CORRESPONDENCE
RESPECTING
PUBLIC SERVICES
RENDERED BY
ENGLISH SUBJECTS IN PARIS
DURING
THE SIEGE.
Presented to the House of Lords by Command of Her Majesty, in pursuance of their
Address dated July 20, 1871.
[C. 413.]—Price 2\d.
LONDON:
PRINTED BY HARRISON AND SONS.
LIST OF PAPERS.
No.
1. Mr. Blount to Earl Granville
2. Mr. West to Earl Granville
3. Mr. Blount to Earl Granville
4. Mr. West to Earl Granville
5. Earl Granville to Mr. Blount
6. Earl Granville to Mr. West
7. Earl Granville to Mr. Blount
8. Earl Granville to Lord Lyons
9. Lord Lyons to Earl Granville
10. Lord Lyons to Earl Granville
11. Mr. Malet to Earl Granville
12. Mr. Malet to Earl Granville
13. Earl Granville to Mr. Malet
Page
February
21,
1871 1
February 23,
—— 2
March
3,
2
March
5,
3
March
11,
4
March
11,
4
March
13,
4
March
13,
5
March
20,
5
March
29,
15
April
13,
15
May
29,
16
June
6,
■ 17
RETURN to an Address of the House of Lords, dated July 20, 1871 ;
for—
"Copy of any Despatch or Despatches from Her Majesty's Ambassador in France,
or by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, in acknowledgment of Public
Services rendered by English Subjects resident in Paris during the late Siege
of that Town."
No. 1.
Mr. Blount to Earl Granville.—(Received February 24.)
My Lord, Paris, February 21, 1871.
I BEG to acknowledge the receipt of your Lordship's letter of the 18th;
I send your Lordship inclosed a letter from the Committee of the British Charitable
Fund, which I was requested to read. Your Lordship will perceive thereby that the
monthly expenditure is about 30,000 francs, and that the Committee has still a disposable
balance of 24,000 francs. It appears, therefore, that their resources will be exhausted
before the middle of next month.
The sums which Her Majesty's Government has authorized to be advanced up to the
present moment are, as far as I am aware, the following :—
£.
Messrs. Edward Blount and Co. have carried to the credit of the Committee, by
authority of Mr. Odo Russell, &c. .. .. .. .. 1,500
Mr. Wodehouse, Second Secretary of Her Majesty's Embassy, opened a credit in
November at Messrs. de Rothschild of 5001., of which the Committee have
taken .. .. .. .. .. .. 200
Total advance of Government .. .. .. .. 1,700
Major-General Walker has paid to Messrs. Edward Blount and Co. the sum of ,. 500
Leaving a debit balance of .. .. .. .. 1,200
Of which 1,000/. is due to Messrs. Edward Blount and Co., and 200/. to Messrs. de Roths¬
child and Co.
I would suggest that your Lordship should authorize me to balance Messrs. de Roths¬
child's account for the sake of uniformity, and your Lordship may either let the balance of
about 1,200/., due to Messrs. Edward Blount and Co., remain as it is, or pay it, or a
portion of it, to their credit at the Pall Mall Branch of the London Joint Stock Bank.
In Mr. Odo Russell's letter, authorizing the payment of 1,500/., he left to my
appreciation to advance any further sum. I do not think that it would be advisable for
me to do so unless the exact amount is authorized by your Lordship. I should suggest
you should instruct me to hold at the disposal of the Committee a further sum of 1.000/.,
intimating, at the same time, that these advances should not take a permanent appearance.
In the conversation I had with the Committee they expressed their intention to reduce, as
soon as possible, their disbursements ; and for this purpose they will send home, when
practicable, as many of the poor as they can. They will also cease giving relief to those
who can find work.
I regret to say that many of the English are alarmed at the idea of the dangers they
may run should the Prussians enter Paris. I have recommended all who can do so to
leave ; and I have assured all those who cannot that the English Embassy will afford them
every protection.
In my letter of the 16th I expressed my wish to absent myself for a short time, and
that the Consular signature should be given pro tern, to Mr. Willoughby, who had it on
former occasions ; but, in the present aspect of affairs, I have determined to remain at
my post.
I am, &c.
(Signed) ED- BLOUNT.
[363]
2
No. 2.
Mr. West to Earl Granville.—(Received February 25.)
My Lord, Paris, February 23, 1871.
THE case of the distressed British subjects in Paris is one to which I have been
requested by many who take a most praiseworthy interest in their condition, to call the
attention of Her Majesty's Government. From Mr. Blount's statement to your Lordship
of the financial condition of the British Charitable Fund, your Lordship will perceive that
its available funds will soon be exhausted, notwithstanding the liberal donations of Her
Majesty's Government ; and although under present circumstances the indiscriminate
charity which the state of siege rendered necessary and certainly justified, will doubtless
not be continued to be afforded, still, unless some effective measures are taken to diminish
the calls upon it, further sums will become necessary.
Notwithstanding the notice to British subjects resident in Paris issued by Her Majesty's
Ambassador on the 13th September last, warning them that if they remained any
longer in Paris they would do so at their own risk and peril, numbers did remain and could
not, moreover, be induced to leave. The rapidity with which events succeeded one another
at this time placed them at once, and manifestly by their own fault, in a state of destitu¬
tion ; and they were thrown necessarily upon the hands of the British Charitable Fund
which, had it not met with liberal assistance from all quarters, would have been wholly
unable to meet the demands made upon it. It now, therefore, becomes a question whether
Her Majesty's Government would be willing by further aid to the Charitable Fund to
continue this system of relief. It is not likely that remunerative employment will be
forthcoming for some time for all those able and willing to undertake it, but at the
same time many will find their accustomed employment which the siege has hitherto
interrupted.
Under these circumstances Mr. Blount has suggested, and I cordially agree with him,
that the numbers of British subjects who are not likely ever again to obtain employment
sufficient for their maintenance should be ascertained by the Charitable Fund, and that
they should be sent to England with as little delay as possible. The funds still remaining,
if such a step were immediately taken, might, perhaps, suffice for the payment of their
expenses, and an arrangement could, I have reason to believe, be made with the Directors
of the Northern Railway for their transport at reduced fares. Her Majesty's Government
would thus be saved the further expense of their support in Paris, and the British
Charitable Fund relieved of a charge which it is unable to support.
I have reason to believe that the number of persons whom it would be desirable to
send away is about 150, but I have requested to be furnished with a correct list.
I have, &c.
(Signed) L. S. SACKVILLE WEST.
No. 3.
Mr. Blount to Earl Granville.—(Received March 6.)
My Lord, Paris, March 3, 1871.
