New-York tribune., 1885-10-21
NEW PUBLICATIONS.
FRANCE IN ToNQUIN AND MADAGASCAR.


MADAGASCAR AND FRANCE. BY GEORGE A. SHAW,
wexford.
The history of French colonization and conquest
has been much the same all over the world.
Wherever weaker races have had to be subdued as
o preliminary to the development of commerce and
production, Galc energy has been applied solely to
the subjugation of the natives and no attempt has
been made prepare for future relations with them
OF an amicable character The slender pretexts
upoI which aggression justified IN most of these
cases cannot be said to be peculiar to France.
Whenever the so-caed Christian Powers of Europe
have had to deal with feeble countries and when
the lust of gain has inspired them the equities
of the victims have invariably been ignored I'M
hesitatngly and callOusly as though human ethics
were admittedly founded on the principle that
might makes right. in Tonquin, moreover, France
did have a colOrable excuse for action. century
ago ruler of Auam made a treaty with king of
France agreeing to cede certain territory in return
for aid given in a war with a neghboring prince
The aid was given and the nelghOor was over
come but the ceded territory was not claimed untl'
1S6S, when it had to be taken by force. Then FOL
lowed the operations of Dupus. GARNER ana
Riviere on the Red River and France found herself
involved in a war of annexation with people who
possessed so many resources and advantages that
the enterprise was serious and tedious one. The
real enemy was the Black Flags an irregular body
of Chinese adventurers, nearly all desperate men,
full of fight persistent evasive and as hard to
crush or get rid of in any way as
swarm of hornets. The country was
very difficult. being cut up by irriga-
ton canals to such an extent that marching and
maneuvring were almost impossible and the trans
port of artillery terribly hard The Black Flags
fought well behind earthwOrks and sometimes IN
the open. They were armed Will. repeating rifles
%Iso +bo md IN
their cost at Lang-sOn and many other places And
the worst of the situation was that rs there were
not enough French troops to garrison captured
places these had to be abandoned soon after being
taken, and then the Black Flags simply returned
to their old positions. 1t was heart-breakng WORK,
and the hot sun and the fever made it ten times
worse Meanwhile the constant demand for REIN
forcementsiwas responded tovery slowly and reuct-
autly. Tie Paris Government wanted the credit OF
the Oriental colonization lscheme, but shrank from
the popular resentment at the drain upon the mil
ltary force The regular army could not be de-
pleted, and the sO-called maritime corps utilized
was insufficient for the work Some help was
finally got by organizing a light corps of AnamoSe
tiyaillcgys At first the idea was ridiculed the
Anamese having apparently no military qualities
while they and all their neighbors have for centuries
looked up to the Chinese a superior race to cope
with whom was hopeless. Yet experience proved
that the undertaking n wise one. The Anam-
Csc when disciplined became brave and persistent
soldiers. and what was most surprising, actually
showed themselves able to hold their own with the
dreaded Black Flags, facing them pluckily and
without hesitation. In spite of this assistance
however the conquest of Tonquin has thus far
been deusive one. 1t has been impossible to hold
the country save where the French troops actually
occupied the gronnd and the progress of COLOMBIA
ton has been merely nominal.
Mr. Scott has written clear and simple account
OF the campaign of Ssh, in which he took part as
a correspondent Hc describes the Anamese as
the French of TOnquin, though the comparison IS
not atterng to the cOnquerors, for the natives are
said to be lazy, tickle, vain, treacherous, filthy in
their habits full of gross superstitons, immoral,
and generally speaking as disagreeable possible.
They have however, a certain gayety and levIty OF
temperament which to some extent bears out tho
comparison, their neighbOTs being particularly
stod, grave and heavy people. Intellectually they
are far behind the Chinaman, who Is regarded and
regards himself as the superior being of that whole
region. The French have sgnally failed to make
friends with the Chinese, one of their initial
bTunders having been the brutal massacre of some
two hundred peaccable Chinese traders, who had
come to TOnqun on the strength of French pro-
elamation opening the Red River to commerce. This
crime was no doubt the consequence of mistake
but it could and should have been avoided. The
French however, though they have stomach
for all the fighting to be DONE appear unable to
reconcile the people they have conquered. They
cannot resist the temptation to bully those they
have beaten and their main idea of commerce is to
force trade at the point of the bayOnet. This Will
not answer, and result is that while they do
the fighting in these coonizng adventures the
Germans, Americans and English often reap the
largest commercial benefits Sometimes the
French prevent this by establishing mOnOpolies.
but when they do that trade simply languishes.
The plain truth is that they have not the genius
for colonization.
Mr. Scott dcvotes his concluding chapter to a
consideration of the relations of French enterprise
in Tonquin, CambOdia and Cochin China to
British interests in India. He is of opinion that
France has designs upon Siam and Burmah and that
the former at least is in imminent danger OF annex
alton. eng already ocowed and bued as to be in
capable of self defence and scarcely of protest
The Indian Council however he complains, is too
sluggish and stupid to the danger Of the estab
lishment of so quarrelsome and unprncipled
neighbor upon the frontier of British India. Since
the book was published there have occurred some
incidents which may indicate that the Government
of India is paying more attention to the Implications
of French conquest in the East and the verdict of
the recent elections in France will probably put an
end at least for time to all projects of expansion
IN Tonquin. The fertility of the TOnquin delta is
very great, and there can be no doubt that great
commercial future is in store for the country but
whether its wealth will be developed under French
rule appears by no means certain. Mr.. Scotts book,
however is timely and full of valuable information,
and bis conclusions are, though necessarily biased
by his nationality, as rule reasonable and IN ac-
cordance with known facts.
The French attack upon Madagascar has none Of
The justification derivable from ancient treaties,
much less fro N modern equities of any kind. The
case is really Of the most naked and wanton
aggressions perpctrated by a strong power upon a
weak one during the present century. All France