The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-05-03
MATERIALS TO SERVE.

The French classify historical works
under tive heads-histories proper and col
leetiOns of facts, memoirs and biographies,
which they call materials to serve" for
the writer's of future histories. And though
the literary fame of collectors of mate
rails" is not as shining as that of historians
proper, the former are Indispensable to the
latter, as without an ample supply of rela-
bic material the composition of histories is
impossible. We have no history worth the
name, of the war of the Rebellion; but
each year sees the production of admirable
works which properly belong to the class
of materials; and some day man of genius
will take this material and weave it into a
history. So with this Coast. Mr. Bancroft
is massing in his excellent volumes a pro-
digious quantity of materials. which, with
large mass of other material. will enable
some future historian to write history of
the Pacific States which may take rank
with the works of Thneydides or Macaulay.
Another modern period which is as yet
virgin field for the historian is the history
of France during the tw enty eventful years
which began in 1851 and ended in 1871.
The student who attempts to inform him
self concerning this period is astonished at
the scarcity of works which he can profit
ably study. There is no decent history of
the Franco-German war. French pride re-
VOTED at the recital of German triumphs,
and the Germans, after the victory, neg
Iected to put upon record many important
events. Nor is there any work of merit
from which the student can acquire a COM
prehensiye view Of the nineteen years adj
:minlstration of Napoleon III. The knowl-
edge he seeks he eau only find in novels, in
memoirs, in the narratives of travellers, and
in articles in magazines. Happily, the col
lection Of these is becoming large, and be-
fore the end of the century the future his
torian will probably be able to gather
enough material to build on.
The latest contribution to this collection
is the first volume of Baron Haussman's
memoirs. Baron Hanssman will be re-
membered as the famous Project of the
Seine, who undertook to rebuild Paris at a
cost which is represented by an annual debt
charge of S40,000,000, and which has made
Paris one Of the dearest instead of the
cheapest city in the world to live in. He
was the type of the adventurer Of the
second empire. Not only did everything
he touched turn to gold. but every one who
was his friend made fortune; speculation
ran wild, and. as usually happens, corrup-
ton and dissipation followed in its wake.
He tells us in this volume how the thing
was done, and why the Emperor fostered
speculation, and the seeiaf disorder which
ensued. His work is fit supplement to
the memoirs Of De Maupas and The reminis-
censes Of Lord Malmesbury. De Maupas
who was Chief of Police at the time of the
coup d'etat was devoid Of principle: right
and wrong were terms he did not under
stand; the value of his book consists in the
caDdor with which he confesses crimes of
which he evidently did not realize the
enormity. Malmesbury was an English
nObleman of high instincts, who. like
Prince Albert, was chiefly struck with the