I BEG to refer to my letter of the 21st ultimo, in which I laid before you the position
of the British Charitable Fund, and informed you that I considered that the Committee
had sufficient funds in hand to continue to relieve the English poor'until the middle of
the month of March, and I am awaiting your Lordship's instructions as to making any
further advances.
In the letter I had the honour to receive from you on the 20th ultimo, you authorized
me, should I absent myself from Paris, to transfer the charge of Her Majesty's Consulate
to Mr. Willoughby.
As it is my desire to leave on Monday, I shall, after having consulted Mr. West,
Her Majesty's Minister Plenipotentiary in Paris, act in accordance with the above
permission.
I hope to have the honour of waiting upon your Lordship in the course of next
week
(Signed) ED. BLOUNT.
3
No. 4.
Mr. West to Earl Granville.—{Received March 8.)
My Lord, Paris, March 5, 1871.
WITH reference to my despatch of the 23rd ultimo, I have the honour to inclose
to your Lordship herewith copy of a letter addressed to me by Mr. Alan Herbert,
respecting the operations of the British Charitable Fund. Your Lordship will perceive
that Mr. Herbert is strongly of opinion that, although there is still a considerable amount
of distress, the siege allowances ought to cease, and that further aid should only be given
to British subjects by paying their passages to England. It becomes, therefore, a question
as to the amount of further assistance which Her Majesty's Government would be disposed
to afford for this purpose, and the measures which ought to be taken for effectually
carrying it out, in the event of such further aid being granted.
I feel called upon to bear testimony to the praiseworthy exertions of Mr. Alan Herbert,
Mr. Blount, Mr. Richard Wallace, the Rev. Dr. Smyth, and Dr. Shrimpton, for the
relief of the British poor during the siege, and I have no doubt but that Mr. Herbert
would gladly undertake the superintendence of any further aid which, under the peculiar
circumstances of the case, Her Majesty's Government may deem it expedient to accord.
I have &c«
(Signed) ' L.' S. SACKVILLE WEST.
Inclosure in No. 4.
Mr. Herbert to Mr. West.
Dear Mr. West, 2, Rue Chanvran hagarde, March 5, 1871.
THE Charitable Fund have tried to supply the poor English with food and fuel
during the siege. The Government donation of 1,500Z. enabled them to continue this
work till up to the present moment, and by their endeavours many of our countrymen
have been kept alive.
The armistice and Peace have not hitherto procured for them the advantages which
were anticipated. The price of the necessaries of life is still very high, generally far above
their means. Very few of the workshops have been reopened, and the people are still
suffering from the physical depression produced by the siege. We still have fresh
applicants for relief, some of whom are evidently suffering from want, and apply to us
now, having used up all their little economies during the siege.
Though we feel deeply for the condition of the poor here, we are determined to do
our best not to encourage the formation of a pauper Colony here, and we have, in
consequence, announced to applicants that the siege allowances are at an end, and that we
can offer them little further aid than that of paying their passages to England. But there
are many cases in which it will be impossible to refuse some immediate help. The
passage, too, costs a great deal more than formerly, as the " Compagnies du Chemin de Fer
du Nord" have not been able to continue the reduced fares they used to allow us before
the siege.
There appears to be an erroneous impression in England that we had admitted on our
books others than British subjects, or British subjects of the second or third generation.
This is an error. We take down in a book, ad hoc, the name, age, birthplace of every
applicant for relief. On referring to that book I find that there were, fi-om September
22, 1870, till March 2, 1871, 455 new applicants, of whom 44 only were not born within
the British dominions. These 44 persons include wives or widows of Englishmen,
naturalized Englishmen—many of them Poles—Englishmen born abroad, or children of
foreign parents born in England, in which cases the names of the parents and their
birthplaces have been taken down.
I am afraid this letter comes a little late, but hoping you will use your influence with
the home authorities to enable us to bring our work to a satisfactory end, I have entered
into these details ; and I am, &c.
(Signed) A. HERBERT.
4
No. 5.
Earl Granville to Mr. Blount.
Sir, ^ Foreign Office, March 11, 1871.
I HAVE received your letter of the 21st of February, respecting the advances made
by yourself and Messrs. Rothschild of 1,000?. and 200Z. respectively on account of dis¬
tressed British subjects ; and after communication with the Board of Treasury, I have to
state to you that, as the most convenient way of repaying those advances, you may draw
on the Chief Clerk of this Office, Mr. Francis Beilby Alston, for the sum of 1,000/. to
cover your advance, and beg Messrs. Rothschilds to draw on him for 200/. to cover their
advance. The bills should be made payable at three days' sight.
As regards any further advances for the relief of the British subjects, I have authorized
Mr. West to draw upon Mr. Alston for the sum of 1,000/., so that you will be relieved
from any further trouble on this account.
I take this opportunity to acknowledge the receipt of your further letter of the 3rd of
March, announcing your intention to transfer the charge of the Consulate to Mr. Wil-
loughby ; and, in closing my correspondence with you on these matters, I must again
express to you the thanks of Her Majesty's Government for the kindness with which you
undertook charge of British subjects, and their entire approval of all that you have done
in the matter.
I am, &c.
(Signed) E. HAMMOND.
No. 6.
Earl Granville to Mr. West.
Sir, Foreign Office, March 11, 1871.
I HAVE received your despatches of the 23rd of February and 5th of March,
respecting destitute British subjects in Paris ; and I have also received one from Mr. Blount,
dated the 21st ultimo, of which I inclose a copy,* with a copy of the answer that I have
returned to it.f
In conformity with what I have stated to Mr. Blount, I have to authorize you to hold
at the disposal of the Committee of the British Charitable Fund a further sum of 1,000/.
But in acquainting the Committee with the authority thus given to you, you will make
them clearly understand that such assistance is not to be considered as involving any
engagement to advance more.
You will further intimate to the Committee that Her Majesty's Government are of
opinion that this money should in part at least be applied to the repatriation of British
subjects hopelessly destitute ; and that in providing such persons with means of returning
to England, account should be further taken of the reasonable cost of their removal from
the coast to their parishes, or to some place which they may prefer, so that they may not
become chargeable as paupers on the rates of the parish where they may land.
I have further to request you to express to the Committee of the British Charitable
Fund the thanks of Her Majesty's Government for the attention and kindness they have
shown to the distressed British subjects in Paris during the last six months, when they
have been more especially dependent on the benevolent exertions of the Committee.
You will draw on the Chief Clerk of this Office at three days' sight for the amount of
the advances you may make to the Charitable Fund under this instruction.
I am, &c.
(Signed) GRANVILLE.
No. 7.
Earl Granville to Mr. Blount.
gir Foreign Office, March 13, 1871.
