Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1890-01-21
JACQUES BONHONNE
By MAX 0RELL, Author Of "JOnathsr
and His Continent John Ball
and HIS Iiland," John Bulls
Daugh,srh' Etc
X cRIrlcs oF The fRGncs-


~ cRlrlcs oF rHE FRENCH.
Why r.wigass. radsr.,.sd the i'sssh
- IIttl.-rh.y Have tsns. sai Love
rhsm. Ts~. I,sa rhsa.h IhsJ i's's No
s... fss iIs.a..
Looking AZ Paris. and calling u France,
j. the great mistake which most of our
wuuld h. critics make.
This was perhaps never more forcibly
illustrated than on Sunday, the geth q
January. lssS. ffom the pulpit In the
brooklyn Talynaclc.
"shuw mc the drcs, % a people, aud !
viii tea yol what their morals are en-
clalmcd the faniOu. Rev. Dr. Talmagc.
~ IL was evident. FROM " hat had gone
leforc. that the reverend doctor was
going "a sr-ak - France, a vision ot my
country people ro-c o. my minds eye. !
thought Of the industrious. orderly, Vir.
,hous, sob,r. thrifty millions the men
In their always suitable clothing newer
| aping that q the class above; the won
ga I'M their simple costumes which.
WHISTLER thoss - the picturesque lsou'
logne ~ Granville fishwive-. the peas
ants ~ Normandy. Brittany. burgundy,
Picardy. Champagne. 90 the souih, are
always mplrls ~ ncaines-, simplicity
and suitability. from the crown u the
picturesque cap to the sole u the strong.
I ssnsihle shoo. then rmembcrcd the
trim little ssamstryz-. millinsr, drvss-
maker. 80 sh0pgirl. in her naity drcss,
frightened up by a pretty bnnnct on
| SUNDAY. bat mover dcckcd with cheap
limitations u what her employers wear
There vas grand illustration ot the
point th. reverend doctor wanted 10
make
Dii hs usc a. Not hei
Passing over the great country aud
the Ts-ppls " ho should represent France.
hs cur- a. PaHs-a cosmopolitan toNn,
whcrr the goo-i az bad tastes % visitors,
ave. and even their vic... arr catered 70
and calling gitsinhahitants The French,
hs Proceeded a. ognsurv them, and IA
mcnicd that their ecccniricitics In drcs
should h. followed by the women u
other countries. IIe pas.cd over the
fact that. In the b-r.i rArsian society.
when a ladys street drcss calls forth the
highest admiration. that admiration is
Invariably etprcs-cd by such words A..
"ilos cNqu,sitely simple'
Wa not this iine opportunity the
doctor neglected u giving hint % his
oountrywomeni
When. copied In ,ilo stuff AMI unar'
tisiic coiors by clumsy dngers. the crra-
ton. ~ rinsian milliner. rcappgar All
over ihc world. they are often ccceutric
enough. admit another form ~ French
a. she l. "traduc-i" ,t u no won.
der that reverend doctors are found 10
trowu ou them. they shock none more
than the French themselves
After all. suppn.r ii !. little wonder
that outsiders should know % little q
the Frnch French lifo j. so, 80 cHclu.
siyc' The passing visitor a. our shores
gcts no opportunity io judge ~ his hosts
Mt ho-piablr. | ann -ouy to say. A
stranger viii meet with poliisuo-s and
attention AZ b. travels through oar
country. everybody viii h'lp him, and
II b. appears Ia Paris armed With letters
~ Introduction. be- will b. made vel.
come ai social gatherings, parties may
ts given in his honor perhaps. bat. 80
where be- may throughout the country
b. viii Mt have a chance ~ penetrating
into the inner family circle. The home
lie of the bulk n The Isoplo will remain
a closs,i letter Zoe him.
ON the other hand. modern liierature
l. - little ~ no use in the ease either,
Zoe most u oar noyclists do not descfibe
every day liic. They d,-cubc the c1cep
ton. 4 picture - middle class life
that l. o. say. the existence by the largest
part - the community too Peaceful,
uneyrniful. humdrm II you will, b. at.
tract the novel writer or to please the
novel reader. our manners detar him
from drawing scrnes from the birth ani
growth ~ the love that ends Ia matri'
mony-rvmance only bcsins after ths
marriage ceremony Il Overland th,
French novelist turns ton often tO ths
portrayal % Illicit love.
Because be- dos 80 l. no reason Cor In
ferring that thi, Kind - love u mor'
common In France than elsewhere. A
BalEac may charm with pictures of com
monplacc pcople and their doing; bat 3,
the ordinary novel writing pm a m0yin.
tale of passion j. necessity. 50, rar'
example, 81 unholy passion are seine
upon a. groundwork ~ much frencl
fiction. and the foreigner reads and oH
claims.
''This d, picture of French life'-
But u u not
Tie foreigner runs away with the lde;
that be- knows Va; bat be- does not. an,
his criticisms on ~, o: which he l. >
lavish. are worthless.
The beet critics France has had hay,
been Frcnchmsn. IL i to them that ~
must turn for true portraits Of th'
French.
but to return 10 our foreign critics.
Iwas not greatly surprised, ON cominl
90 America. % hsar that home life hard
ly existed In France. had heard tina
before. And the ovcrPowering rcasoI
advanced to prove this statement VA
that time honorcd Anglo-SaNon Chest
nut! Tie French language has n
eauivalent for ,he English worl home.
How glib l. the criticism of the ignor
anti
To feel the whole meaning of thos'
,, sweet words. chez III, chez nous, on
must know the language they form Tar
of. They call up In French hearts al
the tender feelings evoked by the wor'
home in the Anglo-Saxon breast.
How many English OF American pco
pie have an inkling of their valuei
DO they care to know that some hun
drod years hack the French used 10 az
en- chez (from the Latin In casa, At homel
and that the word chez was a noun
That later on they took 10 adding pro
noun. saying. for example, GA chez nous
and that the people. misiAking the wor,
chez for proposition. because Il was al
; ways followed by a noun or a pronoun
suppr,-seI the en-, - that now the irencl