The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1895-11-23
bid WE'LL ON FRANCE
Interesting Account by Austin Bidwell of the Adj.
miniStrati0n of Law In France.
Radical Differences Between Our System and That
Which Satisfies People in the Land of Liberty
Equality and Fraternity.

der his direction. he was d man VI
gigantic size for a Frenchman, an old
army man of course, like all his coun-
trymen, and with that kind of con-
scious power in reserve upon his reso-
lutte and close-shut mouth, shaded with
a heavy black mustache, which seems
to be typical of men of his profession
the world over. Ny order gave him
greta surprise for, for core reason
which, no doubt, seems to 1t GOOD, the
French government preserves the pro-
foundest reticence upon all matters re-
Iatinr TO prisons and their administra-
ton. He received me, however, with
great politeness, a circumstance due,
perhaps. as much to my companion, an
American in business for years in
Hayrea and well known to the pferect, as
to the minister's order. This, of course.
would have been obeyed, but without
some additional pun the great man
traordinary ~effusion.
Tricky but Honest Officers.
I was glad to be brought close to n
specimen of French be~auraucracy, n
to see and study at leisure one of those
men, who in France, more than any
other country, seem parts of a ma
chine working. intelligently, of course,
but in exact harmony with all the other
parts Of the mechanism. He occupies
a position in tie "departement' analo-
gous to that Of Byrnes, the late super
intendent of police in New York, and
his salary is 5000 n year-another CIR
cumstance of similarity with the great
New Yorker. One other point OF nke-
ness completes the resemblance; he d.
reefs the movements of a police force
whose purity may not perhaps excite
fears of their early death. but VINO, on
.Lo ,ul,Nla pItita unaculainted WITH
Doodle.
After a few minutes pleasant n
sation, the project sent for an agent
whom he directed to accompany us.
The contrast between this agent and
his New York brethren was curious.
The American would have shaken
hands, declared himself glad to see me
and as we started out would very likely
have offered q cigar. The Frenchman
took off his hat, bowed, and begged to
know how he could serve us. Active as
q cat. restless, his small black eyes
actually burning in his head, his every
movement seemed to be the preparation
for a spring. The Rue de Paris Is the
great business street of Frances largest
port in the North, and as we went along
it the agent seemed to have something
to say of nearly every one.
Arrived at the station house. the cap
TAIN was lOiu u NY isi' ohu - t'N
authority to crafty them, when he
wistfully placed himself and all his be-
longings at my disposal. to remain there
until ! wanted them. Nowhere in the
world is there more hat politeness han
in France, but the Frenchman VINO
would really lift his hand to serve you
would be a remarkable curiosity, In
deed.
The captain, or Monsieur de Commits
H. -. Ia. T,.o--l X.XI. L., y.ac q, en-, III
man, nearer 60 tina 80, with a sallow
complexion speaking loudly of absinthe,
and wearing iron-grey side-whiskers,
the longest i ever saw on a a His
salary Is $500 n many a weary year OF
service ii has taken to put him In so
magnificent a position. And yet for
him it Is a good one. Frugality is the
virtue, such as it is, of his class of
Frenchmen. With 1000 francs a year
he can have all the enjoyment he Is
capable of understanding, and when he
Is su~perannuated, the certainty of
enough to keep him from starvation.
The Don we found him in was a large
one, divided in the center by a low
wooden partition, behind which were a
number Of stretcher beds.
You make your prisoners pretty COM
Portable" l said to him, pretending to
believe they were kept for that pur-
pose.
What sir!" he gasped, " what sir! do
you think we put prisoners in them? No
doubt Monsieur has never seen a
gendarmerie before,
What are the beds, then, for, and
where do you put the arrested?"
1.-The beds are for night officers not
on actual duty; but for the prisoners,
come. sir, come, I will show you how we
lodge them"
He skipped across the room and open
ed a door at the end.
Here, sir, here is where we put u
"mauvais sujets.'
/ looked in. 1t Is not easily to aston
ish me today, particularly in anything
relating to police matters, but this time
/ was thoroughly astonished. A cell
about twelve feet square, damp n
freezing cold, filthy beyond expression.
a small uHglazed window high up. gar
nished with bars, and with a raised
platform about two feet from the
ground, was for the moment unoccu-
pied, but did not long remain so.
d you mean to say that you put
human beings into such a place as
that?" ] asked, shrinking at the same
time from an iron tub in the corner.
from which issued an indescribably
abominable odor.
"Why certainly" he said, " why not ?
Nobody gets in here but ~vagabonds
and criminals!"
was raging In Havre and ocean steam
ers had stopped going there.
"Welf' said I, 'in my country you
would be indicted as a nuisance. and I
should think you would be all afraid of
being swept off by the cholera"
Some Jail Literature.
I looked at the walls and saw speci-
mems of the literature usually adjoining
such hotels. Among them was a la
Mort u vaches!" Mort aux tantes!"
Death to cows!" Death to Aunts!" 1
could not but wonder as this animosity
towards animals SO useful as cows, and
towards relations usually so kind
hearted and indulgent as aunts, and the
explanation showed that to be brought
up among French people is not suffi-
cient to initiate n into all the niceties
OF the language. Cows Is the word en-
ployed by the usual occupants of the
apartment to indicate what we call
stool pigeons. and aunts Is the proper
term to denote anyone who excites
their contempt or Indignation.
While talking to the Commissaire, the
outer door was flung open and a crowd
rushed In. some of them holding a we'll
dressed man, who made no resistance
and seemed less disturbed than any of
them. Away flung the Commissaire and
Instantly developed a high excitement.
He chartered and screamed like an en-
ragged monkey. A score Of questions
were shot at the prisoner In as many
seconds, and then he was abused for
not answering between his GOODNESS and
the excited screaming of the Commits
saire and his attendants.
H. He was an ~Englishman but spoke
1 French with easy fiuency. As sOon as
he got a chance to speak he said,
"You have asked me a good many
questions; which one would you like me
Ito answer first?"- Then the screams be-
gan once more. The commissaire jumped
an and Ant domn amin nickad nm na.