Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-01-20
rARIs.IN THE PAST YEAR.
The TWeIvemonth not fright One
Financially foe the NatiOn.

b.
II w.s the year1f hedgetary dtncils' mat
deceived ain provisions, due to the neon .
testahlc sufe-iues OF industry ana com
Ynrrce. To has compelled French savings
"a seek rtnunerative investment with the
NOR. favored foreigner. 1t mas been the
wear distant expeditions to Madagascar
and Tuncaiu. which scatter the strength
and dis-ipatc the nations riches. II was
the wear Of universal torpor in business.
where confidence was absent and enter
Prise myth. Ii was year where finan-
cfers renamed coy, and.captal INDUCED
ina Strikc. IL was. in word. "A year OF
steri.ity. with very little 70 It's credit ac-
count.
Tie budget having been voted at wild
eat express rate by the Senate. the ses-
sron was thus enabled 20 be closed, and
the republic saved by fiuke from having
70 resort 10 the ignominiOus shift Of accept
iug monthly installment for a twelfth
ST the estimates. The last speech de-
iYered was by Prime Minister Ferry. who
was called an ''insolveut fellow" bY the
erratic Deputy~pOet Clovis Hugues, and
next challenged by another, N. de Lam
jUinas. The latter explained in the Pick
Wickian sense; the former has been tenn
pOTarily expelled, and his grog stopped.
But the Socialists, headed by RncheiOrt,
have made up purse to compensate
Gracious Then he is TO be given five
dinners, which will keep thus the wolf
from the door
where are we now about TOnquins We
want the Marquis Tseng out, 10 explain
what he meant by asserting: SOntay taken,
WAT was inevitable. That indicates
China is still "A little behind the aye, and
her combating smacks more Of the gong
Q .sFr
Mons and repetition rifles. The attitude of
willing TO wound, but afraid TO strike, has
naturally led TO the French augmenting
their demands, and being more difticile to
compromise matters. For example, they
now repudiate mediation. John Chnaman
must either knuckle down or try the
quarrel, hilt To- hilt.
The COMMUNISTS which is a real noun
Of multitude meaning all the political
rOughs i'm France. intend erecting a mon
umrnt 90 the memory Of their brave, in
teTTed to The number at least OF 1000 in
an Aceldema. corner Of the Pere la Chaise
Cemetery. The Municipal Council is
playing into their hands. The C0mmun-
lists have their Baudin M DeIescluzc, and
mean 80 large the bourgeois cabinet tight
" on the question.
The last day of the year being the
anniversary of poor Gambetta's death-a
void still uufilled-sOme intimate friends
proceeded to his residence. Jardies, at
Vile d'AVray, to fix "a commemorative
slab on the house. The premises are
nearly i'm the same state as when he died
/ passed by the grounds few days ago.
Tn are cared by an old gardener and his
wife. 10 is Intended 10 preserve the house
as republican heirloom Of some kind
perhaps for museum Of republicans. as
she monarchy had its for sOvereigns. The
public subscription for the Gdmbetta
statue now amounts to 3i9 ZOO francs
IL is ''cOntemplated" to erect the statue
before the Pantheon, 20 vie, perhaps.
with that of Sainte Geuevieve. To do so
the permission of the Municipal Council
would be necessary, and such is net at all
certain. the councillors being rahid anti
epportunists. This explains why the
LIberatOr OF the Territory, THEIRS and the
s0ulof the national defense, Gambetta,
have neither of them III the capital even a
blind alley baptized with their names,
much less statue.
10 France, the year did not always com
menCe with the first Of January. nor did
modern people. in accepting the names of
the months, adopt their order Of date. In
the greater number of the towns of Italy
and Spain, the commencement of the year
WAS fiXtu mt Christmas; under the cariv
KINGS Of France. March was selected; in
She ninth century. Christmas was chosen
There was no uniformity; each province
had its own New Years day-il not the
2ith OF December. il was the 18th OF
March. However, the majority of the
provinces adopted the usage Of Paris,
which fixed the opening of the year on
Easter Saturday. Charles IN. by an pdict
in 1864 settled the beginning OF the wear
at tine first OF january, but il was not till
1867 that it was fully adopted in France.
Since antiquity the desire was to measure
time. Naturally dav and night became the
two divisions. The revolution Of the
moon round the earth gave US months:
she return Of the sun to the same spot
once year gave US years. We called the
space Of 100 years a century, and proper
tionate spaces periods, cycles and eras
Antiquity made OF the YEAR a god
which had a palm tree for symbol. as it
was believed that at each new moon the
tree developed 4 new frOude. The Egyp-
slams fixed the commencement Of their
year at the autumnal equinox. because
that was the epoch wucn they commenced
agricultural operations, after the subsi-
dence OF the waters Of the Nile.
The most ancient King of Italy was
Janus, who bestowed his name on the
month we are in; at least he was the ear
Hest King about whom we have glimpses
Of exact knowledge. He flourished /. 400
years before our era, and must have
reigued well, rs he was made "a god after
his death But he had peculiar claims
for the honor; he was dOuble-faced- like
not few mOderns- only his features rep
resented the past and tire future. He was
the deity chat presided over inventions.
He made several himself. notably doors.
which were called after him-the only
patent laws then in force. just as the
Roman COOKS. when they invented n new
dish they named it after themselves.
Janus is represented with KEYS in one
hand and "A rod in the other. He was. as
Ovid has il, "porter at the celestial court"
His frtc day was kept on the first OF jan
Bary. alas!
P5useans. as descendants Of the Latins
lin part, have kept up this time-honored
festival; but Janus Is not the god that
proves the fly i'm our pot of ointment Ii is
Ftrenua. the goddess Of ''fOTce"-a most
fitting sObriquet. IL is uncertain whether
sine belonged TO the category Of the half
or quarter deties. Suffice it to say she
founded and presided over tine giving and
receiving Of presents on New Year dav,
and which. alas! has survived all the
connections az history. even the Revolt
tion that claimed 20 abolish every thing.
Originally the presents, or etrsHEeS,
were limited 10 honey. fruits and soft
sswder, save the porter class, who eX-
pectcd only the smallest coin of the realm.
But see what strides, 0r what decadence
since Tdtius, the colleague of Bomulus,
a French lady is implacable on the mat
Ter Of ctreuHeS. Ofer her a pot Of honey
from Hymettus or NarbOnne; present
your cerberus CONCIERGE with pipDins
from Hesperdes or oranges from Nalence,
and note the transformation scenes No,
= lady will forgive You for all the year
round that YOU may have appeared before
her with sOiled gloves. "a cTumpled cravat,
or a coat kept together with the strings Of
despair; but deprive her Of her black
mail, OF her scalp on New Years day,
and she Will secure the gates Of social life
90 be forever closed against YOU. No,
better pledge your bed tick than he without
funds TO compliment a lady worth 5000
francs q wear and we3ried with The re-
Ceipts of customs. Cruel Strenua that
causes poverty to exhaust itself for u
sIfedU not appreciated, but whose nom
Offering would provoke a revolt.
The Chinese custom Of sending cards at
New Years tide is an hypocrisy on the
decline; perhaps becoming closer into re-
latiOnship with the Celestials, may gal
Vauize the custom. You can purchase q
hundred Of visiting cards at some Papa
GutenbeTg's' shop, for 1sfr.. to be struck
of q Ia minute. a l SOUS postage stamp on
threadbare envelope. and the reminder
arrives to friend or an acquaintance, who
curses you for sending such, and will ca
illuminate you If guilty of omission. 1t is
prudent never 10 try 10 escape from Do