New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1875-12-05
BEAUTIFUL PARIS.

| man, but it increases fool in the fool
direction. The superficial look upon
Paris as field for sowing wild oats, The
surface is gay and full Of mirth We
hear of the ready bon nlots, and think
Frenchmen have only to open their mouths
for uttering jokes; the kid gloves, and per-
fume, and wine, and thoughtless opera
bouffes come to US from Paris, and that lit
tie spot in France appears paradise oflux-
ury and loneliness. The American spends
his money in Paris; be courts the follies and
overlooks the mIserables. New Orleans
contributes largely to the support of
Partisan folly. Ask for the owners OF
property below Canal street, block after
block, and you will be told they
live in France They have no
money for public improvements, they pay
taxes only upon compulsion, and they
rail always against the government of city
and State. The poor tenants pay rents,
and the absent landlords spend the sub
stance abroad. New Orleans is peculiarly
cursed with absenteeism. This was the
case before the war, and it is SO now. Our
city is continually being drained to build
up Paris. When we hear so much against
New Orleans and so much in favor of the
city in La Belle France, we wonder why
the foreign residents do not exchange
their New Orleans property for real in
vestments in the city nearest their hearts
and pocketbooks. Our French maligners
talk continually, in bad English, Of the
plunderers Of Louisiana. They raise a
popular cry against American enter
prise. They scarcely know the differ
ence between Republicans and Dem
ocrats, but they find always that
the Democrats are arrayed against the
general government, and they favor De-
mocracy. They 90 not vote, but they
grumble beautifully. Our absentee suck
ers of the Crescent City revenue continl-
ally condemn New Orleans and praise
Paris. New Orleans is cursed and Paris
blessed; that is, in the minds of large
class who are able to reside abroad on
funds gathered here.
Those who own property in Paris I'M
derstand things better. The expenses Of
that city could not be greater if the Tam
many ring controlled its disbursements
II is officially stated that the ward govern
ments Of Paris cost 81 1000, 900 per year,
and the architectural and decorative de-
partments like sum. 1t costs 1,200,00
to light the streets, and 100000 to
scrape and clean them. The sewer sys-
tenn and the water supply costs
Sl,150,000, and the city schools
$4,000, 900. The sum of S2,6Oo,O 600
was given to the poor. or rather
to charitable institutions. The tax asses
sors and collectors get 50, $50, 900 for their
work, and the police force costs $4,000, 900
annually. That is trihe, compared to
the S12,45o,000 paid to the city officials
for salaries. The salary list of city Off
GERS exceeds the widest hopes of all Flu
sion Legislatures. 1t is not strange that
a city SO governed is in debt An idea
Of the municipal debt can be conceived
when it is known that $40, 400 900 is re-
quired to pay the interest on it. The
budget of 1876 for the city of Paris calls
for the enormous sum of SCI, 900, 900, and
that amount must be extracted from the
suffering people.
New Orleans may have riots, and thou
sands of people prone to violate the laws
and make government costly; but politi-
cally ridden and plundered, and un-
fortunate as she is in having Democratic
rulers, her expenses and her misfortunes
are as nothing compared with those of
Paris. Even New York, robbed and
misgoverned as it has been by Democrats,
looks to the condition of the city govern
ment of Paris and finds consolation.
Our French friends in New Orleans might
do the same. This should be the most
prosperous city in the world little
more public spirit on the part of property
holders would make it SO. The money
drawn away from here to spend abroad,
if retained for improvements, for the en-
couragement of home manufactures,
would do wonders toward increasing the
revenues and making New Orleans pros
porous. Let us see more efforts to i'm
prove our own city, and hear less of
beautiful Paris.