The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1895-03-20
MILITARY STORES IN PARIS.
The French Capital Could Not Again Be
Starved Into Capitulation.

| MILITARY STORES IN PARIS.
The French Capital Could Not Again Be
! Starved Into CapituIstion.
Should tho fortunes of war ever
again expose the city Of Paris to the
hardship of siege the 5esieger
would find the reduction of the.
French capital a far more difficult
undertaking than did the German
armies in the winter of 1901. 1t
may be doubted whether the city
could over again he compelled to
capitulate. The fall of Paris, as is
we'll known, was not accomplished
by the German siege batteries, but
the city was starved into submis-
sion. A recurrence of such an emer-
gency is supposed to have been made
practically impossible by the devel-
opment of the art of preserving and
COMPRISING a great variety of nu-
tritious food into the smallest posi-
BILE space.
Thus, for example, 10000 rations
Of preserved vegetables can be placed
in cubic space measuring only 40
inches each way, and millions Of
these rations, together with solid
soups and preserved meats, are con-
stantly kept ready for the eventual
necessity of the military provision
ing of Paris. An enormous stock Of
flour and biscuits is always main
tanned by the war department., while
the introduction of compressed tod-
der and the silo system have facili-
tated the storage of sufficient food
for the horses required by the caval-
ry as we'll as by the omnibus and
street railway companies. One Of
the gravest causes of distress during
the last siege of Paris was the search
ty and poor quality of milk. Such
quantities Of this indispensable arti-
Gle as could then be procured were
worth their weight in gold, and the
mortality among infants resulting
from their deprivation of this neces-
sary food reached frightful rate.
In the next siege, however, milk
will not only be plentiful, but very
good, thanks to DR.. Autefage's proc
ess Of ''pasteurizing" milk, which
has been adopted by the French gov
ernment, and by which milk can be
preserved almost indefinitely abso.
lutely pure and unaltered.
Twenty years ago the art of pre-
serving meat by means Of cold stor-
age was in its infancy, but the French
government has availed itself Of
every improvement that has been
made in this direction, and at the
first sign of impending danger the
authorities would be prepared to
store hundreds of thousands Of car
casses of beeves and mutton. Tho
military magazines arc always kept
filed, but at the approach of war the
numerous warehouses and buildings
which have boon indicated for the
purpose and prepared for the storage
of provisions would be Immediately
brought into requisition. By means
of the Fixary process dressed beef
and other meats can be kept sweet
and fresh for many months, and by
new chemical methods the storage
rooms can be kept cool without the
use of ice. In it's careful preparation
for the dire emergency of hostile at
tack the French government seems
to have overlooked nothing, Even
coal, wood, petroleum, chemicals and
a thousand other things have been
provided in ample quantities. It
seems almost impossible to believe
that any future siege Of Paris could
be prolonged until the war depart
ment should have exhausted it's fab
ulous accommodations Of provisions,
which are constantly maintained at
! their proper level by renewals Of
stock as fast as they are used up.
"The best laid plans O mice and
men, +" however, "gang aft aglee." -
Philadelphia Record.