OS,.. 



FRANCE. 



pendence of law and society against attempted en- 

 croachments. He announced the Cabinets inten- 

 tion to carry out the democratic desires of the 

 people, as expressed in the elections. The Govern- 

 ment programme embraced two principal reforms, 

 one fiscal and the other social, the first through a 

 special bill replacing the taxes on personalty and 

 realty by a graduated income tax, the second by 

 means of retiring-pensions for working people. 

 The new Government also proposed to settle the 

 question of the succession duties, to reform the 

 li.|imr laws, to create chambers of agriculture and 

 loyiilly carry out the economic system of protection 

 to' industry and agriculture, to curb the speculation 

 which is injurious to production, to expedite prepa- 

 rations for national defense, and to settle the ques- 

 tion of a colonial army and of emigration to the 

 colonies. 



After the Henry episode the question of the 

 revision of the Dreyfus sentence brought about 

 the fall of the Brisson Cabinet by a coalition of 

 the Moderates, the Rallied, the Monarchists, and 

 tin- Nationalists. M. Cavaignac held out against 

 revision, and finally resigned, and was succeeded 

 by Gen. Znrlinden', who also opposed revision. 

 M. I'.ri-soii and the Minister of Justice were de- 

 termined to have the Dreyfus case reopened, if 

 possible, and consequently (Jen. Zurlinden resigned. 

 The Minister of Justice then placed the matter 

 before the Court of Cassation. The prosecution of 

 Col. Pit-quart was compassed by Gen. /urlinden 

 after he left the Cabinet. Gen. Chanoine accepted 

 the portfolio of Minister of War, but on account 

 of a difference of opinion with the Premier as to 

 the proceedings against Lieut.-Col. Picquart he 

 also resigned during the recess of Parliament. 

 The Radical and Socialist newspapers expressed 

 suspicions of a military plot to overthrow the 

 Government. When the Chamber reassembled 

 on Oct. 25 the public were in a fever of excite- 

 ment, and when the anti-revisionist, M. Deroulede, 

 assailed the Government from the tribune, Gen. 

 Chanoine suddenly offered his resignation as Min- 

 ister of War to the Chamber. The Prime Minister 

 was compelled by the extraordinary action of Gen- 

 Chanoine to ask the adjournment of the discussion 

 until the vacant post could be filled. Premier 

 Brisson accepted an order of the day affirming 

 the supremacy of the civil power, and it was car- 

 ried by a majority of 13 votes. Demands were 

 made, however, that the campaign against the 

 army must cease, and when M. de Mahy offered 

 a resolution demanding that the Government put 

 an end to the insults to the army, it was adopted 

 by a vote of 296 to 243. The ministry thereupon 

 drew up a resolution to the effect that the Chamber 

 was confident that the Government would take the 

 necessary measures to prevent the campaign against 

 the army, and this was defeated by 280 votes to 234. 

 The ministers then left the House in a body and 

 presented their resignations to President Paure. 

 The fall of the Cabinet was followed by disturb- 

 ances in the streets, created mainly by the Anti- 

 Semites, which the police had difficulty in quelling. 



The Dupny Cabinet. The presidents of the 

 Chambers MM] party leaders urged upon M. Faure 

 the formation of a Cabinet of Republican union, 

 excluding the Right. M. Dupuy was com missioned 

 to form a ministry. On Oct. 31, two (lays after the 

 Court of Cassation had ordered the revision of the 

 Dreyfus trial, the list was published as follows: 

 Premier and Minister of the Interior, Charles Du- 

 puy : Minister of Foreign Affairs. Tli.'ophile Del- 

 casse; Minister of War, Charles de Frcycinet; 

 Minister of Marine, Kdouard Simon Lockroy; 

 Minister of Finance. I'aul Peytral; Minister of 

 Public Instruction, M. Leygiies* : Minister of Jus- 



tice, M. Lebret ; Minister of Commerce, Paul De- 

 lombre ; Minister of Public Works, Camille Krantz ; 

 Minister of the Colonies, M. Guillain ; Minister of 

 Agriculture, Albert Viger. 



The ministerial declaration affirmed the suprem- 

 acy of the civil power and expressed confidence in 

 the army, which would not be left exposed to a 

 campaign of insult. Justice also should be re- 

 spected, and the Government would insure the ex- 

 ecution of its decisions. The Government would 

 prepare for the universal exhibition of 1900, and 

 strive to strengthen the international position won 

 for France by her loyalty, strength, and love of 

 peace, and consecrated by a valuable alliance. A 

 Cabinet of union among Republicans, the Govern- 

 ment relied on a majority of Republicans pursuing 

 Democratic, but not Utopian, objects. The fiscal 

 measures announced included the substitution for 

 the personal and household impost of a tax based 

 without vexation or inquisition, on the external 

 signs of wealth, and graduated so as to insure largo 

 remissions to the small taxpayers. The drink 

 duties would be reformed. The passing of a work- 

 ingmen's superannuation bill for town and country 

 was regarded as a social duty. For the benefit of 

 agriculture, measures were promised for the organ- 

 ization of agricultural credit and insurance and 

 the development of small holdings. The Chamber 

 by 429 votes to 64 approved the intention of tho 

 Government to pursue a policy of reforms by rely- 

 ing solely upon a Republican majority. 



Commercial Treaties. After eight months of 

 negotiations, a commercial convention was con- 

 cluded with the United States, which was duly 

 ratified and proclaimed by President McKinley on 

 May 30, 1898. It was the first commercial treaty 

 made under the provisions of the Dingley tariff bill 

 giving the President power to suspend duties on a 

 limited list of articles in exchange for reciprocal 

 and equivalent reductions in favor of products and 

 manufactures of the United States. As the result 

 of the agreement France reduced her rates one 

 half on American pork and lard and lard com- 

 pounds, and imposed the minimum rates on fruits 

 and timber, while the United States reduced the 

 tariff rates about 20 per cent, on argols, brandies, 

 still wines, vermouth, works of art, and some other 

 articles. 



The Fashoda Question. The fall of the Brisson 

 Cabinet occurred at the moment when the contro- 

 versy with England regarding the presence of Capt. 

 Marchand at Fashoda reached its most critical 

 stage. The Egyptian Government, under English 

 dictation, had in 1884 unwillingly abandoned to the- 

 Mahdists the annexed provinces in the Soudan and 

 Equatorial Africa. In the treaties with Germany 

 in 1890, and Italy in 1891, England obtained i 

 recognition from those powers of the whole vallev 

 of the upper Nile as a British sphere of influence. 

 France protested, and in 1890 organized the Liotanl 

 mission for the purpose of extending the French 

 posts on the Congo and its tributaries up the Ubangi 

 and into the Bahr el Ghazal valley so as to secure 

 an outlet on the Nile. In 1893 Great Britain pre- 

 tested against the occupation of any part of the 

 Nile valley by France while negotiations regarding 

 their respective rights were proceeding. When, by 

 the agreement of Slay 12, 1894, Knujland leased the 

 bank of the upper Nile as far north as Fashoda to 

 the Congo State, France declared the convention < f 

 no effect, England not being in effective occupation 

 of these territories, and prevailed upon the King rf 

 the Belgians to renounce the intention of occupying 

 the left bank between Lado and Fashoda. In 189ft 

 Capt. Marchand set out with a party of 7 other 

 Frenchmen and 160 trained soldiers from Timbuctn 

 to extend M. Liotard's line of stations down the' 



