendid in tho extreme, and tho subterranean basilica was beautifully decorated in honour of the dead. Midnight mass at St. Peter’s was largely attended in spite of tho rain. The Pope celebrated mass privately in his own chapel. A salute of 101 guns was fired from the castle of San Angelo. Telegrams from the European capitals tel! of illuminations and fetes of all sorts in honour of five now year. At Berlin tho celebration was comparatively quiet, owing to the bitter cold, though some streets were filled with tho usual rioting, hat-smashing crowds. The Emperor and Empress had a family and children's party at Potsdam, with a magnificent tree filled with gifts. Tho Germans having officially regarded the century as beginning on January 1, 1900, the celebration this year was not especially brilliant'.

England appears to be in the midst of her winter. Reports from that most interesting quarter of tho globe arc of dense fogs of pea-soup variety and tho worst for several years. In the country districts floods were most distressing. At Bath the watdr was fourteen feet deep, with the tops of the cottages just appearing above tho waste of waters. Boats wore kept busy rescuing the inundated, and four deaths were reported. Thousands have been rendered idle through tho flooding of the works, and in several instances trains were held all night out of reach of assistance. Bad news from the field cf war added to the general depression. Additional details of the roversd at Helvetia are coming in. It is declared that tho fact that the Boors invariably release prisoners does not make such incidents less humiliating to British pride. It H asserted that Secretary of the Navy Long purchased the island of San Luis Dapri, in the harbour of Guam, from tho natives for nine hundred dollars. The island will be used as a coaling station, and is said to bo admirably' adapted to the purpose.

The Americiius arc just- now much interested in the approaching struggle rn the Supreme Court for the decision as to whether the United States may lawfully hold and govern dependencies, provinces, or colonies tinder the American flag. It is understood tho future policy not only of President McKinley’s Administration but of tho Republican party. will he established by the Supreme /Court decision, which is soon to be nr(guetl. It is admitted that if it is tieIcidod that Congress and President have no power to impose duties on inerchr.n. disc coming into the United States from Porto Rico or the Philippine the protective t.u'iif system will receive a death-blow. Tho Government will contend that the reserved sovereignty of

the nation lies not in the whole people hut in tho people of the States; if- win assort the right of Government to assume unrestricted sovereign powers out side tho boundaries of the Lin ed Stales - it will insist that our new territories arc owned by and not incorporated within the United Stales. This position will ho taken against t-iai pleaded by Carlisle and other groat .egal lights of the country to the effect that Porto Rico is a port of the United States iu tho sen if employed by Gnei •Justice Marshall when he described the United Stales as “ consisting of States and territories,” and that Congress is limited in its powers, regardless of the •status of tho country in which its acts are to bo nppiic'l. It- will lako tnc ~unreme Court -everal months in the oiornary course of even's to reach its occasion. Tncrc is no chance that lire dcci•don will he reached before Congress adjourns on March 4, hut if the occ.Mqn should ho handed down early in u< o uriinKT. and tho Government .snou.ci find itself ; uddenly stripped of hs power, it is not iinoos-ihie the Rresideut may feel compelled to rail an extra session of . Many million dollars would have to bo refunded out of the public , 7is even said that the President is t - o<ss-y on I lie subject, though he and other officials have declared their confidence that the policy of administration is correct, and will he upheld. Tho Secretary of War communicated to Congress a cablegram from the Philip, pine Commission indicating a grave crisis in the monetary affairs of the archipelago. The stock of silver in the is-

lands is rapidly f!iniijii-Ii■ nor, and it appears impossible to continue the iatio of a to 1 established and maintained arbitrarily. Mexican money is bei)’.;'drained away to India, making it difficult tor disbursing officers to transact business., Tito Philippine Commission im* prepared a Municipal Government Bill Similar in many respects to General McArthurs order relative to municipal governments, and authorising elections. 'l'he most notable feature- is the establishment of land taxations, and doing away with the head tax, and taxation on people's occupations. A feature' new to the Philippines is ihc provision that the land tax ■s to ‘bo expended where it is collected. The manner of holding elections and the duties of officers arc prescribed. Conditions in Porto Pico are very bad. A small band of these people has been taken to Hawaii by private parties to work on plantations and a second party of four hundred emigrants is now on the way.

