New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-10-02
FOOD RIOTS IN FRANCE
Housewives Lead in DiSorderly
Demands for Cheap Food.
Paris, September j.

| in the general railroad strike, and, last
sprIng. by the civil war in the wine
producing regions OF Champagne ana
Rar-sur-A ube. Professional political
aeitators from Paris, under the lead OF
the General Labor Federation, at the
first sign Of disorder hasten 70 the
storm centres, foment excitement py
making stump speeches, by frantic ap-
meals TO the latent instincts Of the pro-
letariat for loot and plumber, and unfold
with glib oratory, claptrap fallacy and
clever sophistry the theory that the
only salvation for society is the estab-
ushment Of the Commune Of 1871, with
death to the bourgeois" Tho village
wine shops are full Of jewellers singing
the revolutionary "Carmagnole" and the
anarchist "Internationale." while curo-
stone anarchists" and adventures
from Paris and the large towns preach
general strike" Sabotage" and whole
sale destruction OF property.
French housewives are proveroiaily
shrewd and thrifty, and usually eyince
an uncommon share Of hard, practlcal
common sense. In the present emer-
gency, .owever, they seem to have lost
their heads completely. At Lille,
Maubeuee, Douay and other northern
towns they head the rioters, do most
OF the destruction and are invariably III
the thick Of the fighting. In fact, these
northern housewives in their blind fury
~ ha al
''Halles" during the stormy days OF
1889. The local garrisons are INSULT
Gent to deal with the outbreak, and regi-
ments Of infantry and cavalry have been
dIspatched TO the north from Normandy
and from Paris Bands OF infuriated
housewives, with banners and red flags,
call at farmhouses and chateaus and
compel all the women Of the various
households TO march with them and
demonstrate" for cheap food.
At Bruay. near Valenciennes, squad
of housewives called at 8 o'clock In
the morning at a house where a party
Of Parisiennes had arrived the previous
evening. When refused admittance the
door was battered down, and the bellies
DANES" from Paris were forced to put
on their clothes in haste, and, half dead
with fright, were dragged along In the
procession. Three housewives, after
throwing bricks at the soldiers ana
badly wounding a corporal. were taken
prisoners and locked up in jail. Where
upon the rioters demanded their imme-
date release. The authorities refused.
A few hours later the General Labor
Federation declared "a general strike
in the whole region until the women
should be set free" Similar instances
occurred elsewhere. In this way the
movement soon developed into open
warfare against the government, just as
in the case OF the French railroad strike
last October.
The Caillaux Cabinet is investigating
the causes Of the revolution and trying
hard to devise q means for lowering the
prices OF food The problem is difficult
and complicated. In the case Of meat
alone explanations are contradictory.
The wholesale butchers the retail butch
ers, the cattle commission merchants, the
brokers of the Paris central markets and
the delegates Of the League Of Consum-
ers" each tell different and conflicting
stories. The syndicate Of pork butchers
Of Douay sent a telegram to the Minister
OF Agriculture announcing that they had
declared a strike until foreign pork
should be allowed to enter France free
Of duty"
The government, however, seems de-
termined not to amend the tariff on food
and is trying TO alleviate matters by ac-
cording lower freight rates on foodstuffs,
doing away with some Of the meat
brokers and middlemen who have COM
missions on the sales Of meat, poultry.
milk and vegetables. The fury of the
housewives of Flanders and Picardy is
especially violent toward the "chevil-
lards." or wholesale butchers. One OF
the most important 'chevillards' of
Lille, in an interview with Temps"
reporter, said:
1T is not our fault. Sheep have al
most disappeared in Northern France.
We are obliged to pay % cents a pound
for sheep on the hoof We sell the
slaughtered sheep at 26 cents a pound,
exclusive Of the skin, tripe and kidneys,
and from this must be deducted one cent
for local octroi duty. You see from this
that our profit is very small. Why does
not the government allow us TO import
live sheep from America? The only
mutton that we get from abroad must,
according to the present law, be cut into
quarters. and in this condition II be-
comes unstable forty-elght hours after
delivery We can obtain an almost I'M
limited amount Of sheep from Argentina, |
but the law prohibiting the importation |
OF live sheep prevents us from doing so.
1t is objected that American sheep If in |
troduccd alive in France would deteri- !
crate the breed. The remedy for this |
would be to allow live sheep TO be
brought from America, and upon arrival
at a French port be put into sealed |
cages and sent direct TO the slaughter
house"
Another instance was cited by a
wholesale beef butcher. The average |
price for a prime four-year-old OK is
$173. The wholesale butcher sells this
slaughtered OK TO the retail butcher for
S1G3 The wholesale butcher then sells |
the hide, tallow and other "by-prod- |
ucts," called the fifth quarter" for
S2S. This makes altogether Sl91 for
the OK But from this must be de-
Quoted So for octroi duties and 50 for
taxes, which reduces the $l91 to SIG |
thus leaving the narrow profit Of So on
the operation. When the cost of rails
ing the OK and keeping it In good con-
dition for four years be considered TO
say nothing of veterinary services and |
wages. II Will be seen that the whole |