Other social conclusions, relating only to the people of Paris and not to France, have been drawn by Fernand Laurent, one of the city councillors. He has discovered that the weight of household refuse increased by 56,000 tons, or about 8 per cent, during the past twelve months, and he is convinced that this is due to @ change in the cone ditions of existence, The present generation, he says, has lost the old habit of saving up and utilizing everything to the best advantage. The high cost of living compels many wives to earn money outside their home, to add to the insufficient earnings of the husband or father, and a woman who does this has no time for household economies, Instead of making a pot an feu, she buys ham or ready-cooked pork chops or canned meats, as shown by the vast quantity of tins in the garbage boxes.
Parisians read more newspaper and periodicals on their way be: tween their homes and. places of business, and accordingly we find great deal of paper in the refuse, Many thousands of families live in furnished rooms and do their cooking in some elementary form on gas-ring, and some of the refus which used to be burnt in the old-fashioned range goes into the garbbage box. "Large families axe compelled to live in the suburbs, where lower, and the population of Paris tends' more and. more to, have a larger proportion of adult [who make more rubbish than chi dren, The increase in the quantity of refuse with which the municipal contractors have to deal is also due to the decrease in the number of ragpickers. The chiffonier's trade i becoming a thing of the past. The price of old metal has fallen to below £1 a ton. This is not sufficient to pay the cost of collection and transport. to the furnaces can melt it down, and so the ok tin cans are now wasted instead being utilized, The Stove Expert 'As another illustration of modern, influences, here is a story of a Paxisian who decided to have his slow-combustion stove put in order before the winter. He accordingly communicated with' a firma that feharges itself with this kind of work. Next day the "fumiste" w announced, and the maid ushered ina tall, well-dressed man, with polished but distant manners, The master of the house, much impress ed, apologized for having had the expert shown into a bedroom in which was another stove requiring: attention, He threw his head back looked at the stove like an art authority examining a picture, made some notes in what the daughter of the house described asin. per= fectly delicious little book, meditate ed, and said, with a touch of pity in' his voice: "You must have bought it second-hand." The family felt properly humiliated, but the distinguished visitor was too tactful fo, press the point, ands state of affairs. There is a general feeling that we lack "effective Gov-Jernment of any cart and no one Delieves that it will ever be-obtained from the Socialists not because of it principles but Tecause what their Ministers lack is brains. Some lof ther are very estimable men but that docs not disguise the fact that [they cannot run a country particullary when this is in extreme difficulties.
Whatever happens the next Election when it comes will be fought on unemployment and its cure, or remedy since there is no cure." We thave though to lessen it and I think [the nation as a whole is in favour lof almost any experiment " being tried if only it will work. thave stated I ama quite sure that the feppeal to the country cannot long delayed and I am inclined to think: that unless there is some un-
Jexpected development the Ministry is certain to be defeated, be looked at." He was then escort ed to the dining-room, ally at one of the pictures remarked that it was not the work of a great artist but that it was well painted all the same. Observ= ing the baby asleep in his cot, he inquired "Does anyone sleep in this room?" The mother hastened to explain that baby had merely been brought into the dining-room while his own room was being done. The expert waved his hand and said: "I have soon a child sleeping here, and take the respon-
The father Jong mother assured him again and again that the presence of the baby was quite an accidental cireumtance, and. he said, condescendingly. if that is so, I will show you ho the stove should always be place and he proceeded to demons his views with the air of a professor lecturing before a class, after which he retired with great dignity,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.