The Portland daily press., 1895-01-26

No scruples and no principles. All is wei
that ends well-for the orportunist. Tech
nioally, and more soberly, the opportunists
are those republicans of every kind who for
the last fifteen years have sunk their
differences in order to combine to hold the
reins of power. They are "the government
and have been SO for long years. They
differ from the radicals and radical republi-
cans IN that radical must stick to his
| principles. The opportunists tighten their
boat by throwing overheard their dearest
theories for the public good-they say-in
order that the ship of state may safely
weather all the storms of Boulangists and
| royaiists, religionists and socialists.
MINISTER'S OF OPPORTUNISM.
just now the present cry among the OPP
| portunists is lack of men, Minister
Dupuy, the present head of the party, is a
| brave man--though stout to the point of
apoplexy physically he showed himself
brave man upon one memorable occasion.
When Valliant's bomb exploded in the
chamber, he stood calm. "Messieurs les
Deputies" he said, ''the seance will con-
tinue" Minister Dupuy has been in long
enough they say. Each one should have his
turn. And so it is question whether that
most curious feature of French politics,
the opportunist concentration, will not fall
away with him. All the old ministers of
opportuLism, it is said, are passed, dlscred-
tied or used up. NJ. Ricard ended by being
called the 'belle Fatima,'' because of his
swaying stomach; NJ. Spullcr, otherwise
called ''Loie-Spuller. because his chang
ing principles appeared to resemble the
changing colors of Loie Fuller's dance,
damaged himself with the ''new SPIRIT
which, though it no longer blows about
him, makes him a thing of fear even to the
moderate republicans. All the other repub-
lican senators have served their time.
Freycinet, DENOTE and Loubet have passed
into obscuri.y. In the chamber men Ike
Leon Say and Paul Deschanel are looking
about them; they wish to be no longer
known as opportunists. NJ. Rouveir and
NJ. Roche, together with some others. have
against them the souvenir of Panama.
As the phrase goes. "a great deal of water
will have to pass through the canal" before
the party of Panama may hope to look for
better days.
THE VARIETY OF PARTIES.
There remains the radicals and the con-
servatives and royalists. although the
names of ali the parties are nor used up
with such quickness. it is we'll understood
that the French chamber of deputies is
composed of republicans, revisionist repub-
licans, socialist republicans, radical repub-
licans. conservative republicans (rallisd). /
radical republican socialists, independent
republicans. progressionist republicans,
moderate republicans, republican liberals,
republican socialist Aliemanists, radical re-
publican Boulangists, conservatives, rallied
conservatives, liberal conservatives, radi-
calls. socialists, revolutionary socialists.
radical rsvisionists and socialists, Alleman-
lists, Broussists. Blanquists, revisionists
and Guesdists.
But just as the name of opportunists COW
ers a multitude of various republicans, Just
as the one word socialist sweeps Up list of |
diverse hairy interrupters. SO also the one |
word radical will gather together a good |
two-thirds of the remaining types. 'Con- |
count by themselves.
The radicals are the extreme republicans, |
who will never believe that the dangers of |
the first days of the republic are over. |
They see a priests gown disappearing |
round every corner. Their chief idea is to |
make constantly new laws against the ]