El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1919-03-10

merely the small class which is tenn
porarily in power in Paris
Politicians Control French.
: These same politicians control the
+ press and what can be published in
I criticism Of the present French ad-
ministration- and they have syste-
matic1Hy opposed attempts 10 have a
general election, though the French
parliament hasn't been before the
! people in nearly four years
Unfortunately these are some Of the
men who talk for France at the Paris
conference. but the real France is out
in the villages and towns where the
. brave French poilu dwells. Millions
. Of these heroic men and women sur
vive the most terrible war In history.
and no historian probably viii ever be
able 10 picture adequately the won
derful stocism Of the Frenchman who
f.. fought for his country notwithstaud-
. in the fact that he received a few
cents q day, while at his side foreign
troops received $50 a month.
The people who bore the burdens OF
the war reflect the soul OF France For
them the affection OF Americans can
never diminish, no matter what the
politicians say or Go. for there Is a
day OF reckoning coming. probably
after the peace conference is over.
when distribution OF the indemnity
the French people may ask whether
the bulk OF the money IS 70 90 10 re-
plenish large business interests 50
many OF which paid such negligible
excess profits taxes compared to other
countries during the war, or 10 the
people whose relatives and homes
were destroyed
Cabinet To Fail soon.
The present French cabinet win not
last very l0ng-that is the predi~t-on
Of those Americans Of long residence
in France. who know French politics
well Bolshevlsm is not coming in
France, but q sensible liberation is
bound 70 get control Of the govern
ment- Instead Of alI0WinE tie pe1ule
TO recover POSSESSION OF their govern
menL autocratic powers given for the
duration OF the war are teuacinuslv
held Like certain American cabinet
officials. these men forget that the
war was supposed 10 safeguard de-
mocracy and not diminish the work
ing Of its fundamental institutions
Take the attitude OF the present
French government toward freedom
OF the press, which IS as GOOD a test
OF democracy as can be offered Al
though declaring that there Is no cen
sorship on outgoing dispatches. a
strict censorship is maintained on
everything printed in France. Even
newspapers published in the English
laugu1=r like the American edition OF
the London Daily Nail or the Paris
editions OF the New York Herald and
Chicago Tribune. are subject to cen
sorship. All the dispatches OF Ameri-
can correspondents are read by
French censOrs. Assurances are given
that they are not in any way deleted
or delayed but the French censors
read them just the same. On one con
splcuous occasion premier Clemenceau
had in his hand 2 copy Of z dispatch
sent by an American correspondent [
and discussed II with president VIII
son before the message was permitted
TO 20 TO America How many more
received that treatment can only be
cOuiectured
Misuse OF Censorship.
On the ground that censorship is in
effect simply 10 distinguish between
military and political matters. the
French Justify their censorship. And /
the American delegation at the peace
hasn't had the gumption I
to make protest or TO order the Amer (
lean military censors at the Bourse /
in Paris 20 cease reading outgoing dis 4
patches
As IL works out. the french govern !
ment permits Paris newspapers TO I
publish insidiOus attacks on president I
wilson and to print conspicuously IN
founded reports rejecting on the be-
havior OF American troops. So the I
French censorship, which 50 many
French officials have attempted toi
justify on the ground that IL is neces-
sary 70 prevent attacks on their al Z
les by irresponsible new spapers
iidut work out at all in that direc-
ton, and IL the truth were told by the
American mission IL would have many
q complaint TO MAKE at the treatment
has received by certain French