A fter spending the greater part of the week considering the Hay-Panncef-rte treaty, the United States Senate finally, on December flOtii, passed that convention in its amended form. The first amendment raids the words ‘'which is hereby superseded 1 ' after “Claylon-Bul-wer treaty” in the original. The second amendment struck out the article treaty, which reads a.s follows:, — j-bo high contracting parties will, upon the exchange of ratifications of this convention, bring it to the notice of the other Powers, and ask them to adhere to it. It is yet unknown wliether England will accept the treaty in its amended form;. hence the fate of the measure authorising the canal is stilt very much in doubt. The paragraph declaring for the abrogation of the Claytou-liulwcr treaty has been rather ill received by the English press, and a declaration has been beard in several quarters to the efface that the United States appear to be most ungrateful. Perhaps the next most important measure before the present session of Congress is in favour of subsidies to Amen-

can .shipbuilders. Concerning this, his pet measure, Senator Hanna contributes to the “National Magazine” for January an article, from which the following' extracts arc taken i ‘The cost of running ships under the American flag has been computed at between 30 and -id per cent, higher than the cost of runI ning foreign ships. It is duo to the I higher wages paid to American officers I and seamen and firemen, and to the heritor quality and larger quantity of 100.1 furnished them.” “The value of ships built in the United States and the value of the men who man them to our navy in time of trouble in itself will more than compensate the United- States uoveminent and the American _ people for all the money they expend in inducing our people to build and to run ships lender the provisions of this Bill.’ “Iho Bill provides compensation at fixed rates for a period not to exceed twenty years, and at no time shall the sum so expended exceed in any one year 9,000.000 dollars.” “It is intended to encourage Ame--1 ricans to buy only American-built ships. If American people can be brought to understand the need and the value m an American mercantile marine, t.ien too Bill now pending makes provision for such accomplishment. This result, it cannot be said too emphatically, wid en. tirely fail of accomplishment unless there is a very substantial reduction in the rates of freight charged for carrying

our imports and “TlioponJiiig Shipping Bill is an equitable honest, scientifically drawn, automatically adjustable measm'o, destined to place the American flag once more upon the ;-eas to the material benefit of all Americans.” . The Papa! Bull announcing the extension of Holy Year caused consklcrab.e surprise at Homo, whore it had been understood that the past year had more than fulfilled expectations as to the number of Pilgrims received at Romo, and the amount in Peter's pence which hud poured into the coHcrs ef tho Vatican. It appears that the Pope, in view of Ilia approaching demise, which ho is said to hoar always in mind despite his jocular declaration that he intends to live to bo a hundred, is anxious to havo the Papal finances in a prosperous condition. During December alone, according to a report

front Rome to the associated press, die enormous sum of two million four hundred thousand lire was paid in in Peter's pence alone. Nothing like this has over been received in a single month since tho Popo ceased to bo a temporal sovereign, Tho figures have not been officially" declared, but it is scmi-officially stated that tho total of Peter’s pence for tho year ending December 2-lth was seventeen million six hundred thousand lire. Sic hundred thousand Pilgrims and five hundred thousand visitors, not properly so classified, visited Rome uuring the year. It *s reported front Spain that tho resignation of Rear-Admiral R-amos, Minister of Marine, may be expected, owiim- to tho rejection by the Chamber of Deputies, of the Government s scheme for rebuilding the Navy. It is reported from Vienna that the Bucharest press states that at the suggestion of Count Von Billow, an offensive and defensive alliance has been concluded between Turkey arm Roumauia. which is directed against an v Power which might try to disturb tho peace in tho Balkans. This is said to bo perhaps only dosignod to distract Russia’s attention in some degree from the situation in Cnma. With a view to paralysing this alliance, an ‘'entente” has been arrived at between Scrvia and Bulgaria under tho patronage of Russia. In well-informed circles in Vienna the news was at first registered without comment, but the conclusion was later drawn owing to a- report being given out for publication .that the condition between Russia nno I Austria regarding the Balkans is no !on\gor as solid as formerly.