St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-01-01
A PICTURE OF POVERTY
The French Republic Reported To Be
Threatened On All Hands With Finan-
cial Disaster.
New Years Comes 70 More Unhappy Fam.
Lies il the City Of Paris Thar
Ever Before.
The Soudan War the Most Important
Question Before England Bur
mesc Annexation
Davftt Asserts That Ireland Wants .
Man OF Brains, Not Royal show,
for viceroy-


PARIS. Dec. S1.-An English observer
has recently given the following picture OF
the commercial and industrial situation In
France. For the month Of November the
figures Of French imports and exports
show q decline Of 4f5. COX. 600 as compared
with the same month OK 1854. There was
decrease on both sides OF the account
There IS no doubt that France Is approach
ing q crisis in commercial and financial
afair6. and Il VIII be long felt by the
fn8lch Heopie. The causes which are
slowly th1 surely bringing about this state
or affairs are several, but the most pE0mi-
nent ore IS the exirzgagance Of
the government dur,1g the past
Marshal NacAfahon retired 10 private life.
has bniit thousands Of miles Of Improbable
railways and thousands Of schools. Of
which four-1fths wers not wanted. From
500, 900. 600 to $500. 600. GOO for The roads
and from $50, 001 600 10 S175. 600. 600 for
the schools were thrown into circulation
and created the false prosperity Of which
1881 marked the eliminating point Peo-
nle literally did not know what % do with
their money. and as Ii could not End profit
able employment IN agriculture aid indus
try Il went into al sorts Of stock exchanges
and building operations Now has conc
the reckoning, and II Is by no means 9
cheerful one. Though taxation in every
form and shape has reached heights IN
dreamed CT before, the income from this
source has fallen OF during The last few
years and the
hosr INGENIOUS BooKKEEPISG
has not been able 70 hide from the public
the constant debeit. A floating debt Is roll
lug MP Of which nobody knows the real
amount So long as money can be had Il
Is not supposed TO matter whether It be the
states own or a loan. Year after year
France has been spending millions beyond
its income. II II proceeds much longer In
lis habits Of extravaganza the French treas
ury simply viii have 70 confess it
self ins0iyent The prospects of agricul-
tare and industry are not more cheering
owing TO the competition from America,
Australia and india, French farming has
been less profitable Of iare years. and the
value Of the cattle has dropped 50 per cent.
The investors in house property are not
much better eff. In the provinces such
property has become very dliIicult Of sale
unless at enormous depreciation. and In
Paris the state Of things IS not much better.
though there is of course a larger market
More than 5. 000 apartments are 70 be let IN
Paris.
RENTS HAVE CONF DOWN
30 TO so per cent, and even at reduced
anioGnts It is impossible 70 let In the
Boulevard Haussmann and Boulevard Des
Itaiiens. in fact In the very heart Of con-
T0erciai Paris. you can see everywhere for
months, nay wears. bills stuck up 10 let. :
Where formerly 1t was most difficult to get
a room. The bonrse has Of course suffered
most Of all from the general reaction. In
1881 the brokers were shouting, gbrieking
and driven mad with overwork, unable 70
fill the orders which poured IN Now of
the sixty privileged. barely dozen stand
IN their allotted places and talk OF the new
play which commenced the night before OF
Of the Balkan question. The French republic
viii only buy government stock Il
still feels the losses sustained in 1850 and
1881. How great the losses were may be
judged from the endless list of companies
In bankruptcy or liquidation and from the
prices Of the shares OF these companies still
alive. What has freely sold at S125 TO
Sl53 is now worth from S7.25 TO S6.75
Even n the best stocks the depreciation has
been f.. lul. The fan in railway shares
IS due to the falling OF Of traffic. and this
again IL caused by the general stagnation OF
trade The keen suffering among the
poorer classes may be gagged by the fact
that one Of the industrial towns. 81. Etenne.
hrs lost 1900 inhabitants cut
Of 10000. They have LEFT
the town 20 seek country labor in some
other employment. Old established com
panles which for many years nave paid
regular dividends. have absorbed their re-
serve funds and pay no dividends.