The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1868-08-22 00:00:00

citoutlyiby (0125trinr.

SkTUFMAY, AUGUST 22, 1868.

THE FRENCH FETES.

There is no nation of which Englishmcn have
said kinder or harsher things than the French.
We are very near neighbours, and near neigh-
bours often take a deliubt in dealing very freely
with each others' characters. A collection of
the pleasantest and kindliest. and of the bitterest

and uiost virulent thin that celebrated Eng-
lish authors have written about France and

French institutions, would be a curious work;
but the truth perhaps lies midway between the
two. We will quote only from one of our most
familiar poets, who seems to have had but a poor
opinion of the French.
T. hinder skies, where gentler spinners reign,
I torn, and France displays her bright domain.
Gay, sprightly land of mirth and social ease,
'bested with thyself, whom all the world roe please,
So blest a life these thoughtleas realms display,
Time idly bogy rolls their world away.
Hence Ostentation here. with tawdry art,
Flints for the •algar praise which fool. impart ;
Here vanity assume* her pert grimace.
And trim, her rubes 14 triev with copper lace;
Here beggsr Pride 5, (rands her daily cheer,
To boast °Lc splendid barquit once a year.
How far this picture would now be applicalde
to France and the French we shall not attempt
to decide, but the least acquaintance with our
French meighboars will tell us that there are at
least some points of resemblance in the sketch,
while a deeper acquaintance may possibly con-
vey the cmviction that the picture is overdrawn;
bat we have quoted Goldsmith's lines because,
fairly or not, they represent much of the pre-
vailing popular opinion of our own time, and ,
embody the views of those who are inclined to
take a cynical view of the imperial fetes that
have jast been held. A brief retrospect of these
fetes, however will, we think, prove that daring
11,135 e rejoicings France has appeared under one
of liar most favourable aspects.
The great national holiday is the the Quinze
A.ont, the 15th of August, a day which unites
the celebration of an important religions festi-
val, and which is indissolubly conneete.d with
the personal history of the Napoleonic dynasty.
To this combination of circumstances may be
attributed much of the splendour of the fetes,
and it may. lie that much of the enthusiastic
,

luliday-making and njoicing which appears to
m a tribute of applause to imperial institutions,
las more of the religious than the national cle-
..

mcut ; but be this is it may. the. imperial fetes
undoubtedly tend to popularize the imperial go-
vernment. It is said of the Roman people that
their chief desire was to enjoy/wires,/ eirenuv.
The French certainly take after them, and the

Emperor of the French has always acted on
knowledge of the importance af these objects of
national ambition. He has done his utmost for
fifteen years to provide employment, directly or
indirectly, for the French working classes; to
develop° her commerce and her internal trade.
and success has crowned his efforts. It must be
at least partly owing to good government and to
the policy or the Emperor that French com-
merce has doubled itself since he came to the
throne, while the prosperity of the people and
their faith in the imperial policy are agreeably
shown, simultaneously with these fetes, by the
way in which the great government loan has
been tendered for. In England a great loan is
taken by one or two leviathan contractors, and
minor capitalists Pre left to obtain shares at
second hand if they can • but in France a go-
vernment loan is a popular affair, and thus the
nation becomes more and more interested with
the preservation of existing institutions. In
the present case the number of subscribers to
the new loan is no less than 781,292, and the
aggregate ot their subscriptions is 660 millions,
little short of 31 times the amount called for.
This is a great and significant fact, for it is a
new bond of union between the people and the
government.

The imperial f6tes this year have been inangn.
rated by a grand review of the National Guard
end the Army of Paris. The Emperor passed
in review 70,000 soldiers, and 'deigned to ex-
Press to the Commander-in-Chief of the to.
viewed troops his great satisfaction at their ap-
pearance and bearing under arms." It is said
that there were at least half a million of spec.
tatora of this review. The French dearly love
a military display, and it is a good stroke of im.
penis] policy to identify the National Guard and
the Army of Paris with the national rejoicings.
The fine force reviewed by the Emperor consti-
tuted but a holiday spectacle, but it has its poli-
till and national be-irings, and neighbouring
nations, perhaps, read of the spectacle with
more se.tions thonghts than French spectators
were troubled with. Put in conjunction with
the military display it is pleasing to note the
beautiful attitude of France. The Emperor's
recent speech at Troyes indicates a pacific policy
and a hundred little facts incidentally show that
towar Is England the Emperor entertains the
most friendly feelings. The Fete Napoleon, the
Quinzs Aout, was this year apparently more
thoronghly enjoyed than ever. We elsewhere
give some account of the features of the great
national holiday, and hero merely give a glance
at them. The distribution of alms, on an unu-
sually large scale, made the very poorest rejoice
with their more prosperous fellow-citisens ; the
free opening of all the theatres end places of
amusement lilac), BO to speak. brought down re-
joicing to the meanest capacity; £20,000 spent
in illumination and fireworks for Paris alone, and
the presents made to each government empbve
—these and many other incidents show how the
imperial government occupies itself, on this oc-
casion at least, with amusing the people. We
cannot understand this sort of thing in Eng-
land, and we are apt to speak of it with a sneer.
But it may be questioned whether, considering
the character of the people and the closer social
connection that exists among the French be-
tween government and people than exists in our
own country, the imperial government does not
act with consummate wisdom in thus superin-
tending the pleasures of the people. At all
events it is certain that good will between go-
vernors and governed is thus promoted, and it
is certain too, that on the whole, the imperial
fetes are admirably managed. The French have
a genius for amusement, and if government and
people mutually agree that the one shall organ-
ize the rejoicings of the other, it is satisfactory
to find that the organization is admirable and
that the national jubilation has nothing in it
which is antagonistic with the welfare of
•Fiance or her amicable relations with other
countries.