The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1873-05-02
The French and the Germans.

The French and the Germans.
Is the French misrepresent the Ger
mans in painting them as hypocrites,
the Germans have certainly gone too
far in the charges Of frivoIity and icen-
tiousnees they are so fond of bringing
against the French. It is often main
tanned by superficial philosophers aim
ing at character for profundity that
France, if the fundamental cause be
sought out, was beaten in the war with
Prussia by reason of her immortality,
love of pleasure, and.so on. It would
be nearer the truth to say that France
is now accused of immortality in conse-
quence of having been beaten. The
French were always immoral but that
has not prevented them from gaining,
at various periods of their history, the
most brilliant successes in war. The
fact is, that coRquerers, when their sue
cess is very great indeed, have, for a
time at least, the making of history in
own hands, and may lay to the account
of the conquered whatever they please.
The Germans circulated a report at the
very beginning of the war that the
French camps were full of women and,
although when the French armies were
made captive, women were not found
among the prisoners, the story of their
constant presence with the troops is
still ? subject of common belief in Ger
many The French, on their side, were
quite prepared 10 attribute all sorts of
gross sensual vices to the Germans
and, in the occupied cities, the inhabi-
tants would hold out in the most edi-
flying manner on the coarseness and i'm
morality of their conduct. The German
views Of the French were not at that
time we'll known in France, and we re-
member meeting with an hotel-keeper
in one of the newly-occnpied cities OF
Lorraine who, ignorant of the received
opinion on the subject, looked upon his
own countrymen as models of austerity
and on the German invaders as dissipa.
ted, dissolute characters. Chow they
eat, and, above all, how they drink ?
he muttered, as he drew himself up
napkin in hand, at the end of the room
after the manner apart from the nap
kim of the two virtuous old Romans IL
Centuries picture of "La Decandenco
des Romans standing sternly and sor
rowfully apart from the general orgy
Forced by what was in him to speak tt
some one, he came forward and confid
ed to us in a whisper his opinion tina
that sort of thing did not go in En-
gland. We were obliged to confes
that the custom of drinking wine at din
ner was not unknown "chez nous.
"No, nor in France either" he replied
a." but dinner is now over, and the drink
ing still continues" In common fan
ness we felt bound to answer that /
England also wine was drunk after dir
ner and much more generally than /
Germany. We also suggested that tn
Bavarian officers (the offenders wer
Bavarians) had nothing to do that nigh
that early the next morning they wOul
be again on the march, and, befor
many days could elapse, IN action; an
that, in the mea time, it was unimpol
tant whether they drank little wine {
not. At that moment tall, well-deve
oped, muscular Bavarian Ieutenan
clearly of the race typifed by Rausc
in his colossal figure of Bavaria, Gale
particular attention to a drink he w'
preparing, which he declared possesse
the highest qualities as an invigoran
He poured into a champagne-glass ha
a glass of champagne, broke a couple
eggs and threw in the yolks, added
small glass of curacao, and finally
small glass of cognac then, witho1
stirring the ingredients, swallowed Il
whole, and said complacently, b
somewhat critically, as he put the gla
down: Gun peu trop de cognac
The hotel keeper looked on in terror f
moment, and then fed from his ov
dining-room.-PaA Mall Gazette.