Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-06-30

mutinied and refused to march against
rme n,,s parents SO ordered Here was
by opponents Of the law OF recruitment
| known as the regional system" which
permitted soldiers to be stationed in the
country where recruited. and where neces-
sarily they might be called upon to act
against their own relatives The ministry.
now convinced. but rather late In the day.
ordered the immediate change Of the regi-
ment. which was sent to Gap. and later to
Algeria.
The official statistics show that out OF
l 800 municipal officers there are actually
331 who have resigned their
Omc1als functions. The government
p.,, under such conditions has
"e"' undertaken to anticipate
their action by ordering the projects not to
acknowledge receipt of the letters Of resig-
nation. thereby insuring the holding over
OF the officials until the expiration of
thirty days, the law exacting besides that
such designations should be registered. thus
giving the disafrected officials time for re-
Election.
Nevertheless the officials have abandoned
their posts and have left no substitutes to
perform their offices, the inconvenience of
which has already been felt. On the 18th
instant, for example, five couples went to
the mayors office of Montpelier to con-
tract marriages. They were obliged to de-
civil officer the sacerdotal yes The
parties were disposed to laugh at the diff
Guilty at first. but finally denounced their
dilemma with no little bitterness
M. Clemenceau. in his letter to the
mayors, sets forth with clearness that
article 126 Of the code provides severe pen
alties for the preconcerted action of public
omcials to interfere with the public service
The minister abstains from making use of
this arm to punish but adjures the re-
1ractory functionaries to return to their
posts and thus no longer give encourage
ment to the enemies Of government.
when one thinks" says LIE Temps that
some of these mayors who have resigned
terminate their letters by the words. 'Vive
Ia republiaue.' What irony! Nothing is
more apt than their acts or the acts of
those with whom they associated to
compromise and perhaps to destroy that
republic for which they profess devotion. 1t
is not possible. If they are sincere, that
they do not understand this"
The president of the syndicate Of COM
merce. M. Gustave Fabre. In accord with M.
Aldy Delegne. declares that the idea Of
overproduction is a myth and delusion.
Every effort" says NJ. Fabre, Ito lessen
wine culture. every Intervention destined
to change the character of cultivation in
the Midi will prove false maneuver. The
Midi does not require such change. 1t
suffers purely and simply from dishonest
competition: fraud is the enemy. The fab
rication of wines with sugar is the prnci-
pal cause of the decline in price. We de-
mand the absolute suppression or the
fraud"
The government proposes in the law SUBJ
mitted to the chamber a surtax of forty
francs But the Commits
he1orm sion des BLOSSOMS held the
~.. tax insufficient. 1t desires
Complementary tax of 65
francs per 100 Kilograms on refined sugar.
AS the tax is already % francs, the total
would be 30 francs
NOW the departments that produce sugar
are exercised: In order to save one sick
man. man. cried NJ Piiehon in the chamber.
you must not kill his neighbor. The north
has had its crisis also. and 1t Is not finished
The beet culture has given to legions of
agriculturists the realization of unhoped-
for progress. But IL the legislator. after
having encouraged sugar culture, under
takes to prohibit 1t, to close markets to
sugar; what new difficulties may we not
apprehend?"
The Grande Revue in it's political review
for June writes of the situation thus:
There Is. in the first place. serious situa-
ton in the uncertainty as to the mainte-
nance of the ministry. There is also a series
OF events which grow out Of the struggle of
parties and men for power. The uprising
OF the Midi winegrowers, the general naval
strike, the threatened liberation Of more
than the half OF the army, the chronic
repetition Of mysterious accidents which
diminish little by little our naval power
these are not such simple Incidents TO
which we may oppose an exaggerated OPP
timism. A dull inquietude agitates the
country. and 1t. is felt in the corridors of
parliament. and notwithstanding its re-
cent victories the ministry sees each day
Its authority decrease and its prestige
weakened"
M. Paul Pelisse in the Grande Revue dis
closes some of the grievances which have
engendered the Midi crisis. which, accord
ing to the author, dates back to 1900 The
DlyllOxeFa Oidilm hlank-rot nd vou5
successfully attacked the vines Then
wines were manufactured from dried raj
sins and figs. Spanish and Italian wines,
ETC.. have tnaugurated q serious competi-
ton with native wines. After these comes
the reduction on sugar. the most redoubt,
able adversary OF pure wine since the phyl-
ioxera! The depreciation and misery ex-
tend to- the lands which have been n.y.
pothecated, and dispossessions have fol-
lowed. An example OF depreciation of land
Is given. In the region Of the Pezanas
francs: its normal value being 100000
francs! A property in the Aude for which
$1,000 francs were offered ten years ago
was sold under pressure for 1900 francs!
And M. PeIisse exclaims: Revolution,
Direct action! No! Peremptory action of
people who are dying OF
midi Is starvation! Let no one laugh
Dying" cynically at movement
which I know some affect to
ascrlbe to meridional exaggeration. The
Midi is not stirred for the mere pleasure Of
stirring; the Midi Is dying!"
M E. NJ de Vogue. member Of the
French Academy. in the Figaro lends the
authority OF his opinion on the subject and
says that 1.-The state Of affairs In the Midi
Is full Of cruel inquietude and national
danger.
THE conflict OF interests between the
north and the south Of France is envenom-
ed by redOubtable misunderstanding. l
hear nothing around me but words of hos
tile defiance against everything which
comes from Paris. Many Of our great jour-
nails. without distinction of opinion, are
already boycotted. The inattention and
skepticism of the Partisan proceeds from
prejudice for which he will pay very dearly
perhaps. Our charming Daudet has warped
our judgment for q long time: he imposed
upon us his Midi, the Midi OF Tartarin and
the Cannebiere. The Midi is complex.
multiform. The Midi that declares itself
today is the Midi OF the Saracens, the Abb
geois. the Galatians; solemn. almost silent,
in the grand manifestation Of passions that
are contained and disciplined"
From the Pyrenees to the lower Rhone
there is but one power that reigns-the
ha