New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1886-12-05
PAUL BERT.
THE vIyISECTIONIsT AND SPECULATIVE
POLITICIAN.

of railway accidents. Five thousand soidiers uisu
of cholera unheeded in the marshes around hanoI
and Hue in the present year, and seven thoussho
in past years and no political mau minded only III
so far az il affected his chances of being reeected
to q seat in tho Chamber. The terryites wouia
have continued to declare that tina Red River Val
10y vns latter-day paradise If the late Resident
General had not been carried away 80 soon. They
have been 80 III pressed by his death that all of them
to whom NJ. dc Freycnet offers the place decline It,
And vet il goes with salary of $4,000 year.
residence any amount of servants. an allowance
for hospitality and for travelling expenses ana
many small perqusites on which the RESIDENTS
wife ght be expected to set great store d. faui
Bert is also to be buried ut the cost OF his coantry
and in technically Grst-class manner. so that ME
remains will he taken to the grave IN tne nearse
nsed at Therss funeral At any rate his civil obse-
quies " Ill cost $4,000, the price Madame lniers
maid for those OF her instrions husband: and the
greater part of tDat sum went IN the churcu part VI
the ceremonial. Tho widow Bert, Scotch lady
from Inverness. nee Clayton. obtains pension OF
$4,000 year. reversible on her children after her
death She must be very we'll of without il, Pail
Bert having made deal of money in Alg rian land
grabs and "A n promoter of Bourse affairs, and he
had from his father, who was provincial attorney
in good business a snug competency. dare say
he went to Tonqnin to push speculative AFFAIRS 'n
which he had embarked a Deputy OF tf o promot-
ing kind. Messager'es steamer WHICH TOOK MN
and his family out was specially arranged Tor their
convenience. and they travelled from Paris IN sa-
loon cars and special train.
Inever saw ANYTHING more iubilant or more re-
markable for French zz and frOjh than the depart
ure. which took place inst eight months ago. Ohe
of the cars was filed wit u01ersand nothing else
tokens of friendship. al nirtton and the rest tro'n
friends who went to see them of. Tie whole OPP
portnnist clan was the platform. and the spcecn-
ifvng. tear-shedding aud hand shaking were quito
bewidering. Even an oil negres-. who nursed one
of the four daughters. remained as a servant with
Madame Bert and going out TO lonqun' was
kissed by all tho gentlemen. NJ Panl Bert made
sneech standing in the open door Of a car. He was
a capital speaker, being Dithy. animated and iucu.
All hs said was easy TO take in. He spoke OF ION
onin in the most hopeful spirit, promised TO SINK
all differences which might exist between him as
freethinker aud the Catholic missions and mls-
sionares and ended by assuring all who llstened
that he would either make Ionquln great colony
or leave his bones there" The bones are to come
bacs and the colony is such pestllentla' place.
and in such a la way that NJ de Freycinet has
not vet succeeded in getting any Opportunist who
voted with enthusiasm all the Tonquin supplies de-
manded by NJ. Jules Ferry to go as Rcsident-Gen-
eral TO h 20.
NJ Pa Berts red complexion showed bad blood.
He had that scorbutic inertia of the subcutaneous
vessels which gives that ugiy redness and blotchi-
ness to which doctors give the polite and pretty
name of roseata He always. as long as knew
him. dyed his hair which was long. thick. Slry and
black. The face, with the exception OF the mus
tache false dyedl was shaved He had little,
black puckered -up ey es that twinkled and looked
good-natured and q short nose without much
character The forehead was good. But there was
nothing In the u denote great 'houen'
power OF sagacty. lie was quick, spontaneous
very perceptive and receptive. and rash OF Speech
"a most per,ons are TO whose heads the blood PUSHES
too easily under the action of sudden excitemen%
He generally in his best speeches said something
that he had better left unsail a nd was too fond
of fitting at prejuiices when they were harm
less. His dog-like attachment to . few great aud
leading men was remarkable. Claude Bernard was
his master aud friend in the region Of experiments
physiology and Gambetta in that of politics. Nj.
Durny pstronized him during the Empire, and Paul
Bert stuck TO him when It was down His hdeity
to these three could not he shaken and right
or wrong as q dog stands by his owner he was Tor
them HE agreeable stys of writing and speaking
obtained for him higher scientific namo than he
deserved.
Flesh-grafting was long known to the French sol
diers in Algeria. where thirty years ago zonave
made a lot of money by grating tails of one kind
of small animals Oh the of Others. l used to
meet Paul Bert at Gambetta's and at Victor Hugo'a
| rememb Der one evening there when vivisectlon
began to be much talked against. the cow ersation
turned upon it Pau Bert gave Us nothing short
of q chatty kind of lecture on this lugnDrions suo-
ject in his bright. good nature aud lucid manner.
His hearers were against him. lie described the
horrors of vivisection as an amateur of that mode
of searching into natures secrets, and had no APP
parent consciousness that it was horrible. fon 70
cruelp escaped from the lips Of Victor Hugo
Cruel [ O wn, but from excess of Kindness" said
the scientist The fair. rosy neAd of Jeanne Hugo
was lying against mothers shoulder. and Paul
Bert pointing to ii CT ntlnuel When think that
a cure for Group juld not have been discovered
but Tor vivsecton, can't but loel that sh0nl'l
steel my heart against the pleading eyes OF the dog
on which am going to operate NOBODY was
scieu tiic enough TO Rainssy this argument. anu
Victor Hugo oOkei moro than usually grave.
There q mystery oil lpiqulty III nature tnat
often staggered him and never more than on TINS
occasion. Paul Bert, however. so far held the
candle all as to say that people who went INTO
viz ls-ction for the iun OF the thing merlteI them
selves to fall under the operators scalpeL mere
we're many men, certainly who vlvisected as
amateurs and because they had no serious occupa-
ton. There To his knowledge group oil fash
ionabe ladies who pr0nte by she throwing open
OF all the lecture rooms AT tue College oil rance TO
learn there how ~ vvsect and exercised their art
for Amusement in their boa oirs- Morphine in-
toxication gave passion for ths sort OF thing.
Cruelty became delightful TO the deahoned nerves
of woman in the habit of injecting morphine into
her blood.
There was, l also remember. ut Victor Hugos that
evening u kussian who said To Paul Bert: Al any
rate. need not personally feel uneasy since your
scapel will never be emit Logged in vIvlsecting human
be ngs" Il won't promise you that, was the
an,ner The ANNA were good for many cases.
But they were no good for others human subjects
were santeI" I" dare say that some day OF
another when YOU belong to a future governmrnt
Won viii brpp IN a law to secure yourself q stock
OF them aWhy notr" asked Paul Bert The
Lest Use to which could turn criminals wonid
he TO yivisect them But should bar ail vivisec-
tons lasting more than nve or say ton minutes.
Victor Hugo, who had bren looking thunderbots,
here broke IN Isis is life and woe to the wretch
human knowledge which it is profaue to ovorsiep.