I HAVE much pleasure in informing you that, in order to manifest Her Majesty's
gracious approval of your generous and zealous exertions, under circumstances of no-
ordinary difficulty, in behalf of British subjects who were shut up in Paris during the late
* No. 1. t No. 5.
5
investment of that city by the German armies, the Queen has been pleased to confer upon
you the honour of a Companionship of the Order of the Bath.
I am, &c.
(Signed) GRANVILLE.
No. 8.
Earl Granville to Lord Lyons.
My Lord Foreign Office, March 13, 1871.
I HAVE to acquaint your Excellency that the Queen has been pleased to mark
her approval of Mr. Blount's special services as Her Majesty's Consul at Paris, by
conferring on him the honour of a Companionship of the Order of the Bath.
I take this opportunity to request your Excellency to convey to the Honourable
Alan Herbert, Mr. Richard Wallace, the Rev. Mr. Smyth, Dr. Shrimpton, and Dr. Rose
Cormack, the thanks of Her Majesty's Government for the generous assistance which they
severally afforded to distressed British subjects during the investment of Paris by the
German armies.
I have to add that Mr. Blount has now formally resigned his appointment as
Consul.
I am, &c.
(Signed) GRANVILLE.
No. 9.
Lord Lyons to Earl Granville.—(Received March 21.)
My Lord, Paris, March 20, 1871.
I HAVE, in execution of the instruction contained in your Lordship's despatch
of the 13th instant, written to the Honourable Alan Herbert, the Rev. Dr. Smyth,
Mr. Richard Wallace, Dr. Shrimpton, and Dr. Rose Cormack, identic letters, conveying to
them the thanks of Her Majesty's Government for the generous assistance which they
severally afforded to distressed British subjects during the investment of Paris by the
German armies.
I inclose herewith a copy of these letters.
I have also the honour to transmit to your Lordship two copies of a Special Report
of the British Charitable Fund from the 1st of August, 1870, to the 28th of February,
1871. It contains a simple and very interesting account of the labours of the Committee
during the siege.
I have, &c.
(Signed) LYONS.
Inclosure 1 in No. 9.
Lord Lyons to Mr. Herbert.*
Sir, _ Paris, March 20, 1871.
HER Majesty's Government have entrusted to me the gratifying duty of conveying to
you their thanks for the generous assistance which you afforded to distressed British
subjects during the investment of Paris by the German armies.
1 trust that I shall not be deemed presumptuous if, as Patron of the British
Charitable Fund, I venture to add the expression of my own sincere gratitude for your
unwearied exertions on behalf our countrymen during this season of danger and distress.
I have, &c.
(Signed) LYONS.
* Identic letters were addressed to the Rev. Dr. Smyth, Richard Wallace, Esq., Dr. Shrimpton. and Dr. Rose
Cormack.
6
Inclosure 2 in No. 9.
Special Report of the British Charitable Fund, from 1st of August, 1870, to 28th February,
1871.
THE exceptional circumstances under which the Committee has been called upon to
discharge its duties, during and immediately before the investment of Paris by the Prussian
armies, have suggested the propriety of at once placing before the subscribers and the
British public, a special Report referring to the period. The following short account of
the operations of the Committee from 1st August, 1870, to 28th February, 1871, has
therefore been prepared for circulation.
In past times, the British Charitable Fund has chiefly depended for support upon
British residents and visitors in Paris, on annual sermons in some of the churches, and on
the proceeds of an annual ball. The Society has also derived an annual income of 1,440
francs from an investment in the French Funds. These sources of income, in ordinary years
proved sufficient to meet all claims. Early in 1870, however, exceptional circumstances
arose.
For some considerable time before the investment of Paris, the pressure on the Fund
was unusually severe. The whole of the winter preceding the war was characterized by
an unusual slackness of trade and a disturbed state of the political atmosphere. Conse¬
quently, great distress arose among the poor British population ; while at the same time,
from similar, causes, there was a serious diminution of the means available to afford the
necessary relief. The unsettled political state of France, by greatly diminishing the
number of English in Paris, reduced the Society's ordinary sources of income—the
subscriptions, the church collections, and the ball. The subsequent declaration of war by
France against Prussia was a two-fold cause of embarrassment to the Society—it rapidly
increased claims, and diminished sources of income.
Under these circumstances, in a letter written by their Secretary and Treasurer,
Or. MacCarthy, the Committee placed a statement of its position before Lord Lyons, Her
Majesty's Ambassador, Patron of the Society, and solicited his Excellency's intervention
on its behalf with the British Government.
Dr. MacCarthy was soon afterwards obliged to go to England. He supposed, at the
time he left Paris, that his absence would be for a very short period ; but it turned out
otherwise. His stay in England was prolonged by accidental circumstances, till his return
was rendered impossible by the investment of Paris. From this circumstance Mr. Herbert,
who had originally undertaken to act as Secretary and Treasurer only for a few weeks, has,
by request of the Committee, continued to this date to discharge the duties of these
conjoined offices.
At an interview which Mr. Herbert had with Lord Lyons, in reference to the letter of
Dr. MacCarthy, his Excellency stated that he had forwarded it to the authorities at home;
and presented 1,000 francs to the Society from his private purse, as a supplement to his
usual annual subscription.
Momentous events now rapidly followed one another. The repeated defeats of the
French army showed that a siege of Paris, with its consequent privations, was more than
probable. Trade became nearly collapsed ; and most foreigners retired from the threatened
city. The Committee, before the culmination of this crisis, had urged departure to England
upon all whose means were likely to fail, in the event of Paris being besieged. From this
circumstance, and from the fact that it had long been the practice of the Society to grant
free passages to London to the British poor, the number of applicants for gratuitous
passages to London became, day by day, increasingly great.
At this crisis, the urgent necessity of enabling the Committee to meet the exigencies
of its position were laid before the British public by Lord Carnarvon and others, in letters
to the British daily press, and also in communications of the Paris special correspondents
of the " Times," "Daily Telegraph," " Morning Post," " Standard," " Court Journal,* and
other London newspapers.
The following letters, addressed respectively to his Excellency Lord Lyons and the
Earl of Carnarvon, explain the action of the Committee immediately before the invest¬
ment :—
To his Excellency Lord Lyons, Her Majesty's Ambassador at Paris.
"My Lord, " Paris, September 1870.
"The British Charitable Fund, under your Excellency's patronage, has been called on
to make great efforts, under the present trying circumstances, to send all the English poor
in Paris to England.
7
" The funds of the Society would soon have been exhausted in carrying out this plan
had not the Earl of Carnarvon made an appeal to our countrymen at home. This appeal
has been promptly responded to by the most generous subscriptions. The Committee aie
most grateful to the Earl of Carnarvon for his warm and influential advocacy of the cause
of our suffering poor in Paris, who but for his timely assistance would have been plunged
into inextricable difficulties and distress.
