The Saint Paul globe., 1899-02-19

Republican VfctOry-President
Loubet Man of the People, Firm
and Not FanaticaI.
Copyright by the Associated Press.
PARIS. Feb. 1S-The election of
Loubet on Single ballot by Repub-
licans only, is the greatest Republican
victory since Grevy's walk over the
course.
The new president comes from the
part Of France where the Roman pow
er lasted longest, namely. Marsanne.
in the department of DrOme. He gives
the impression of I, mote Latin origin,
and looks to be a solid, practical man,
who sees the facts N life just as they
are. AS president of the senate be has
had official and other experience that
will be useful to him as president OF
the republic. but he is essentially a
plain, middle-class man. whose mind
was Sharpened by his practice at the
bar in the provincial town of Monteli-
mar, in the south of France.
Loubet belonged, under the empire,
to the Republican party. then calling
itself Liberal. In 1870 he threw himself
into the national defense current, and
stood by Gambetta. He was elected
| county councillor in 1871. then mayor,
| and in 1876 he was sent TO the chamber
! of deputies where he sat between NJ.
Henry and M. Martin. the historian.
Accepting Thiers' leadership, but favor
| ing the scheme to declare Grevy his
| political heir and to reconcile Gambet-
| ia with both, he seemed to bide his
time and was in no hurry tc push for
ward. MacMahon's government gave
| him prominence in dismiSSng him from
| the mayoralty of Montelimar in 1871,
thus exasperating the Drome Repub-
| licans.
| LOUBET'S STRENGTH.
M. Lcubet. at the legislative cleo
tions in 1877, was triumphantly return
cd His subsequent candidatures were
| ed by Drome as a senator In all these
years he was a useful deputy, chiefly
working in the committees and speak
! ing little. He was the intimate friend
! Of Senator Carnot and of Tirard, and
| in 1883 the latter appointed him mini
ster Of public works. in which capacity
he carried out scheme to convey the
sewage of Paris into the st. Germain
forest.
President Sadi-Carnot asked Loubet,
| in 1892, to form a cabinet, but it fell
under the weight of the Panama scan
dal, tr which some members, albeit not
Loubet. were implicated This admin
stration was marked by the mission of
| Admiral Gervais squadron to Cron-
| stadt, and the visit Of the court OF
Russia to the flagship Magenta.
M. LoUbet was personally innocent OF
Panamaism. but, like M. Carnot and
Brisson, he thought the shelterIng OF
the accused eXpedient. He had never
since filled other Office save the presi-
dency of the senate, to which he was
first elected in 1896.
The new president returned to Paris
from Versailles this afternoon by train
He Is the first president who has done
so. He ordered an open carriage and
pair to await him at the station instead
| of q carriage and four. He was we'll
| received by tremendous crowds. He
arrived by daylight and had an escort
Of curassiers. The entire absence OF
| haughtiness in his demeanor was
| fayorably remarked. M Loubet paid
a visit to Nine Faure on his way home
and saluted the corpse Of M. Faure.
GOT THE RIGHT MAN.
Loubet is the right man in the right
place The Importance of today s
presidential election for the welfare OF
the French republic and the prestige
of France abroad cannot be overesti-
mated. The issue taken was whether
|
irresponsible league-the league Of the
French fatherland in the hands of cleri-
cal, monarchial and military agitators
Never was more monstrous con-
spiracy engineered to pervert a whole
nations sense Of justice, in order tc
perpetrate the greatest miscarriage OF
law of the century and shield few
felons from the consequences OF crime
The more sensible part of France feels
after M. Loubet's election, that great
weight has been taken off theil
conscience, and. hopes that a new lea1
will be turned over the worst page OF
modern French history.
M. Clemenceau wrote yesterday tha
1t was necessary that the new presi
dent be a man not connected with tht
Dreyfus affair. He, therefore, agreed
to support Loubet. Fairness, this, bu
the Nationalists do not want fairness
They want Dreyfus, guilty or innocent
to remain permanently at Devils isl
and. 1t was enough that M. Clemen
ceau supported Loubet. The Nation
alists declared that the latter should
not be president, or they would make
Paris too hot for honest people to liv'
in.
ANTI -SEMITES DISCOMFTTED.
But suppose Loubet were elected b!
large majority, would they set thei
will above congress? Yes. they wer'
quite frank. It was to be expected
that De Beaurepaire, that madma1
and story teller, would rake up som,
falsehood against Loubet. Sure enough
he published this morning a Panama
story against Loubet, if possible more
empty than his charges against thu
court of cessation. He showed how
little he himself believed in his owl
title -tattle by admitting that h
doubted not Loubet's uprightness add
ing, in a peculiar dishonest way, add
situations against M. Loubet too fatu
Gus for contradiction.
The Libre Parole branded him thi.
morning as Panama -Dreyfusitt
candidate" having the effrontery tt
remark that he was supported as sucf
by Reinach, Zadie, Kahn, chief rabb
of France, and by Dreyfus himself.
The Nationalist organs are forced tt
, admit that not a word or deed of M
Loubet can be connected with Drey
fusism.
The fact is that the anti-Semites
heads have been turned by victories
due to the weakness of the govern
ment, and they thought they coult
boss France. They won another victo
ry this morning, when Premier Dupuy
yielding to anti-Semite clamor, gave
Herr Frischauer, the correspondent O.
the Neue Freie PreSse, notice of ex
pulsion from France. Herr Frischau
er, a Catholic Austrian, asked the rea
son and was told that it was on &C
count of the general tone of his letter.
on Dreyfus, M. Dupuy, however, beins
unable to point to single unwarrant
able passage in the letters.
M. Meline, who, through his shut
fling and double-dealing, caused tn,
DreyfuS drama to become q nationa