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as it is really constituted, is largely influenced in what are known 
as social ways, and for these Great Britain has always made abun- 
dant provision. Her embassy or legation in every capital. of the 
world is a center, and generally a most influential center. Men 
may declaim against her; may even detest her, but, none the less, 
in every capital her embassy or legation stands as a power, social, 
and, largely on that account, political. 
Another duty of our foreign representatives is the collection of 
information bearing on large questions important to our country. 
Of this information, that which relates to the actions of foreign 
powers in anticipated crises is frequently of the utmost importance. 
Grant that our diplomats have not the prophetic gift, still at every 
time since the formation of this Government, and never more than 
now, it has been of great importance to this country, politically and 
commercially, to have, at various centers of information throughout 
the world, thinking men with access to the best sources of news, who 
can constantly keep the home government advised as to the probable 
action of foreign powers. At this moment, when Europe is one 
great group of fortified camps, and great changes are taking place 
in Asia and Africa, and troublesome questions are arising in South 
America, it cannot but be of immense value to our manufacturing, 
commercial, and indeed all other interests to have the best and most 
recent information regarding the outcome of warlike operations, the 
drift of public opinion, and settlements likely to be made; and such 
information is obtained by our representatives at the lesser capitals 
almost as frequently as at the greater. 
Then, too, there are other subjects of importance. Every year 
our State Department issues sundry volumes entitled ‘ Diplomatic 
Relations.” These are made up of selections from the dispatches of 
our representatives abroad. Among these are found not only dis- 
patches on current international business, but valuable reporis on 
leading subjects of public interest; and of these I may mention, in 
recent times, reports on systems of finance in foreign countries; on 
their supply and management of the circulating medium; on the 
administration of cities; on government railway systems; on public 
museums ; on educational institutions; and the like. It may be said 
that the newspapers and magazines give us these; but the difficulty 
is that information thus supplied is too frequently sketchy and 
scrappy.. I do not underrate the newspaper correspondent; he is 
one of the wonders of the world; but, after all, the diplomatic repre- 
sentative has certain decided advantages: he has easy access to men 
controlling every sort of institution, he can ask for interviews, 