" The Committee has already been enabled to send upwards a thousand persons to
England since Paris was threatened to be besieged. There yet remain a great many poor
to be sent home.
"As the expenses of the journey may be greatly increased by the circumstances ot
the siege ; and as many of the poor may be detained here some time longer from
unavoidable causes, or may be altogether prevented from leaving Paris, in consequences of
intermarriages, age, or infirmities, it is evident that there will still be many claims on
the British Charitable Fund.
" The fund has been supported for nearly fifty years by the generous subscriptions
and donations of the British nobility and gentry resident in or passing through Paris.
The Committee fears that it may be deprived of these resources for a long time to come.
It is evident that unless further assisted in the present emergency by contributions of
friends in England, the Committee will soon be unable to respond to the demands made
on it.
" Under these circumstances, the Committee has the honour of laying before your
Excellency the following statement of the present financial position of the British
Charitable Fund :—•
£
"Subscriptions in response to the appeal of the Earl of Carnarvon, placed with
Messrs. Coutts and Co., London, to the credit of the Honourable Alan P. Herbert,
Secretary and Treasurer, ad interim, of the British Charitable Fund .. 990
"Subscriptions received in Paris (including 100/. through the British Embassy) .. 400
1,390
" The principal part of this sum must necessarily be devoted to its first object, i.e.,
to defray the expenses of the journey from Paris to London, which, by the kindness of the
administrators of the Railway Companies, has hitherto been accomplished at a very
reduced scale.
"We submit to your Excellency the expediency of having a certain sum to be
distributed to families who may require immediate assistance on their arrival in London.
In the present emergency, therefore, we propose to ask the Society of St. George's,
Hanover Square, to co-operate with us, they using their discretion in such cases as are
presented to them, and we immediately placing a sum of 2001, at their disposal. This,
after deducting sums already expended, will leave a balance of nearly 1,000Z. in the hands
of the British Charitable Fund.
"The Committee feeling the great responsibility of the position in which it is placed
by the existing exceptional circumstances venture to ask your Excellency's kind advice and
commands.
" On behalf of the Committee, I have, &c.
(Signed) "Charles Shrimpton, Chairman."
Letter to the Earl of Carnarvon.
"My Lord, "Paris, September 13, 1870.
" The Committee of the British Charitable Fund have thought it necessary to give an
account to his Excellency Lord Lyons, as Patron of the Society, of the results of the
subscription in answer to your Lordship's influential appeal to the public.
" His Excellency agrees with the opinion expressed in your letter to our Secretary
that a certain part of this subscription should be applied to the relief of the English poor
arriving in London from Paris.
" We would ask your Lordship kindly to allow 200Z. to be placed to your account, to
he employed by the St. George's, Hanover Square, Committee, or any other Society your
Lordship may prefer, in aid of such cases on behalf of which application may be made in
London.
" In the name of the Committee, I beg to offer its most grateful thanks for the timely
assistance which your Lordship has rendered.
" I have, &c.
(Signed) "Charles Shrimpton, Chairman
[363 j — C
8
The Appendix to this Special Report contains a list of the subscriptions received in
response to the appeal made to the British public prior to Paris being shut up, as well as
of all sums of money contributed between the 1st August, 1870, and the 28th February,
1871. Here, therefore, it is sufficient to refer to that list, and to state that, at the commence¬
ment of the siege, 1,069/. 12s. 10c/. stood to the credit of the Society in the hands of
Messrs. Coutts and Co., of London. Of this amount, as stated in the Chairman's letter to
Lord Carnarvon, above quoted, 200/. was placed by the Committee at the disposal of his
Lordship for the relief of the British poor upon their arrival in London from Paris.
The subscriptions received up to the investment enabled the Committee to supply
the means of transport to London to all British applicants for this assistance, able to show
that unless it were afforded they could not leave Paris. The assiduous efforts of the
Committee to urge departure upon all who solicited temporary aid in Paris was to a
considerable extent successful ; and so proved a means of husbanding resources, much
more important than could have been imagined at the crises referred to, when a five
months' blockade seemed absolutely impossible, however great might be the still impending
disaster. Exclusive of children under four years of age, 925 British subjects were sent to
London, at an expense of 17,575 francs, between 1st July and 16th September, 1870.
After the siege began, one opportunity of leaving Paris was afforded to the English
residents. To such an opportunity, the Committee had been anxiously looking forward ;
and when it occurred, they used every means in their power to turn it to the best
account. The number of persons whom they succeeded in sending away was, however,
small.
On the 24th October Mr. Wodehouse came to a meeting of the Committee, and
addressed the assembled recipients of relief [then present. He explained to them the
conditions under which individuals were to be permitted to depart, and pointed out that
the enterprise was one of some danger, on account of the roads beyond the military lines
being infested by robbers ; and also by the difficulty of travelling through a desolated
country, in which numerous roads and bridges had been destroyed. The Committee took
immediate and active steps to circulate the substance of the communication of Mr. Wode¬
house ; and to make immediate arrangements'for the departure of all such poor English
as were physically able for, and willing to undertake, a perilous journey, to escape from
the dangers of remaining shut up to the last in the besieged city, where even then food
was becoming scanty and bad. A certain number of persons assembled for the departure,
in accordance with a prepared plan ; but owing to informality in their papers, they were
peremptorily stopped at the German outposts. These individuals had closed their little
homes, packed such articles as they could carry by the hand in bundles, and were on the
point of receiving provisions and money for the journey when this painful surprise occurred.
Soon afterwards, however, a fresh and successful start was arranged.
On Tuesday, 8th November, twenty-six persons were sent to London, under the
auspices of the Committee, and at the sole expense of Mr. Wallace, who gave to each
traveller 100 francs for the expenses of the journey, besides a packet of provisions. The
cavalcade of the departing consisted of carriages containing Belgians, Swiss, and Americans,
as well as British : of the latter, nearly one-half were under the charge of the Society.
The muster of the British Charitable Fund travellers took place long before daybreak in
the Champs-Elysées, in front of the Palais de l'Industrie : before the night darkness was
dispelled, the procession had cleared the gates, and was slowly traversing tne broken roads
leading to Creteil, where a tedious delay occurred. It was one o'clock in the afternoon
before the passports were approved, and the travellers allowed (viâ Versailles) to proceed
to their destination. From Creteil to Versailles, the majority walked, as it had been found
difficult to obtain permission from the French authorities for horses to leave Paris. Some
such permissions, however, were granted ; and, among others, leave was given to a horse
and conveyance, purchased by Mr. Wallace for the use of some women and others of
inadequate strength for expected hardships. This carriage was placed under the charge
of an English coachman, who was directed to sell the carriage and horse for what it would
bring when he had deposited his party at a railway station in direct communication with
the English packets. The arrival in London of the travellers was ascertained to have
taken place in ten days from the date of leaving. Two members of Committee
(Mr. Wallace and Dr. Rose Cormack), accompanied by Mr. Gesling, the Society's clerk, bid
good-bye to the home-bound travellers, as they passed through the German lines, a short
distance beyond the village of Creteil.
