The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1900-06-02
ST. PAUL AND MINNEAPOLIS MINI. SATURDAY. JUNE p 1900

as 1.-The comic papers, OF WHICH SHE -
an inveterate reader. She derives part1-
cular amusement from caricatures OF {
political character relating to her own
constitutional advisers at home and to
her kinsfolk abroad.
Aware of this fad Of her majesty, each
English statesman who has held cablent
Office during her. long reign has made a
point of keeping her supplied with all
the caricatures that have appeared Of
himself in any domestic or foreign news
paper. They are sent to the queen from
time to time in the form of scrap books
Of a certain pattern; and inasmuch as
every minister who has served the queen
since her accession to the throne has fol-
lowed this practice, it will readily be I'M.
derstood that the great library OF Windsor
castle contains complete and unique
collection of the political characters or
the Victorian era. They will form IN
times to come an invaluable corollary to
the history Of the present century, much
in the same way as-in a minor degree
the caricatures and cartoons of Gllray
enable one to understand many things
in connection with the reign of King
George III, which would otherwise re-.
main incomprehensible. >--- 81. III. ..
It is doubtful whether there is any per-
sonage who has been brought into con-
tact with the queen during her phenon-
enally long life who has escaped this par
ticular form of satire. In the early years
of her marriage, before her subjects had
learned to appreciate the sterling qualities
and the valuable: services of the late
Prince Consort, he was by reason of
British prejudice against the foreigners
a constant butt of the cartoonists. Sell
dom indeed did a number of punch ap-
pear without some comic presentment of
the queens husband. Lord Palmerston,
Emperor Napoleon, Francis Joseph of
Austria, John Bright, Lord Russell, Glad
stone, Sir Robert Peel, and particularly
Benjamin Disraeli, formed the subject of
amusing caricatures, and it is doubtful
whether anything more clever of this kind
has ever been published than the, por-
trayal of Lord Beaconsfield in the char
acter of the Sphinx, one of the sightless
stone eyes Of the statue being closed in a
wink, in token of satisfaction at the deal
by which the most brilliant of all Queen
Victoria's preniers had just concluded the
acquisition of the khedivial block of
founders shares in the Suez Canal COM
pany.
In England political cartoons do not
merely follow the opinion of the public,
but frequently lead it, exercising an as
tonishing influence upon the course Of
events. A cartoon in the pages of
punch has sometimes suficed to turn at
it's flood the tide of popular sentiment;
while it was the appearance of wonder
full picture in the now defunct ''Toma-
hawk" showing the throne vacant, the
crown close by under glass case, all
covered with dust, her majesty's high
land gillie, John Brown, leaning on the
glass Ease, and the&queens behind him on
a lower step of the dais wiping away
tears she gaZed at a bust of her dead
husband, that served to recall the sover-
eign to herself, and to remind her that
the nursing of her grief and the extreme
seclusion from the public which it en-
tailed were beginning to give offence to
her subjects and to expose her to charges
of neglect of the obligations of royalty
Passing across the channel, however,
comic journalism suffers change. AL
though the languages of the Latin coun-
tries of Europe lend themselves to a far
greater degree of dainty wit than those
of the English speaking, German and
the Slav races, and in spite Of the fact
that the French are justly reputed as be-
ing more gifted in the possession of that
particular delicate form of humor known
as esprit than any other people on the
face of the globe. yet for some strange
reason or another there is no country
where comic journalism descends to such
depths as in France. Even in it's treat
ment of the social questions and fads Of
the day there is invariably an element of
indelicacy which impairs the cleverness
and the keenness of the satire, while the
cartoons and caricatures of political per-
sonages, both at home and abroad, are
nearly always coarse and frequently
creditable character of French comic
journalism that the once so widely cele-
brated French wit has lost the prestige
which it enjoyed Throughout the eigh-
tenth century and during the earlier por-
ton of the nineteenth. ".a
This condition of affairs is largely due to
the fact that comic journalims in France
is monopolized by a certain class of
Partisan boulevardiers, who, drawing their
inspiration from absinthe, from the bou-
doris Of the half world and from the
so-called restaurant de mutt, have lost all
sense of the proprieties and decencies of
life. It may be doubted whether: any one
of them ever crosses the threshold Of /
respectable house, 1t must thoroughly be
understood here that the circulation of
these Partisan comic papers is confined,
SO to speak, to the boulevard element of
Partisan life to the cafes and beer halls,
and the low class restaurant AS for the
"Rire," which is at the present moment
arousing the ire Of the English people by
the disgusting and revolving nature of it's
cartoons Of the venerable sovereign of the
Eritsh empire, and Englishman who has
lived in France, the Prince Of Wales first
and foremost, must know that such a
sheet as that does not even get into the
clubs, certainly never into any private
houses Queen Victoria is by no means
subjected TO treatment Of the kind by the
Rlre At the time of Emperor Will
VANS pilgrimage to Nthe holy land. It
brought out special double number.
role of Christ. - -
90 not wish to set myself IN as tho
a. apoioSlst OF the French people. nor as 4
lile champion of French propriety. Rnt
y, mia q, ! 40 wish to point out in this letter
=, iot tra. tnese dlsgraceful insults offered
RE. nsiaId,s py the Partisan comic press to
angianu aged Queen do not in anv
sense OF the word represent French feel.
ins ana French taste. The vast masses
oi the French people, especially the non
.luon OF the great provincial CITIES
loWIis ana rural districts Of France have
as hisn a sense of propriety and attach
as much Importance oEresnac+a h;iit,-
people in this country : - 'A''' 90
, uiiunS aside from the art of tha car#
toomst and of the caricaturist in Er.noas
where 1t has lost caste and has sacrificaS S
Ro OF and wit to indecency, 1T NAV
DC SAD that comic Journalism PLAYS
very considerable role in Germanpp s as,,a =
c1ally In Vienna and Berlin Some of 7tha
sailes OF the Viennese comic paDers are
extremely amusing and to the point and
when Count Taaffe was premier Of Ans
t ira ne, MS coachman, who aped his
l l,a-sters odd appearance, the resem-
. plance being increased by MS nanrt1aiIv
wearing the peculiarly cut old clothes IF
the premier and his excellency's dog
Mops1 proved an inexnaustible sn,Ircez n
merr1ment to the laughter loving peonIa
OF Vienna, thanks to the manner in who,
they We're portrayed by the comic papers.
IN fact, the latter may be said to have
popularized the premier far and wide
I Il the empire. the fun poked st
the count and his two companions being
SO Kindly in character that it excited thss
goodwill even Of those who were at first
disposed to be prejudiced Against his afl-
ministratinn ON ,nlifinni ssr,.es,,.,