Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-03-30

Why Everybody in Monaco Ate "The
Prince's Bread" and Was Educated by
| MounrnIv

Why Everybody in Monaco Ate "The
Princes Bread" and Was Educated by
Monopoly.
H. c. Farnham in the Cosmopolitan.
The tiny principally of Monaco, containing
only fve and three-quarter square miles,
claims an exceptional antiquity, even i'll
this region. Until the first centuries OF
the Christian era its name was "Portus
Herculis," in memory Of its occupation
by Hercules. according to at-adition of mythol-
ogy. before he went to Spain. As early as
500 B. C. it is mentioned as a colony of note
After the death of Charlemagne 1t WAS
occupied by the Saracens From that time to
the present century it frequently
lost and won by each of the neighboriug pow
ers-Spain. France Germany, Genoa. Milan.
Florence, Provence. SavOy-and the strong
hold was often devoted to merely piratical war
fare. Then Sardinia held it until France, by
obtaining Nice and Savoy, virtually took it I'M
der its protectorate. Monaco was probably the
last place in western Europe to suffer the full
rigors Of feudal heritage. The conditions Of
life here az late 1910 seem already incredible.
mo one," says NJ. Abel Rendu. '.can
fully realize the administration Of Honore v.
which may be epitomized in two words-the
straugest absolutism for law and monopoly for
means. This man. perfect model of the old
time seignor, wished to revive for his own profit
feudal system. 1t was he who invented that
notorious iniquity known under the name Of
the monopoly of grain. Behind the mask of
foreigre~. Francois Chappon, he made himself
the farmer .Ld mill "t his country. He de-
cidcd that ti! alone should supply
the country \. ~. and that he
alone should grand and consequently
that only the wheat of his grana-
ries should be used in making bread. All in
habitants of the country sick or well. and all
vba Wis
compelled to eat the same bread under the
severest penalties; it was impossible to escape.
This bread. made Of condemned -four bought
at low prices on the market of Marseilles and
Genoa. was of the worst quality; but
matter, it was necessary to eat
the princes bread. The traveller cross
ing the principality on entering it had to give
up the loaf he had bought at Nice or
elsewhere and the Sandman workman could not
bring with him his daily bread. The shin
captain who failed to calculate his provisions so
as to arrive in port without a single piece Of
the forbidden bread had to pay fine of 500
francs and surrender his confiscated vessel
Every baker had orders to record in q apecial
register the quantity of bread consumed by each
family; If the consumption was not considered
sufficient domiciliary visits, law suits and evic-
tons followed. This state of things continued
for twenty-five years.
Education also became monopoly. Honorc
IN opening college at Mentone forbade any
one to have any pupils in his house or to give
any private lessons. The prince also imposed
a tax on every head of cattle. and for fear that
any animals should escape this duty every
farmer was Obliged to get the day Of birth and
the sex of the animal certified on STAMPED
paper. If the animal died he had to declare its
death and to get soldier metamorphosed into
veterinary sugeon to draw up the documents.
otherwise he was suspected of having sold the
animal beyond the frontier or eaten it in his
family and to the great prejudice of the prince.
Trees as well as animals had their civil status.
As to the customs. spoliation is the only word to
describe them. A court sat at Monaco; but a
lawyer in Paris constituted in himself alone the
only court OF appeals, and his judgments. always
confirmed by the prince, were final In twenty
five years the prince pocketed six millions Of
francs, an enormous sum from a population of
six thousand souls"