When the investment of Paris was completed, it became immediately apparent that
the work of the Committee had not only increased, but was certain to go on increasing,
though to a great extent its character was changed. The number of British subjects shut
up within Paris, either in a state of actual or threatened destitution was then found to be
9
very great ; while, oa the other hand, the prices of the necessaries of life were enormously
increasing, and some of them were even becoming unprocurable at any price.
To enable the particular exigencies of individuals and families to be suitably met, it
was resolved to grant, as a general rule, allowances of bread and other necessaries of life,
along with a small sum of money. In special cases, the entire relief was given in money.
In the early period of the siege, the Committee was able to procure supplies of Liebig's
extract of meat, rice, and various other provisions, which afterwards were obtained wTith
great difficulty; but, even from the beginning of the siege, all dry vegetable food, except
rice, could only be purchased in small quantities, and after diligent search. Soon a similar
difficulty was experienced in renewing the stock of Liebig's extract of meat, which, with
rice and bread, were the only kinds of food the Committee could procure in any considerable
quantities for distribution.
As a general guide to the Committee, and as a means of facilitating its business, a
scale was agreed to ; but it was freely changed or modified when (as very frequently
happened) this wras rendered expedient by the exigencies of the case. The following is the
scale referred to :—To each individual, weekly, lb. of extract of meat, 1 lb. of rice, from
8 lbs. to 12 lbs. of bread, and a small sum of money. The pecuniary donation was
determined by the number of persons in a family, and was generally regulated as follows :—
To an individual, weekly, 1 franc ; to families of two or three members, 2 francs ; of four
or five members, 3 francs ; of six members, 4 francs ; and so on in proportion.
As some recipients of relief, even in the first period of the siege, had no means of
preparing a warm meal at home, the Committee gladly accepted the kind offer of
Miss Morton, of 37, Rue Roissy d'Anglas, to prepare a soup, composed (in essentials) of
the extract of meat and rice, and to make a distribution of the same three times a week to
those who came to her establishment, on the appointed days, with tickets from the
Committee. Afterwards, when fuel could not be had for money, the soup-kitchen, always
much appreciated, became a very great boon to those not prevented from attending by
distance, or by having young children, the sick, or infirm, to care for at home. The
number of persons who received soup three times a week at the soup-kitchen varied
between fifty and sixty. The distribution of soup and of provisions has continued to this
day ; from this date, however, the soup-kitchen will be closed, and the administration of
relief in kind will cease when the existing stock, already nearly exhausted, comes to
an end.
The following is a fac-simile of one of the last issue of Siege Relief Cards : —
SIEGE OF PARIS, 1870-71.
•
RECIPIENT'S CARD.
£ S
< o
tg (Blank space for Society's seal.) 2
2 ' >
r<
jYame
Chocolate
J
Liebig
Rice .
Bread
Sugar
Tapioca
Money
FRONT OF CARD.
MONDAY.
January.
February.
March.
2
6
9
13
16
20
23
27
30
BACK OF CARD.
T he stock of goods purchased by the Committee were, by permission of the
Honourable Henry M odehouse, Secretary to the Embassy, stored at the British Embassy.
During the last two months, particularly during the last month of the siege, the
difficulty of renewing the stock of extract of meat obliged the Committee to substitute
C 2
10
chocolate. It is also important to state that, from the 16th January, the Committee was
obliged to give money in place of bread. This necessity arose from bread being from that
date till some days after the capitulation rationed to the entire population of Paris, all being
obliged to purchase their rations of bread at appointed bakeries.
It would be tedious to recapitulate the many difficulties which had to be encountered
in maintaining a stock of provisions. One fact, however, in relation to this point may be
noted, in illustration, as it were, of some of the obstacles which had to be overcome.
Twice the Society's stock of rice was nearly exhausted at times when none could be obtained
from the dealers. Through the intervention, however, of individual members of the
Committee, a fresh supply was on both occasions procured at a very moderate price, from
the Government stores. This was obtained at the cost of the delays and hindrances
usually incident to official concessions, but the result well rewarded the amount of trouble
incurred.
Towards the close of December, the effect of the necessarily monotonous diet supplied
by the Committee became painfully felt by many. To mitigate this evil to some extent,
the Committee distributed parcels of tea to the sick and aged. To enable the Committee
to carry out still further the same sanitary principle of imparting variety to the diet,
Mr. Wallace presented the Committee with large supplies of tapioca, sago, sugar, and
arrowroot, which he had been able to purchase—for the permission to buy a stock of food
was then a privilege—at about 10,000 francs. Coming at the time it did, the real value
of the gift to the hundreds of recipients among whom it was distributed was much greater
than could be represented by money.
One of the circumstances which most distressed and embarrassed the Committee
throughout the siege was the impossibility of instituting a distribution of fuel. In previous
years it had been the practice of the Committee to issue coal-tickets, which were orders
upon merchants. At the beginning of the siege this plan was resumed, but after a few
weeks the rapidly lessening stores of the coal merchants caused them to refuse farther
orders from the Committee. At first the grants for coal were replaced by a fortnightly
allowance of 3 francs ; and subsequently (the price of fuel having been increased) by an
allowance of 5 francs in the fortnight to each recipient. The famine of fuel, it is well to
record, had attained alarming proportions while as yet the famine of food was only partially
manifesting its presence. The dearth of fuel being so disproportionably greater during the
siege than the dearth of food has been sometimes referred to as a circumstance difficult to
explain ; but, in truth, the explanation of that fact is very simple. In September, when
Paris was invested, the wood merchants were unusually behind with their accustomed
arrivals both of wood and coal, owing to the great protracted drought of summer having
rendered transport by the rivers and canals available only to a vefy limited extent. Then
came the exciting call for a large addition to the field artillery of the army of Paris. To
this popular demand, the Government had to yield ; the result was a suppression of lighting
by gas, at a later date, the absolute want by a large part of the population of fuel for
culinary and general heating purposes. From the 1st January, many of the great hospitals
and some of the military ambulances were allowed to have fires only for three or four
hours in the twenty-four, the city's stock of fuel having been expended in the cannon
foundries. The supply of fuel, which during January began to be obtained from cutting
down trees in and around Paris, afforded a very small benefit at the cost of a very enor¬
mous destruction of property. The green wood yielded little heat, and a great deal of
smoke. A mere reference to these facts is sufficient to explain the difficulties which the
Committee had to deal with from first to last in respect of the question of fuel.
