Omaha daily bee., 1902-09-17
THROWS DOWN A GAUNTLET
French Minister Of Marine Makes Rsmarka-
bic Speech at BiEsrta,
FRANCE is READY TO MEET ANY ENEMY
Expresses Sentiment that May Keep
Foreign Minister DeIcRHse Busy
Explaining In More DipIO-
" matte Language.


BIzBl Sept. 16.-M. Pelletan,
French mil. marine, made a remark
able speech a an entertainment OF the
municipality yesterday evening, which, it
is expected, will cause the French foreign
minister, NJ. Delcasse, some trouble in ex
planning. After pointing out Bizerta as
bulwark of France, NJ. Pelletan proceeded:
We do not say we want to make the
Mediterranean a French lake. We have
been cured of the dreams of the great man
who wished US to Dominate the world;
and will remain French. With this power
ful, rampant. SO well situated for defense
Touon, we can hold the open door be-
tween the two halves of the Mediterranean
in spite of Malta and Gibraltar.
people against England any more than
against Italy, but as we do not know
what others are doing it is part of our
duty to prepare for the holy war; for the
French fatherland against its enemies,
whoever they may be.
l am convinced, thanks to the fellow
workers by whom l am surrounded, that
we can face every eventuality. Security
world. At the end of the nineteenth CEN
tUry after the defeat of France by the
barbarism of old Germany, we saw an
offensive return of the law of brute force
The whole world seemed to be dominate ed
by the maxim, Might before right" We
must then. devote all our efforts toward
hSSpihb AhldSb Aildb lOChS VI lCAlSAA
genius.
NJ. Pelletan concluded with remarking
that he would not say more at present He
had not yet become accustomed to being
a minister and feared he might be carried
away into expressing his opinion Of mat
ters which exclusively concerned the
foreign minister.
France has at Bizerta a powerful mill
tary and naval stronghold, which, with
Toulon on the north of the Mediterranean,
French military and naval men assert that
Frances naval power in the west of the
Mediterranean is unassailable and all that
is required to consolidate the position Of
France is the construction of the so-called
Canal Of Two Seas, which is to unite the
Mediterranean with the bay of Biscay and
thus render 1t independent of the straits
Of Gibraltar.
His Government is Vexed,
PARIS, Sept. 16.-The needlessly offensive
illusions to Italy, Germany and Great Brit
ain, made by M. Pelletan, the marine min
lister at Biserta have caused considerable
surprise here and are generally deprecated.
The only explanation offered by Frenchmen
is that M. Pelletan has forgotten that he is
now a minister and not journalist. Mr..
Decasse is said to have been extremely
vexed at NJ. Pelletan's utterances, which are
calculated to considerably irrltate Italy, at
a moment when the government had sue
ceeded in alleviating the i'll feeling In that
quarter.
M. Pelletan chose a very unfortunate
moment for his Ajaccio remarks, as 1t
coincided with the telegram OF the count
of Turin to the French ambassador at Rome.
paying homage to the French soldiers who
SaIl H. A,s ,RC CnIR a., he Jfalto
cause M. Pelletan's further blunder yes
| terday in again using insulting language,
regarding Germany and Great Britain has
increased the annoyance felt against him
and the French foreign Office Is visibly en-
! barrassed to explain 1t away:
An official this afternoon said. IN. Pei
letan's remarks must be taken as strictly
personal, and in no way rejecting the gen
eral spirit of the French government toward
the powers mentioned. He spoke in his ca
pacity as minister Of marine and as treat
ing Of the defense Of the coast and not as the
mouthpiece Of Frances foreign policy"