WINDMII.L NEAR ST. MALO 



Photo by E. M. Newman 



The windmills of the low country of Brittany remind one of Holland. Stone houses and 

 good roads are characteristic of this section 



Yet today it is the spirit of the people, 

 and not the wish of the politician, that 

 permeates legislation in France, as in this 

 country. 



By ethical standards the progress of 

 a nation is gauged by the uplift of ito 

 people. Primary factors in such progress 

 are the conservation of health, the train- 

 ing of the mind, the development of 

 morality, the advancement of the public 

 weal, and the fostering of such ideals 

 as shall stimulate beneficent aspirations. 

 That nation stands supreme which best 

 strengthens the weak, encourages virtue, 

 recognizes service, represses evil, pre- 

 serves peace, and deals justly with per- 

 sons and nations. 



THE REAL FRANCE 



This article treats not of the striking 

 graces and artistic beauties for which 

 France is famous, but of every-day life 

 conditions of its people ; and, as it is writ- 

 ten solely for the members of the Na- 

 tional Geographic Society, such compari- 

 sons as are made will be with similar 

 subjects in the United States. 



First, a few words as to how a knowl- 

 edge of France has been gained. Five 

 months of intense activity in early man- 

 hood made me familiar with external 

 France, and be it understood that this 

 does not mean Paris, which is no longer 

 France. The repository and guardian of 

 art treasures which in extent, variety, and 

 beauty are elsewhere unsurpassed ; en- 

 riched with historic material of priceless 

 value ; adorned by artistic monuments 

 and noble structures ; beautified by broad 

 streets and perfect parks ; the center of 

 culture for the nation ; the fashion dic- 

 tator for the world; the seat of govern- 

 ment and so of power ; scarcely surpassed 

 elsewhere as a financial center — Paris is 

 at once the envy and admiration of 

 France, as indeed of the world. Still, it 

 is not France. Its treasures, spiritual and 

 material, are but the accumulated gifts 

 of France. Paris proudly proffers for 

 the admiration of humanity in tangible 

 form the labors and the aspirations of the 

 French people, which that people have 

 produced by the sweat of their bodies, 



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