The difficulty of testing the truth of the statements made by applicants increased
proportionately with the number of applicants. It was discovered that in some instances
early in the siege the Committee had been imposed upon ; persons apparently respectable,
being for the most part domestic servants whose employers had left Paris when the siege
became certain, and who were in receipt of their full wages, represented to the Committee
that they had been left without means of subsistence very soon after the date at which the
complete investment was accomplished. The cases, however, in which the Committee was
deceived were exceedingly few, and the deception, it is believed, was soon discovered and
stopped in all by whom it was perpetrated. Deceptions, however, might have been success¬
fully carried out had it not been for the complete system of domiciliary visitation carried
out by the Rev. Dr. Smyth in person, aided by two ladies, Miss Ellen Sparks and Miss
Annette Sparks. By this visitation, the Committee was brought into much closer connec¬
tion with the recipients than would otherwise have been possible, and security was likewise
given, as large as is ever obtainable in such cases, that positive imposture was prevented,
and that the distribution of relief was also more easily regulated. Certificates of destitu¬
tion or want of work from past employers, neighbours, or others, were always demanded ;
11
but it was found that, in practice, there was little security except in visiting the applicants
at their homes. An unexpected visit was sometimes the means of detecting the non¬
existence of extreme poverty where its presence had been alleged, of unveiling intemper¬
ance and other vices previously unsuspected, and (not unfrequented) of finding a depth of
penury, desolation, and distress far understated by the applicants, from whom nothing
short of the direst necessity had extorted an appeal for succour.
No relief was given to applicants unable, by documentary or other evidence, to
establish their nationalitv as subjects of the British Crown. The Committee, though
urged at every meeting by real sufferers to relax this rule, always resolutely refused to do
so, feeling assured that its mission was limited to the necessitous British, not only by the
past history of the Charitable Fund, but also by the expressed or implied condition under
which it bad received large subscriptions for relief during the siege, was that they should
be all given to British subjects. This rule necessarily excluded from relief English women
the wives of French husbands, as well as the children of such marriages : on the other
hand, it admitted to the benefits of the Society French women married to British men and
their children. Mixed blood and doubtful nationality might have occasioned the Committee
much pain and perplexity had it not been that all such cases were taken up by Dr. Smyth
as a separate work of his own. He inquired into the whole circumstances of every case of
this kind, and relieved them to the necessary extent from funds under his own absolute
disposal. Thus it was that without any financial admixture, the British Charitable Fund
and Dr. Smyth's Special Fund (Cave-Smyth Fund), each in its own defined sphere, closely
co-operated, so as to prevent deserving persons from being unrelieved from arbitrary
causes. Dr. Smyth's Fund was also very useful, on the invasion of small-pox or other
disease, in supplementing the relief granted by the Committee, and beyond which it could
not go without pinching others.
It is interesting to mark the gradual monthly increase of British poor relieved by the
Committee of the Charitable Fund during the siege of Paris ; as well as the total number of
those who were assisted.
The recipients of relief on the books at the end of August was .. .. .. 354
Relieved from September 19, being fres'n applications. [The previous part of the
month was occupied in sending persons to England] .. .. .. 74
New applicants in October .. .. .. .. .. .. 340
Ditto, November .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 214
Ditto, December .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 233
Ditto, January . .. .. .. .. -. .. 181
Ditto, February .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 140
Pensioners and others, whose names do not appear in the Entry Book .. .. 67
Total .. .. .. .. .. .. 1,603 1
In addition to the 1,603 relieved by the British Charitable Fund, 79 were entirely
relieved by Dr. Smyth, making a total of 1,682 souls. The number actually receiving relief
from the Committee this day is 1,600.
The operations of the Committee have been carried on during the seige in accordance
with principles and usages similar to those by which it had previously been regulated.
The pensions were paid as before to the aged and infirm, and medical relief was accorded
as in other times. The pharmacien's hill July-December, 1870, amounting to 987 francs,
was paid on the 24th February, 1871. Here it is right to state that the medical visitation
was very extensive, and chiefly performed by Surgeon Ricketts, to whom the Committee
feel much indebted for his valuable services. Mr. Ricketts was authorized to sign his
prescriptions on its behalf, to enable the patients to have their medicines dispensed
gratuitously by its pharmacien.
The enormous amount of ordinary business at thë stated 2 p.m. meetings on Mondays
and Thursdays seldom occupied less than five hours, and sometimes occupied seven hoyrs.
In addition to these meetings for administering relief, numerous evening meetings were
held for special purposes. Each of the members was, in rotation, Chairman for one
month. The only members of the Committe who attended the meetings of the Committee
during the siege were Dr. Shrimpton, Mr. Herbert, Mr. Wallace, the Rev. Dr. Smyth, and
Dr. Rose Cormack, all of whom attended almost every meeting during that period, and
are therefore alone responsible for wrhat was then done, and also for this Special Report.
On the 13th January, the Committee received a contribution of 1,500/. from the
British Government, which was acknowledged in the following—
12
Letter to Lord Granville.
"My Lord, "Pans, January 13, 1871.
"The Committee of the British Charitable Fund have received a communication
(dated yesterday) from Mr. Blount, Banker, Paris, to the effect that your Lordship has, on
account of the British Government, authorized that gentleman to pay to the Committee,
for the necessitous English poor of Paris, the sum of 1,500Z. sterling. The Committee
cordially thanks "your Lordship for this contribution.
" The Committeee have also to acknowledge a credit of 500Z. sterling opened with
the Messrs. Rothschild for the British Charitable Fund by Mr. Wodehouse prior to his
leaving Paris ; of this sum the Committee have drawn 200Z.#
"The Committee at the same time takes this opportunity of inclosing a general
financial summary referring to the siege, and extending from the 1st August to the
3; st December, 1870, which has been prepared by the Committee for circulation.
"I am, &c.
(Signed) " Charles Shrimpton, Chairman."
The following is a reprint of the General Financial Statement and Postscript referred
to as having been forwarded to Lord Granville on the 13th January, and which were soon
afterwards acknowledged as having been received :—
Cash Account of the British Charitable Fund, Paris, from 1st August to the
31st December, 1870.
Sept.
Dec.
Receipts.
Aug.
De
Oct.
Nov.
Cash in hand and at Messrs.
