The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-01-12
EsPIoNAos IN FRANCE.
Kow a Visitor is Made Aware of the
Reign of the spy System.

Reign of the spy System.
From the PailGdelDhi1 Times
The third republic is no freer than were
any previous French regimes from this deep
faint of what the French call mouchardise.
Never before at any period of Frances his
tory has the reign of spydom been so wide
spread and absolute in Paris as now. There
has been latterly much discussion in the
worlds press Of the extraordinary degree 10
which official espionage obtains in Russia,
and very interesting details have been
forthcoming on the subject. l am now in
position to affirm that in Paris-I do not
say throughout the whole Of France-the
meshes of the detective net are woven even
more closely round the entire popul atiCn
than has ever been the case in st. Peters
burg. Evidence OF this fact might easily
be found In the secret history Of the Bou-
langist conspiracy. From first to last
every detail of this movement was known
| to the police, more thau three.fourths of
the Boulangists themselves being inform
ers.
The instant you arrive at Paris station
yau are in a midst of spies. You are driven
to a hotel in a cab. In half an hour the
| cabman will furnish the police with any
particulars he may have been able to gather
concerning your position, destination, bust
| ness, etc. Arrived at your hotel you become
the object OF scrutiny, as close as it is secret,
| on the part of divers persons, who, though
| attached to the place in the capacity of
| manager or cashier or even porter or
"boots," are in reality enrolled soldiers of
the great detective army. And here may
| mention O special characteristic of the
French detective system. its faculty Of re-
cruiting adherents in all classes of society.
| French spies for the most part are not sim
pie spies and nothing more. They have a
trade or occupation of their own, to which
| they seem wholly and solely devoted, while
yet assiduously pursuing sub rosa their
spying.
The unsuspecting stranger in Paris has
dinner at his hotel served by waiter, who,
| as a matter of course, is in the pay Of the
police, and will subsequently report to them
what conversation he overhears during the
meal. He then sallies forth, prmed with a
| glass or two of fine champagne, for an even
| ing's amusement Of the true Partisan sort.
| First he repairs to one of the brilliant boule-
ward playhouses. A few stalls away from
him sits gentlemanly looking man, witn
| steady, observant eyes, who glances now
and again at our frield in such way as to
make the latter think, 81 wonder where
have seen that man beforeP He never has
seen him before. but it doesn't enter his
| head for moment to suspect the man of
being what he really is-a police spy.
The play over, there IS just time for half
| an hours stroll under the horse chestnuts in
| the Jar1in de Paris. Here nine-tenths of
the attendants are either spies or scanps,
| or may, indeed, be both at once, for French
| p lice auth rites are not very squeamish in
| choosing their instruments, and seem to
have sort of preference for scounderls
over Others. Their the ry runs that the
greater villain man Isl the better spy he
| will make; moreover, the most efTicacious
means of keeping a man under spy suryeil-
lance Is to have him become spy himself,
| for spies spy upon each other quite as much
| as on the rest of mankind.
But our foreigner finishes up the evening
by turning into the Cafe Americana for
supper, where he has for next-door neighbor
a seductive young woman, with whom he
enters into conversation. She has a sweet
smile, which displays two rows of glittering
teeth, and puts many questions TO him con-
| corning France and the French. Naturally
| enough, our visitor imagines this is all done
out of that bright, easy, Gallo politeness he
admires so much, for how is he to know
that every word he has said in reply will
come to the ear of the police not later than
the following afternoon.
If our friend be fond of sport he will soon
be finding his way to the race courses near
| the capital and into the baccarat clubs, with
which Paris abounds, and here he will he
| hourly in contact with police spies in
greater number than there are racers on the
course or cards in the pack And so the
game goes on in every sphere of Paris life
| aud society.