Omaha daily bee., 1910-04-24
No Present Indication, but Plenty
Plausible Plans.
CoMED1E FRANCAIs IN FINE ROW
Claretie and lie Bargy Leaders Of the
ouarreling Factions,
HARD WORDS ONLY PASS so FAR
EpistatOry Exchange of Epithets and
Charges Excites Admirlng Won
der of Public, but HOnOrs
Hold About Even.
BY PAUL VILLIERS.

BY PAUL NILLIERS
PARIS, April 23.-(Special Dispatch to
The Bee.)-The steady accumulation of gold
! BY the Bank of France Is arousng inter-
est in diplomatic circles, and the question
is being asked II France is preparing for
general European war. While there is at
the present moment no indication of war in
the near future which can possibly in
| volve France, there are danger spots both
| in the near and far east which may de-
| velop so that war will come quickly
Austria and Russia appear to have come
to an agreement In regard to the Balkans
! and have put a curb on the ambitions OF
Ferdinand of Bulgaria while the tension
between Japan and the United States has
been lightened, but in high diplomatic cir
cles it is recognized that there are Gle
ments of dangr at both these points
That this is the secret of the accumula-
ton of gold by the Bank of France is re-
garded as not at all unlikely. There GER
tainly seems to be no economic reason
for it.
Under the law the Bank of France can
not issue more than E,16O, 100000 of notes.
At the beginning of the year the actual
issue of notes was approximately $1,000
80. .OO0 against which the bank had in its
vaults coin to the value of $500 200, 900. OF
this $142 600 600 was in gold, the greatest ac-
cumulation Of gold by far ever held by any
bank in the world
And still the accumulation of gold goes
on. 1t is not unnatural therefore for diplo-
mats to ask If France is quietly preparing
for trouble.
Row In the COmedIe.
Whether a great world war is the pros
pect in the near future or not, there is no
doubt that a very bitter and viruient civil
war is in progress in Frances great ma
tional theatrical enterprise. the Coincide
Francois. M. Claretie. administrator Of
theater, and M lie Bargy, a full societare
and member of the committee, are leaders
OF the two factions, and the language ex-
changed makes the recent complimentary
passage-at-words, to coin a phrase, be-
tween Mr.. Oscar Hammerstein and Miss
Mary Garden, appear like a conversation
at a o'clock tea at a young woman's
seminary.
Old Francals subscribers throw up their
hands. The end of the world seems at
hand when, in the one theater in the world
where everybody had always hitherto been
polite where there is never any fuss or
hustle in the carpeted passages and green
rooms like salons, and where the call boy
! is an elderly, noiseless servant like an old
family retainer, the director and leading
actors call each other names.
What has M Clareties management con-
sisted of? asked NJ lie Bargy; and he re-
plies Five and twenty years of incom-
petence." What has M. LIE Bargy's career
been? Twenty-Five years of treachery,"
retorts NJ. Clsrete, in so many words
1t is to be hoped that the row will not
be wiped out In blood on the dueling
ground. NJ. Clarete, armed with his acade-
micians sword, and NJ. Claretie. armed
with his rapier Of Saverny in Marion De-
! lorme."
Exchange of Verbal shot.
Having sent in his resignation, which.
| tc become final, must, by the famous de-
cree of Moscow, be renewed six months
hence, M lie Bargy has explained why he
old so. Having accepted the resignation,
M. Claretie has also explained why he did
so. But neither explanation has been par
liamentary. NJ. Claretie says in substance:
m le Bargy's career has been twenty
five years OF treachery. Gustave Larrou-
ment said one day: You have at the
Francais a man who betrays you, a SER
pent which beslavers the maison and you
with its venom. have thus known NJ. lie
Bargy of old"
n. Claretie goes on to say that NJ lie
Barby never acts, but draws his salary,
delays plays by refusing to rehearse, and
is always acting outside the Coincide.
These be fierce words. but M. le Bargy
Is quite capable Of hitting back. m.
Claretie," he declares, has since the
reading committee Of actors was abolished,
accepted nothing but bad plays at their
expense. NJ. Claretie persistently stultifes
and paralyzes the managing committee Of
actors, which votes resolutions year after
year that are never carried out"
The quarrel. which they themselves de
scribe as a quarter OF a century of in
competence versus a quarter OF a CEN
tury's treachery, does not seem very
good advertisement for the Coincide. Nor
hove matters been improved by NJ Mounet-
Sully the oldest member of the company,
who enters the list and declares: "Alasl
All NJ. lie BaTgy says is only too true"
Another Opium Scandal.
have before called attention tc
the alarming growth OF the opium
habit among French naval officers
Now comes another case from
Brest DR.. Bechon was called to the
rooms Of a woman named Suzanne Rol-
land aged p, who was suffering terrible
pains. She was barely able to speak, but
managed TO convey to the doctor that she
had passed portion Of the previous night
In company with a friend and some naval
officers, and that she had swallowed sN
opium pills. DR.. Bechon ordered the
! woman to be taken TO the hospital. where
she died an hour later in fearful agony.
The prefect has instructed the police to
make inquiries with a view to ascertaining
the names Of the officers who had spent tn,
evening with the woman ROLAND. Coming
after so many other opium scandals. which