Lisle's
Lord Lyons, 2nd donation
Refunded (passage money)
Per Irish emigrants
Subscriptions, Members of Embassy
Subscriptions and donations re¬
ceived in Paris, including 5,000
francs given by Richard' Wal¬
lace, Esq., 221/. 5s. 9d.,
5,492 fr. 50 c. estimated at
Miss Coutts
Messrs. Coutts and Co. .
Embassy
Richard Wallace, Esq., 2nd dona¬
tion
Subscriptions received by Messrs.
Coutts and Co., and conveyed to
Messrs. Mallets
By balance on profit and loss on
exchange ..
Subscription .
Second account at Coutts and Co.,
estimated
Richard Wallace, Esq., 3rd dona¬
tion
Subscriptions .
Richard Wallace, Esq., 4th special
donation, to enable English poor
to leave Paris
Subscriptions .
Richard Wallace, Esq., 5th dona¬
tion
Richard Wallace, Esq., 5th dona¬
tion, for Christmas boxes
Fr. c.
5,197 55
1,000 0
16 35
100 0
150 0
11,024 40
1,250 0
1,250 0
2,000 0
5,000 0
21,740 0
25 95
220 0
7,500 0
5,000 0
405 0
3,943 0
405 0
5,000 0
1,215 0
72,047 25
Expenditure.
Aug. Expended from August 1 to 11
exclusive, grants of money and
payment of bread account
Expended from August 11 to 31
Sept. Ditto
Extract of meat, rice, &c.
Oct. Expended at Committee
Extract of meat, rice, &c.
Nov. Expended at Committee .
Extract of meat, rice, &c.
Dec. Expended at Committee
Extract of meat, rice, &c.
Providing English poor with th
means of returning to England
given by Richard Wallace, Esq
Christmas boxes, given by Riehart
Wallace, Esq.
Balance in hands of Treasurer
Fr.
1,632
6,121
9,882
4,416
5,343
5,078
9,205
9,230
15,419
2,879
85
60
60
60
20
65
80
40
30
0
3,943 0
1,215 0
3,679 25
72,047 25
(Signed) " A. P. Herbert, Treasurer, ad interim.
We have audited the above accounts, and found them correct.
(Signed) J W. Smyth, ;
John Rose Gormack, j
January 12, 1871.
* The balance of 300/. is not now at the disposal of the Committee.
13
Postscript to preceding Cash Account.
"January 12, 1871.
" The above summary of the accounts explains to a considerable extent the nature oi
the operations of the Committee from the 1st August to the 31st December, 1870. It
may be well, however, to add a few material facts, to show still more clearly what has
been done, and what will yet require to be accomplished.
" During August 354 persons obtained relief from the Committee, in addition to
those sent free to England; during September the recipients were 428. The number
sent to England in August and m September was 925. In October 768 persons were
relieved, of whom 340 appeared on the books for the first time ; in November 982
were relieved, of whom 214 were new applicants; and in December there were 1,215
persons supported by the Committee, of whom 233 had not previously applied to it for
assistance.
" Since the close of the year the claims on the fond have still gone on in increasing.
At this day (12th January, 1871,) no less than 1,266 persons were almost, if not altogether,
wholly dependent on the Committee for food and fuel, and of that number 51 had not
previously asked for aid, though reduced in many cases to the lowest extremities of
misery and want. With the duration of the siege the applicants have been found to
be derived increasingly, from classes usually above those seeking charitable aid ; there
is, therefore, certainty of a steadily augmenting demand on the resources cf the Committee.
" It will be seen from the above summary of accounts that the total expenditure of
the Committee from 1st August to 31st December, 1870, amounted to 68,368 francs. Of
this sum a large amount was the result of a special appeal made in England and in Paris
before the investment of Paris on the 19th September; another large item (23,158 francs)
was contributed by Richard Wallace, Esq., of Paris. The above account indicates the
sources from which the funds have been derived.
"It is proper to state that Mr. Wallace has, dating from the first day of this month,
intimated his intention of placing 10,000 francs (400k) a-month at the disposal of the
Committee, so long as the siege continues! Notwithstanding the seasonable munificence
of Mr. Wallace, and the contribution of 1,500k by the English Government, announced
to the Committee this day, there is much reason to fear that not only during, but after
the siege, there will be an increasing application for help to the Committee.
" Ultimately, moreover, a considerable expense must be incurred in sending to
England persons rendered destitute by loss of occupation, occasioned by the altered state
of Paris."
In a subsequent letter to Lord Granville, the Committee brought down the account
of its financial position to the 16th February. The following is a copy of the letter to
Lord Granville :—
Letter to Lord Granville.
"My Lord, " Paris, February 20, 1871.
" Special meetings of the Committee of the British Charitable Fund were held on
Saturday the 18th instant and to-day, at which the financial prospects of the Society were
fully considered in relation to the continuance of distress among the English in Paris.
The Committee agreed that, under the urgency of the circumstances, it was their duty to
solicit further assistance from the British Government ; and that in doing so, they ought
to state to your Lordship the present financial position of the Society.
" The Committee has been making every effort to diminish its expenditure, as yet
without success; and this is explained by the fact that at no period of the siege were the
want of employment, the sickness, and the general distress among the English poor in
Paris so great as at this moment.
"No immediate return of better times, as yet, seems in prospect. Hundreds of poor
English must perish if not helped yet a little longer by our Charitable Fund. This, my
Lord, is the reason which compels us to apply to the British Government lor assistance.
"The cash expended in January, exclusive of distributions of provisions, value
10,000 francs, was 21,580 francs ; and during this current month, up to the 16th, we had
given in money 14,351 francs 90 centimes, besides provisions, for which we paid about
5,000 francs. If we continue to relieve the destitute and the poor, our expenditure must
increase.
" Our resources are now very low. Of the 1,500k received from the British Govern¬
ment, we have remaining 23,000 francs ; and in addition to this we have a balance of
miscellaneous subscriptions of not quite 1,000 francs—in all, less than 24,000 francs.
14
" 1 he Committee will be glad to furnish any additional information which maybe
required by your Lordship.
" I have, &c.
(Signed) "John Rose Cormack, Chairman."
From 16th to 28th February the expenditure of the Committee was in money
13,681 francs.
The total expenditure by the Committee, from 1st August, 1870, to 28th February,
1871, vvas 132,980 francs 90 centimes.
T he balance at this date in the Treasurer's hands is 20,307 francs 25 centimes.
It is obvious that this Special Report of the siege-work of the Committee commences
and ends at an arbitrary date, inasmuch as the siege exigences began before 1st August,
1870, and will evidently continue long after the present date. It has, nevertheless,
appeared proper to give a special account of what occurred during the period referred to,
leaving it for the General Annual Reports of the year to indicate the extent to which the
demands on the Committee were increased by the siege, when it was threatened for some
time prior to 1st August, 1870, and when its consequences were acting on the British
subjects in Paris in a more or less extended period, commencing with the 1st March, 1871.
