The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1910-12-09
MONUMENT TO
JULES FERRY
France Paid Tribute to the
Memory Of the Dead
Statesman

Paris, Dec. "a monument in hon
or of the memory of Jules Ferry has
just been unveiled in the Tuileries
with much solemnity by the premier,
NJ. BRAND. There were present the
president of the republic, NJ. Fail
Heres, the members of the senate and
OF the chamber and other important
public bodies Of Paris and the depart
meut, notably, tnat Of the Vosges
which district Jules Ferry represent
ed In parliament. The monument
represents a statue Of the great
statesman by the sculptor Gustave
Michel, the architectural part being
by Charles Blondel.
The work accomplished by Jules
Ferry is now public history. I'm
doubtedly he had "a difficult role to
play and one which inevitably
brought severe criticisms upon him
self, but he played his part as a great
patriot and no greater compliment
could be paid him. having regard to
his times. than that made by one of
his recent critics, who has said that
Jules Ferry furnished a fine example
Fof. an unpopular man who bore his
unpopularfty with !. dignity. Today
Ferry is recognized according to the
Debats as one of the great factors in
the foundation Of the republic and his
work, which can now be judged i'm
partially, is admitted on all hands to
be OF very high quality. He possess
sed as a statesman the masterly
qualities of untiring perseverance,
stoicism and undiluted patriotism.
He understood the necessity of de-
veloping public education, without
which democracy can have no real
foundation, and in this direction he
has left al ineffacable mark upon his
country. He restored again the de-
stroyed confidence Of the people by
reviving in them the -hoSe of French
colonial expansion. The opposition
stirred up by the Tonkin and Tunis
questions is now matter of history,
but the services rendered to France
IN these matters by Jules Ferry stamp
the caliber of the man, and it is for
the great qualities Of craftsmanship
disclosed in his handling of these diff
cult national questions that the pres
ent generation honors this great man.
The premier, in pronouncing an
eulogy on the statesman, reviewed at
some length his public life and politi-
cal career. His discourse which was
far too long to be reproduced here.
vas veritable lesson in political
history. He pointed out that the same
conditions of public life existed today
as in the days of Jules Ferry, the
same problems. the same parties, the
same alternatives. and the same du-
ties. Scarcely even had the forms
and ceremonies of public life chang
cd. Students Of political history
must have noticed the striking an
alogy between the political situation
in France today, with which NJ.
BRAND has to contend, and that with
which Jules Ferry had to deal; and
ing of the monument would undoubt-
edly have the fact deeply impressed
upon their minds by Mr.. Brands
speech. After referring to three OF
the great men OF France, Waldeck-
Rousseau, Jules Ferry and Gambet-
ia, and to their respective qualities
and public work, NJ. BRAND went on
to say that of these three Jules Ferry
was the one who stood oout as having
sacrifice d himself for his country.
His sacrifice was no visionary one,
but actually and willingly made. as
was that of every man who devoted
himself without reserve to the lead
ings of his reason and to the exigen-
cies OF the cause of liberty. Partici-
pating in the throes of freedom which
the establishment of the republic pro-
duced, he faced without illusion the
excesses which were committed, of
which he bore the consequences.
without even recognizing in them any
disgrace for himself.
In order to understand and to DOM
mate the conditions of his time, Jules
Ferry entered into fight from which
he could only expect to gain as re-
ward the approval of his own con-
science. Who among them, M. BRAND
asked, did not feel at that moment
the grandeur Of this example? The
duty Of each one Of them was to en-
grave 1t on their hearts so that it
might support their inyincible faith in
the future Of their country, future
which each day became larger and