The times., 1898-12-25
SMALL PAPERS OF PARIS.
Their Number Not Regulated by the
Demand. hut the Occasion.
fFrom the New York SUM-

Nioui thc new tork sum-
The press of Paris. describing under
that generic term all the newspapers
published in the French capital. Is a
somewhat spasmodic group. the number
OF newspapers being regulated not by
any ordinary rule of demand. but by the
necessity of some public occasion. In
times of excitement there are more pa
pers published in Paris-not more copies
OF established papers, but more newspa-
pers-than in times of quiet. A great
sensation adds not so much to the num-
Der of copies sold Of any particular jour-
nal as to the number of newspapers pub
iished. and whenever. as sometimes hap
pens. there is a lull in puhlic interest, it
manifests Itself not in the SUSPENSION .;
newspapers, for French newspapers
never suspend but in the disappear
ance OF number. for some Partisan
journals appear and disappear without
any apparent good reason for so doing
The population of the city OF Paris by
the last census was, approximately,
2,5yD,OOo and the number OF newspaper
readers in Paris was a little larger, per-
haps, than in other large cities, speaking
relatively. for the reason that practically
every one in Paris speaks or understands
French, for there are very few foreign
ers in the capital city unfamiliar with
the French language According to the
recently published Presse Annuaire for
1888, the Paris newspapers this year num-
ber 2.5St-more than ever before.
There are in Paris at presen no daily
political newspapers. but how many there
will be next week or how many the week
after is practically impossible TO state
Some effort has been made to classify
according to divisional lines the daily pa
pers of Paris which devote their chief
2ftanrtnn n ND I. kn.-
found that 81 come under the category OF
Republican. % are Conservative and Is
are Socialists. The 81 Republican papers
are subdivided into moderate and radI-
cal Republican papers. opportunist Re
publican papers which support whatever
particular government is in office. and
Republican papers which oppose what
ever government is In Office
The thirty Conservative papers are di
vided into those that support the various
groups of pretenders. Orleanist and Bona
partist. the clerical papers. the financial
papers and the papers which cater TO va
rious interests connected with the army
and navy. The Socialist papers of Paris
being thirteen in number only. are less
easily susceptible of subdivision. but some
are more radical than others and some
are more moderate than the average; but
the maintenance of thirteen Socialist
newspapers in one city is strongly indica-
tive of the extent TO which French papers
take up and consider politics.
This state of affairs is rendered possi-
Bile by variety OF conditions which do
not prevail in the United States The
price of French newspapers is high; the
reading matter is small in amount and
the space taken by it is very limited
French newspaper readers do not require
much news and are perfectly satisfied to
depend upon the postoffice as an ordinary
channel of communication whenever the
telegraph fails. More Importance is at
tached TO literary style than to exact de-
tails in local newsgathering. and it Is
therefore possible TO publish with entire
pecuniary success a Paris newspaper from
the columns OF which all items of expen-
sive news are omitted. Moreover. many
of the French political papers. so-called,
are subsidized sheets. deriving their sup
port not from their readers or advertis-
ers. but from sundry funds" So long as
these funds continue the papers appear;
when the funds languish the papers dis
appear. and to this condition is due the
fact that the number of daily newspapers
published in the city of Paris varies radi-
cany from time to time and in an appa-
rentiy inexplicable manner, under stress
of some local event which visiting stran-
gers would not regard as of considerable
Importance. In France, outside of Paris.
the number of papers published is practi-
caily stationary.