Evening star., 1896-07-20
MORE CHILDREN.
France is Decaying for the Lack OF
Them.

rance IL Dec0ytnE for the Lack OF
Them.
From the London Times.
A very remarkable campaign has been
started in France. the object being to in
crease the population. The organizers are
DR.. Jacques Bertillon, chief of the bureau
Of statistics of Paris; NJ. Charles Richet
professor Of the faculty Of medicine in the
same city, and DR.. laval, member of the
Academy Of Medicine. For years these
men have noticed with regret that the
population OF France was not increasing
proporuonately with the population of
other countries. and now they come for
ward with what they believe to be an in
fallible remedy for this evil
That some drastic remedy is needed thew
insist. as otherwise France must soon sink
to the rank of a seccnd-rate, or even a
third-rate. nation. A hundred years ago
the great countries-in other words, the
100000 Inhabitants, OF whom 26,OOO 600.
or n per cent, were residents Of
France. Today these same countries
contain 3OO,OO0OOO inhabitants. of whom
SS.NOWO. or only II per cent, live
In France. These figures speak for them
selves, and the obvious conclusion, ac-
cording to DIR. BertiIlon and his colleagues,
Is that II the births continue to decrease
at the same ominous rate, France, which
was once ore Of the most powerful coun-
tries in Europe will soon be one of the
weakest.
These gentlemen have begun their novel
campaign by founding a society, which is
styled THE National Alliance for the Re
lief OF the French Population" The de-
fensive measures which they propose to
numerous hn fnr ho {r,,ro ia
present they will confine their attention
to three points First. they will try to get
the laws relating to inheritances greatly
modified, second, they will try to get all
direct taxes removed from those families
which have more than three children: and
third, they will try to have the laws relat-
ing to succession duties thoroughly re-
formed. AS it is manifest that the nations
treasury would be seriously affected by
the removal Of taxes in the case of all
families which have more than three chill
dren. 1t is proposed to place a tax OF Is
per cent on al families which are childless
or have only one or two children
There is said to be excellent reasons
for these proposed reforms. The larger a
mans family is In France, we are told, the
more he Is taxed, both directly and tndi-
rectly, the result being that thrifty parents
do not care to have many children. More
over, the parents property must be divided
among the children. and If the children
.saI are numerous and the property small, the
NJ,
In other countries the law of entail Is
maintained pretty rigidly, and though its
operation seems hardly equitable or nat
urai as regards younger children, it GER
tainly seems to act in some degree as
preventive of depopulation.
Remove all burdensome taxes from fruit.
ful families" say the members of the Ma
tional Alliance. land let Frenchwomen
and Frenchmen know that. even from
monetary point Of view, 1t will be fortunate
for them to have many children Then, as
the national treasury must be supported.
let us tax those parents who have few or
no children. Parents who have no children
or only one or two children may reasonably
be required to contribute a goodly quota
toward the support of the state whereas
1t Is Improper and unjust to expect any
support from those parents who have to
provide for numerous children. Do this.
and France will soon become, as she was
in the past, one Of the greatest powers
In Europe; fail to do this, and France will
GUM or Holland"
The members of the alliance intend to
hold several public meetings and to publish
several pamphlets setting forth their
care to assist them. irrespective Of creed
or political opinions. Many persons
throughout France have already announced
their adhesion to the program Of the al
in the near future the necessary bills In
regard to succession duties and the aboli-
ton Of taxes will be presented to the
French legislature. What the result will
be cannot be foretold, but DIR. Bertillon and
his colleagues are confident that their ap-
peal to Frer ch patriotism will not be in
vain.
Others, however, who know nothing about
statistics, but who profess to know good
deal about human nature, maintain that
this crusade will produce little result for
the reason that the opposing forces are not
mainly economical, but are the result of
old-time habits and ways of thinking.
against which it win be impossible to sue
cessfully combat. Taxes and succession
duties, say these critics, have nothing to
do with the question. French families are
small, because such has long been the cue-
tom in France, and thisscustom no laws or
regulations can do away with They point
out many moral and other reasons for this
custom. on which 1t is not necessary here
to lay stress. Ons ingenious critic main
tadns that French women become 30 in
toxicated with love and admiration for the
first child that they never care to have any
more. He writes with some bitterness on
the subject. and even goes so far as to
say that French woman, as soon as she
becomes a mother. gradually loses her love
for her husband, and becomes q slave to
tAs ssndsH se'|d, tn. circumstances. ACCORDING to
him. the husband and wife tacitly agree
to live separate lives. the inevitable re-
However this may be, all thinking men in
while some Of them are satisfied that II
cannot be eradioated. there IL not one who
10 not satisfied that the National Alliance
n 4 nt0p In the ri3ff dirAokioh