The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1905-08-01

great company OF the East there are
those in. Paris who cry out against the
Rothschilds' contract with the French
government i'm those early days of
doubt
Viewed from our present day stand
point the proposition made by the
French government i'm 1S48 looks, GER
tainly, like a good thing. 1t said to
the Rothschilds:
aid us i'm the construction of our
railroad of the north. The treasury is
empty; those Notifications have all
but ruined us. We will furnish the
right of way and settle with the prop
erty owners; and we will do the grad
ing and tunneling and put the roadbed
i'm condition. work estimated at ST.
100000 francs.
1--WE will hand this completed road
bed over to you. You will lay the
rails, build the stations, furnish loco
motives, cars, and so forth and in
word, start the railway running-the
expense of which is estimated at GO,OO0,-
900 francs. In return for this service
we will abandon to you during forty
years all the profits of the railway-if
there be any. At the end of your
lease we also promise to pay you back
the cost of your material at a valua-
ton"
The contract was on the point of be-
ing signed when the chamber of depu-
ties interfered. 1t refused positively to
permit the clause of paying back the
cost of the material and the doubtful
ness of the enterprise i'm the minds of
their contemporaries may be gathered
from the editorial exclamation of the
Journal des Debats i'm July 1913, when
the Rothschilds waived the clause: IN.
Rcthschild solcits the privilege of ruin
ing himself"
How near these and other early
French railways came to ruin is a mat
ter of complicated French history. The
stocks rose and fell on the bourse the
government came to their rescue: the
demanded supplementary
constructions; the government under
took other constructions; the railways
came to the rescue of the government,
and new conventions were made as
years rolled on, particularly at the end
of the forty years period in 1883. 1t is
a complicated subject; but it may be
summed up by stating that, for SER
vices rendered since the year 1879, the
Company of the North still remains in
possession of it's lease, while the names
of Rothschild and Fould must be men
toned throughout with the rise Of
French railways.
The Rothschilds having aided and
been aided by the Orleans family.
in,
spicuous situation on the breaking out
of the revolution of 1S4S. Their chateau
at Suresnes was burned and pillaged
by the same mob that burned and pill
laSed the chateau tot Neuilly. the fay-
orite residence of Louis Philippe and
his sons; but of the two, the house OF
Rothschild was the more firmly FOUND
ed, because the Baron James had in
one large portfolio sufficient hostages
10 bring the new government to terms.
Ii Is one of the facts which remain
hidden and unknown, covered by the
accumulated rubbish of French his
tory; yet at the time it was wonder
FULLY picturesque. In 1S47, during the
settled government of Louis PhiIIipne
the Rothschild house had undertak ken 4
loan of 25OOOO,OOO francs designed for
pubic improvements. Some 100000 900
francs Of it had been paid over to the
French state; and it is quite possible
that between November, 1S47, when the
loan was conceded, and February. 1S4S
when the revolution broke out the
Rothschilds might have placed the
whole loan with a profit
Did the far-seeing Baron James have
MS doubts of coming trouble? In any
case, the incoming revolutionists found
the treasury empty and Baron James
point blank refusing to hand over to
them the balance of the $50 900. OnA
francs Il do not know YOU" he said.
Il never promised you anything" They
might nave put him IN prison, but they
much preferred cash. Therefore thew
gave Baron James a guard of honor for
MS damaged Suresnss villa. They pass
ed the word of order that the Roth
childs were good people. They made
new propositions for new loan to the
new republic. Baron James looked
round about him. He saw that bis
friends of the Orleans family had gone
out Tor good The interest of his house
IN the stability of things in France was
enormous. He was willing to risk much
Tor settled order. Therefore he loaned
the new republic 100000 francs at 8
per cent.
Present-day critics of the Rothchilds
in France have argued that as Baron
James had time, between November.
lS41' and February, 1S4S, to have placed
the whole of the previous $50, OOO 900
francs loan with the public at a profit
to himself of 1S,OOOOOO francs, his keep
ing of the major part of it in his port
folio till the breaking out of the revo-
luton constituted a breach of faith
not toward the government of Louis
Philippe that was delighted to leave an
empty treasury to its destroyers-nor
toward the new republic, with whom he
had no contract-but, in some occult
way, toward France. The fact, how
ever, that he might have made some
lS,OOO,OOO francs and yet refused to
make it is open to a much more favor
able construction.