260 



FRANCE. 



to punish all who had abused their ecclesiastical 

 functions. 



The elections took place on April 27. The 

 Nationalists, for all their violent campaign, gained 

 but a few seats in Paris and polled only two- 

 fifths of the total vote of the metropolis, whereas 

 Gen. Boulanger in 1889 received three-quarters of 

 the Parisian suffrages. Out of 412 elected on the 

 first ballot 88 were Ministerial Republicans, 95 

 Radicals, 41 Socialist Radicals, and 22 Socialists, 

 making 246 supporters of the Government, 

 against 32 Nationalists, G6 Conservatives, 66 

 Anti-Ministerial Republicans, and 2 Anti-Minis- 

 terial Socialists, a total of 166 Opposition Depu- 

 ties. Second ballots were necessary for 179 seats. 

 The Government made a net gain of 11 seats in 

 the elections decided in the first ballot. Of 

 8,863.000 votes polled out of 11,216,000 on the 

 register, 5,198,000 were cast for the Government. 

 Of 3,352,000 Anti-Ministerial votes, Guesdist So- 

 cialists cast 144,000, Progressive Republicans 

 1,103.000, Nationalists 1,160,000, and Reaction- 

 aries 943,000. Of the Ministerialist voters, 717,- 

 000 were Socialists, 715,000 Socialist Radicals, 

 1,734,000 Radicals, and 2,029,000 Ministerial Re- 

 publicans. Although the Progressists in many 

 places combined with Nationalists to displace 

 Ministerialists, the second ballots on May 11 

 were as favorable to the Government as the first. 

 The new Chamber consisted of Lll Ministerial 

 Republicans, 128 Radicals, 94 Socialist Radicals, 

 53 Socialists, 6 Guesdist Socialists, 115 Progress- 

 ist Republicans, 43 Nationalists, and 41 Conserv- 

 atives. This gave the ministry a majority of 

 over 100 against any hostile combination, the 

 Republicans a majority of 400 against the foes 

 of the existing republic. The Socialists, having 

 been 57 in the Chamber of 1898, were losers, 

 though not to such an extent as the Conserva- 

 tives, and the Progressists lost 35 seats, while 

 the Radicals increased from 104 in the last Cham- 

 ber and the Socialist Radicals from 74. Of the 

 Conservatives elected only 10 were Legitimists, 

 the rest Bonapartists. There were 20 Anti-Sem- 

 ites and 8 Plebiscitarians. 



Change of Ministry. The ministry formed 

 on June 22, 1899, for the defense of the republic 

 and the reestablishment of order, having achieved 

 its task, deserted though it was at the outset 

 by stanch Republicans of the stamp of M. Ribot 

 and M. Poincarre, M. Waldeck-Rousseau on May 

 28 announced his resignation. The new Cham- 

 ber met on June 1 and elected Leon Bourgeois 

 provisional president over Paul Deschanel. After 

 the credentials of members were confirmed, M. 

 Bourgeois was definitively elected president. M. 

 Loubet was at this time in St. Petersburg, re- 

 turning the visit made by the Czar in September, 

 1901. The Emperor Nicholas invited the Presi- 

 dent of the French Republic to visit him so as to 

 note the proofs of the warm and sincere senti- 

 ments uniting Russia and friendly and allied 

 France. In asking a credit of 500,000 francs for 

 the presidential journey the Government, in con- 

 sequence of the recent Franco-Russian note, in- 

 stead of speaking of a fresh consolidation of the 

 alliance according to the old formula, described 

 the visit as a demonstration of the growing 

 strength of the bonds uniting France and Russia 

 for the development of their prosperity and the 

 maintenance of the peace of the world. M. Lou- 

 bet, on his return to France, received a letter 

 in which M. Waldeck-Rousseau offered the resig- 

 nation of the Cabinet. The President sent for 

 Henri Brisson, and when this eminent Radical 

 declined, commissioned M. Combes to form a 

 ministry. Whether a progressive income tax 



should be placed before exclusive state educa- 

 tion, two years' service, superannuation allow- 

 ances to workmen, or judicial reforms, and 

 whether scrutin de listc should be rejntroduced, 

 were questions that divided Radicals who were 

 asked to join the Cabinet, which was finally con- 

 stituted on June 6 as follows: Prime Minister, 

 Minister of the Interior, and Minister of Public 

 Worship, M. Combes; Minister of Justice, M. 

 Valle; Minister of Foreign Affairs, M. Delcasse; 

 Minister of Finance, Maurice Rouvier; Minister 

 of War, Gen. Andre; Minister of Marine, Camille 

 Pelletan; Minister of Education, M. Chaumie; 

 Minister of Commerce, M. Trouillot; Minister of 

 Public Works, M. Maruejouis; Minister of Agri- 

 culture, M. Mougeot; Minister of the Colonies, 

 M. Doumergue; Minister of Posts and Telegraphs, 

 M. Berard. The selection of M. Combes, reporter 

 of the associations bill in the Senate and Min- 

 ister of Education in the Bourgeois Cabinet of 

 1895, to be the head of the new Radical ministry 

 indicated a purpose to apply that law with vigor. 

 The first legislative proposal in the ministerial 

 program was the abrogation of the Falloux edu- 

 cation law of 1850, which placed on an equal foot- 

 ing secular education given by Church institu- 

 tions and the university and school education 

 of the state. Rigid economy and an intelligible 

 and sincere budget were the financial principles 

 set forth, and the extrication of the Government 

 from graver financial difficulties fifteen years be- 

 fore w r as recalled to prove that similar efforts 

 would restore the balance between normal re- 

 ceipts and expenditures. A general income tax, 

 which by taxing each person according to his 

 powers would introduce greater equity and a 

 fuller democratic spirit into the fiscal system, 

 was given a foremost place in the promised legis- 

 lation, and next the reduction of military service 

 to two years without compromising the solidity 

 of the army, a consummation to be effected by 

 the bill already before the Senate. The disci- 

 plinary corps and penal establishments of the 

 army were to be brought into harmony Avith 

 the principles of modern justice, as the pro- 

 ceedings before military tribunals already had 

 been. The transfer of railroads to the state was 

 to be studied and a beginning made in their ac- 

 quisition and management by the Government, 

 as had been resolved by the last Chamber. The 

 workmen's superannuation bill, which the late 

 Cabinet had left, was to be pushed forward.. All 

 details of the administration would be governed 

 by secular liberty and Republican principles, and 

 the associations law would be enforced in its 

 letter and its spirit. The Chamber, after hearing 

 the ministerial declaration, passed by 329 votes 

 to 124 an order of the day expressing confidence 

 in the Government and its purpose to apply a 

 vigorous policy of unsectarianism, of fiscal re- 

 form, and of social solidarity. The deficit for 

 the year was estimated at 170,000.000 fram >. 

 The Progressist Jules Roche proposed to debar 

 private Deputies from proposing any measure en- 

 tailing expenditure of money, as is the English 

 constitutional practise. M. Rouvier carried a 

 bill for the conversion of 3A-per-cent. French 

 rentes into 3 per cents., affecting nearly one- 

 third of the funded debt and saving the treasury 

 32,000,000 francs a year, the period during which 

 the conversion was forbidden by the la\v of 1894 

 having expired. The holders of the old and 

 the new 3 per cents., amounting to 21.450.000,000 

 francs, are guaranteed against any further con- 

 vi T-ion for eight years. The holders of the 3J 

 per cents, who exchange their bonds receive 1 

 per cent, bonus in the shape of new bonds of 101 



