The daily gazette., 1877-05-01
tn. nura.n and Evil. Of War.


especially if other nations should be
drawn into the conflict, as now ap-
pears to be probable, do not often
take into consideration the evils that
great wars engender. All wars are
wasteful and destructive, and If the
masses who tight and the masses who
labor did but know their power and
exercise it, there would be few wars
possible except such as were purely
defensive, and a cheek would be put
upon those jealous rivalries and am
bilious designs of the rulers who main
tain large standing armies, and have
made of Europe, since Sadowa and
Sedan, a vast camp. Nearly all the
burdens that weigh upon the indus
trial energies of our own people, as
well as those of Europe, have been
put upon them by war. Our own
cruel and unnecessary civil war-un
necessary on any theory of the preser-
walton Of proper bearing towards
each other by the people of the differ
ent sections-during the four years
that it lasted rolled up public debt
of nearly four thousand millions of
dollars, and bequeathed to us a legacy
of onerous taxation under which the
country is now staggering, and is des.
tined to stagger for many years yet to
come.
From being one Of cheapest coun-
tries to live in we have become one of
the dearest, and although in some
few commodities prices have recently
returned to what they were before the
war, yet the general cost of living has
been heavily Increased In all walks
of life, while employment has been
lessened and its rewards made uncer-
tain, fluctuating, and on the average
comparatively meagre. Similar re-
suits are observable abroad. War and
taxation have enhanced the expense
of living there also to such an extent
that there are but few places on the
continent of Europe where families
can now subsist comfortably on in
comes that from fifteen to twenty
years ago would have enabled them
to live luxuriously. Almost every
living within few years past has in
creased even in places least liable to
change at least 20 per cent. over old
prices, and in populous cities from 80
to 40 per cent. Mr.. Bidwell, a Brit
ish consul, who has been investigating
this subject and has written a book
about IL, tells us that since 1858 the
cost of living at st. Petersburg has in
creased rs per cent. In all parts of
France within the same period, the
rise has been enormous. AT Bordeaux,
for example:
House rent. ............... s4OO 90 $500 O6
Carriage hire, per day. 800 800
Meat, per pound ............. .12c.al3c: 2oca25c.
Ftrewood, per ton. ........ CPS 10 90
Coal (English) .............. 100 1000
AT Brest $5UO was demanded for
rooms let in 1858 at $500. At Calais
meat has risen from 70 to 80 centimes
in 1858 to franc 20 centimes and l
franc rs centimes, fish costs 80 per
cent. more. At NAMES in 1866 the
price of superior meat was 15 cents
(Americau) per pound, 1t now is 90
cents; every other necessary has risen
in price at the same rate. In Paris
house rent In 1870 had trebled since
1852, aud certainly doubled since 1858;
since the war it has fallen one-fourth
coal $40 in 1858, is now S12 90.
la Germany, where the frugality of
the people at one time kept down the
cost of everything entering into the
expenses of family, prices have ad-
vanced in pretty much the same rat o.
Like reports come to us from Italy
and other continental countries. The
greater part of these heavier charges
is due to war. 1t was war that piled
up the four thousand millions of pub
lie debt on which England has to pay
an annual interest. War has added OF
late years milliards of francs to the
already large debt of France and
caused her the loss of two of her best
provinces. The consolidation OF Ger
many INTO an empire and of Italy in
to a kingdom has put new burthens
upon the people OF those countries.
The cost Of war has flooded Russia
and Austria with paper money almost
to the entire exclusion of the precious
metals, and reduced the latter govern
ment to the verge of BANKRUPTCY.
Apart, toe, from the carnage of bat
ties and OF the burning and plunder-
ing and ravage that are the awful in
cidents of war, the decentralization
that follows in lis train is not the
least OF its evils. Yet unchristian MS
war: is, and full of untold sorrow and
suffering and desolatlon, and impov-
erishment, we have not yet reached
that stage of civilization when the
quarrels of nations will be settled
without resorting to the arbitrament
OF the sword and industry in all its
bra nchas he No lonUar suhiaotad 10