The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1875-06-07
French Finance.


larger army of mercenaries in their pay. II
is not long since NJ Clapier, member OF the
National Assembly and President Of the extra
Parliamentary Committee on Railways, pub
licly declared that the immense power OBJ
tanned by the great companies was national
misfortune, that they formed secret league,
united by the bond of common interest, and
had almost the entire press at their command,
purchasing its support or its silence. Some
of them had staff of from forty thousand
to fifty thousand employees in their service
and enjoyed 50 vast patronage as
to exercise serious control over gov
eminent departments 1t is obviously
the interest of Philippart to pose as the rep
resentative of humble interests which gigantic
monopolies threaten to ruin. In q recent
letter to the Journal des Debdts he begins very
meekly by saying that 'there were once two
comprehensive one great, very great; the
other little, very little. A kind fairy presided
at the birth of the first, which it largely and
! lavshly lowered. An evil genius-was it,
indeed an evil genius ?-spoke these words
over the cradle of the second = Little one,
to struggle much against i'll wishes. They
will take every kind of shape, they will use
every means in their power TO injure thee;
but give thee patience courage and energy.
If, with these virtues, thou dost not triumph
the fault will be thine" This is a strange
style and strange imagery for a discussion on
finance, and is probably used with
Ial,h - chr nj lntO
appeals to popular sympathy, which
he is perfectly aware is commonly
bestowed from any other than reasonable mo-
tives. 'Similes," observed a witty writer,
''are no arguments that is probably why they
convince so many persons. A metaphor, in
which Philippart shall appear as the lamb
and Baron Alphonse de Rothschild as the wolf,
may the former rightly judges, have consid-
cradle effect upon the simple. The remainder
of Philippians apology is devoted to an in
dignant denial that his rails are made of card
board and straw.
It must in fairness be conceded to Philip
part that his enemies themselves are not alto
gether free from blame. They have not scru-
pied to attack his private character at the most
critical periods, when the question for share
holders should have been not whether Philip
part was an honest man or a rogue, but
whether the projects, in turtherance Of which
he asked for their money, were based on sound
calculations or the reverse. 1t is impossible
for anybody, however fair may be his in
erly if, at the very moment that
an operation is assuming larger proportions
and a corresponding increase of capital is
thereby necessitated, he has to defend him
self against vague insinuations which affect
his reputation for probity and are yet too i'm
palpable to be openly grappled with.
The object of these InsIdious assaults is,
nevertheless, perfectly able to take care of
himself, being, in reality, one of the most
powerful men in France. During the late
trial the Advocate General expressed himself
with extraordinary bitterness regarding the
action of the CredS Mobiler, of which
Philippart was constituted the virtual head
by the vote of meeting held on the I'd
of March. "There seemed" exclaimed NJ.
Hemar, "a disposition on the part of the di-
rectors TO hurl defiance at Justice to tell her,
Our plans are settled and unalterable. We
mean to carry them out. Whatever betide,
we shall push on, with or without your in
functions, toward the goal we have in view. /"
There is evidently a gloomy feeling among
Frenchmen that the putocrats of the
present day are getting to be above
the law The rich contractor of the
nineteenth century fills the same place in
society as the Farmer-General Of Customs
filled in the eighteenth. The one prepared
the way for the Revolution of 1889. From
the other there appears to be no deliverance
But in France, where men expect the admin
istration to remedy all ills, there is likely to
be a cry for strong ruler to keep stock job
bers in order. People forget that this class
was never so powerful as under the so-called
''strong' government Of Louis Napoleon.
The controversy which has ragged during
the last two months has clearly demonstrated
one important truth-namely, the endless mis-
chief which is the result of carelessly
framed law. An act of the French Legisla-
ture, in 1865, gave the Councils General in
the departments power to grant con-
cessions of lines of local interest,
while reserving to the State the right of
authorizing those of general interest, but
neglected to define clearly the distinction be-
tween the two categories Of railways. AT the
same time no provision was made against the
amalgamaton of a number of local lines.
The Councils General no sooner received their
powers than they began to exercise them with
out any sort of discretion. Concessions we're
freely granted. not SO much because the utility
of this or that line had been proved, but
because il was well to assert the principle of
local sef-government. "Dohot, said great
French statesman to his contemporaries, Edo
dot brutalize the machine OF the constitution
BY too frequent usage" He knew his coun-
trvnen well. III a right or a privilege il given