New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1857-08-06
FRANCE.
TIE FRENCH BETTER THAN THEY SEEM.
Correspondence Of The N Y. Tribune.

character, the viyaclty OF the soctdt sentiment anu
the comparative inactivity of the moral sentiment
The most unaffected feeling Of fellowship or equality
appears TO have got birth in the French mind; but
| what ue call correct morality is at very low
practical ebb 1t may seem paradOxlcal that a
nations morality should ever fall below ts genuine
spiritual culture and aspiration, that people Of an
up0uestonably high and hearty sense Of human fe-
lowship should yet exhibit prevalent unveracty
and deceit. But the contradiction is observable all
over the world, in America as well as in Europe,
so far as America still reflects Europe; and is only
| more conspicuous among the French, because the
| French character, being On emnent'y superficial
one, lends itself less easily to co1cealment than
| others. And it ia fact, moreover, which admits
of a satisfactory explanation. The rational expla-
nation of it is to be found in that complete desttu
| ton of freedom under which the European man
| labOrs
Observe fret of all that the unveracty and deceit
in question take place exclusively within the realm
of outward obligation the realm of law or conven-
ton. Thus it is the wife who betrays the husband
and the husband who deceves the wife; it is the
buyer who cbeapens the seller and the seller who
defrauds the buyer; it is the servant who cheats
the master and the master who Expresses the ser
want. BY existing law or convention, all these
persons stand in relations to each other of mutual
nferority or dependence and. as these are low
and inhuman relations they address of course only
the lowest principle in u.s. which is selfloye, and
which accordingly feelsitself piqued to extract all
the nutrment possible under the circumstances.
say that relations of reciprocal inferiOrity and
dependence among men are low and inhuman rela-
tons Why? Because the ideal of human life is
freedom. Freedom is what constitutes Gods vital
breath and presence in Humanity. Every man, by
deatbless, Divine instinct, aspires first of all to
be freeof every other man bondage, in order that
lie may afterward fulfill his life's ideal in spol.
taneOusIy devoting himself to that others blessing
Now, human freedom implies, as its fundamental
pOstulate, that mans subsistence, which means
the orderly qualification of all his purely natural
wants, should be secure to him by the bare fact of
his birth as man, dscharging him of rightful de-
pendence even for mOmentup upon the good pleasure
of al other. For, manifesty, if am dependent for
my subsistence upon the favor of any man or set of
men, it is clear that my action will be constrained
by that dependence, which ia only saying in other
words that am not Free
But, VIGOROUSLY this fundamental postulate of
human freedom is set at nOught by the entire struc
ture and strain of European society. European So
ciety is totally artificial or unscientifc being
structed upon the basis of human inequality. 1t
laps one man in luxurious accommodation inward
and outward, and leaves another utterly destitute
1t gives one man righteousness, peace and plenty
<bar md sfa /
makes one learned, comfortable clearly, polite and
rich and leaves another ignorant, sOrdid, dsrepu.
able and poor. 1t is impossible, therefore, that
there should not be perpetual shock and collision
going on between this old or man made European
world and the new or Ged.made state of things
which is necessarily struggling to take its place.
Now the contradiction which have just signal
lied in the French character and which is indeed
obvious to the most cursory observation, cOnfesses
itself in my opinion the legitimate fruit and evil
dence Of this collision. The activity of the social
sentiment marks the advent of the new heavens
and new earth; the decline Of the moral sentiment
marks the decease Of the old ones.
the grand distinction between the old and new
mind of the race-between this old world of routine
or convention called Europe for example, and our
lore blessed Americas that the former &C.
,.. or'v an ascetic manhood. 1t recOg
nizes no virtue which does az. in''i'o '0i'uen'''
which does not presuppose states OF tcr..;''''"
1t utterly discredits that sublime New-Word
morality which says, "Th0u shalt love thy
"brother quite infinitely or as myself, even
"givipg him thy cloak when he steals
"thy coat rather than punish him for so doing"
because this morality is Gods own direct inspira-
ton in u; is the ripe fruit Of the Holy Spirit in
sous, which is the spirit Of the strictest human So
ciety or fellowship, and is therefore wholly inoper
alive in unscentifc conditions. On the contrary
the European mind eagerly upholds that base mo-
rality which stands in " touching not tasting not
"hapdlng not;" which says to the poor wretch,
still unprovided with the cure qualification even Of
the meanest natural appetite; L" No matter how
"much you suffer, you must not lie, never steal,
"never commit adultery nor murder, under pain of
limited punishment in this life, and unlimited In
"the other
Now, the reason why European moralism does
all this-the resion why il habitually appeals to
the base Fanctiops of fear instead of the noble
ones of love, in man-is, that it looks upon God
as essentially inimical TO human freedom, aud
hence conceives that His law can never be freely,
but only forcbly, obeyed by man. 1t supposes
that God and man are reciprocally hostile, and
hence that man can never be expected to give
hearty or spontaneous obedience to the Divine
Will, but only a prudential or voluntary one.
This is indeed, the fundamental vice Of the Euro
pean ethics-the precise punct"m saiiens of its