284 IN THE DIPLOMATIC SERVICE-XXI 



joint action by the powers who are in favor of our pro 

 posal. He thought that the important thing just now is 

 to secure the cooperation of Germany, which seems to be 

 at the parting of the ways, and undecided which to take. 



In the course of the evening one of my European col 

 leagues, who is especially familiar with the inner history 

 of the calling of the conference, told me that the reason 

 why Professor Stengel was made a delegate was not that 

 he wrote the book in praise of war and depreciating ar 

 bitration, which caused his appointment to be so unfavor 

 ably commented upon, but because, as an eminent pro 

 fessor of international law, he represented Bavaria ; and 

 that as Bavaria, though represented at St. Petersburg, 

 was not invited, it was thought very essential that a well- 

 known man from that kingdom should be put into the gen 

 eral German delegation. 



On my asking why Brazil, though represented at St. 

 Petersburg, was not invited, he answered that Brazil was 

 invited, but showed no desire to be represented. On my 

 asking him if he supposed this was because other South 

 American powers were not invited, he said that he thought 

 not; that it was rather its own indifference and care 

 lessness, arising from the present unfortunate state of 

 government in that country. On my saying that the Em 

 peror Dom Pedro, in his time, would have taken the op 

 portunity to send a strong delegation, he said : l Yes, he 

 certainly would have done so; but the present govern 

 ment is a poor sort of thing. 



I also had a talk with one of the most eminent publicists 

 of the Netherlands, on the questions dividing parties in 

 this country, telling him that I found it hard to understand 

 the line of cleavage between them. He answered that it 

 is, in the main, a line between religious conservatives and 

 liberals ; the conservatives embracing the Eoman Catho 

 lics and high orthodox Protestants, and the liberals those 

 of more advanced opinions. He said that socialism plays 

 no great part in Holland; that the number of its repre 

 sentatives is very small compared with that in many Eu- 