To-day, 27th February (the last February meeting), the Committee will cease to
renew the siege allowances. The old cases—very numerous it is feared—still soliciting
help will be re-examined, each being temporarily dealt with according to its necessities.
The Committee has resolved to discontinue relief to those who refuse free passages to
England, and yet have no early prospect of being self-supporting in Paris. To maintain
the utterly destitute during the siege was an imperative duty ; but to establish a colony of
British paupers in Paris is a danger to be resolutely guarded against. Though the
Committee have resolved to adhere to this principle, it feels that the month of March
must of necessity present heavy claims for allowances. The aggregate cost of numerous
passages to England at 30 francs each will also contribute to swell exceedingly the budget
for the ensuing month, when trade will be dull, though probably reviving, and when
provisions will be exceedingly dear, though perhaps not scarce to those who have means
to buy.
After the capitulation, the supplies of food which came into Paris from the London
Mansion House Fund, was of signal benefit to our recipients of assistance. To the
Committee, who placed a liberal supply of these provisions at the disposal of the Society,
and to Colonel Stuart Wortley, and Mr. George Moore, who represented the Mansion
House Committee in Paris, grateful thanks are offered. Coming at the moment it did,
the food from England was of priceless value to many who had been suffering from
unwholesome bread and a monotony of diet, leading to disgust of food and to various
manifestations of scurvy.
One subject of some importance, not yet mentioned, requires notice in this special
Report. During the siege, and even in its early weeks, the Committee received applications
for loans. Many of the applicants were known to be persons of respectability, and of
means adequate for their wants, had there existed the usual communication with England.
The Committee after due consideration, came to an unhesitating unanimous resolution
that it had no power to grant any loans from the funds with which it had been entrusted.
It was not the less necessary, however, to relieve the distresses of a class of applicants
whose position was one of acute moral as well as physical suffering. Sums of money and
provisions, therefore, were given according to the necessities of each case, accompanied by
a statement to the effect that although the allowances were free gifts, and not loans, it
would greatly gratify the Committee to receive donations to the British Charitable Fund,
when better times returned, from those who had been assisted by it at an almost
overwhelming crisis.
In addition to those whose names have already been mentioned in this Report, the
Committee desire to make special mention of their Clerk, Mr. Gesling, who performed
with integrity, ability, and zeal, the arduous and responsible distribution of money and
provisions, and likewise discharged well all the other duties of his office.
(Signed) ALAN P. HERBERT,
Hon. Secretary, ad interim.
15
At a special meeting ot the Committee, held this 27th day of February, 1871
Present, Dr. Rose Cor mack (in the Chair), Rev. J. W. Smyth, D.D., Richard Wallace, Esq.,
Dr. Shrimpton, and the Honourable Alan P. Herbert, Honorary Secretary, ad interim, the
above Report was adopted and ordered to be printed.
(Signed) JOHN ROSE CORMACK, Chairman.
235, Rue du Faubourg, St. Honore', Paris.
No. 10.
Lord Lyons to Earl Granville.—(Received April 1.)
My Lord, Paris, March 29, 1871.
I HAVE the honour to transmit to your Lordship copies of letters which have been
addressed to me by the Rev. Dr. Smyth and by Mr. Richard Wallace to express their
acknowledgments for the thanks which I conveyed to them from Her Majesty's Govern¬
ment for their benevolent exertions in behalf of British subjects in Paris during the
siege. ■ <: -'-s
I have, &c.
(Signed) LYONS.
Inclosure 1 in No. 10.
The Rev. Dr. Smyth to Lord Lyons.
British Chaplaincy, 10, Avenue Marbœvf,
My Lord, March 23, 1871.
I AM much flattered by the notice which Her Majesty's Government have taken of
the pleasing duties which I have been enabled to discharge during the sad siege of Paris.
I shall be much obliged if your Lordship will kindly convey my best thanks to the
Government.
I am much touched by the kind and feeling manner in which your Lordship has
personally regarded my work, and I trust that your Lordship will receive my sincere
expression of gratitude.
I have, &c.
(Signed) B. K. SMYTH.
Inclosure 2 in No. 10.
Mr. Wallace to Lord Lyons.
My Lord, Paris, March 24, 1871.
I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 20th instant*
and I can only say that I am too happy that I was able to be of use to our distressed
countrymen during the siege of Paris.
The approbation of Her Majesty's Government is very precious to me, and I am also
much obliged to your Excellency for the kind expressions you make use of yourself in
conveying that approbation.
X have &c*
(Signed) ' RICHARD WALLACE.
No. 11.
Mr. Malet to Earl Granville.—-(Received April 14.)
My Lord, Paris, April 13, 1871.
YESTERDAY evening information was given me that certain National Guards had
been overheard to threaten the pillage of Mr. Richard Wallace's property at Paris.
It appeared very unlikely that such an outrage could be possible, as Mr. Wallace has
acquired the affection and respect of all classes in Paris by his private and public charity,
the magnificence of which is well known to your Lordship ; but that there might be no
[363] D
16
excuse lor an unforeseen act on the part of the National Guard, I went to-day to
M. Pascal Grousset, at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, and laid the matter before him.
M. Grousset energetically declared his disbelief in the possibility of Parisians plundering
Mr. Wallace, from whom they had received such benefits during the great distress of the
siege ; and he wrote out a paper to ensure his protection, of which I have the honour to
inclose a copy.
M. Grousset also expressed to me the determination of the Commune to protect the
persons and property of foreigners ; and he requested me to advise my countrymen to
hang out the British flag, which he was sure would meet with respect, and their doing so
would, he said, be a measure in accordance with the wishes of the Commune.
I have, &c.
(Signed) EDWARD B. MALET.
Inclosure in No. 11.
Letter of Protection,
Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité ! Commune de Paris !
Au nom du Peuple ! Paris, le 13 Avril, 1871.
LE plus grand respect est dû par tout Français, et surtout par tout Républicain digne
de ce nom, à tous immeubles, objets mobiliers, voitures, chevaux, &c., appartenant à des
étrangers et couverts par l'immunité sacrée de l'hospitalité.
Le Soussigné signale à tous comme digne d'un respect tout spécial la maison
(2, Rue Laffitte) de Mr. Richard Wallace, citoyen Anglais, qui a acquis par sa
philanthropie, principalement pendant le siège, des titres ineffaçables à la reconnaissance
des Parisiens.
Le Membre de la Commune délégué aux Relations Extérieures,
(Signé) PASCAL GROUSSET.
No, 12.
Mr. Malet to Earl Granville.—(Received May 30.)
My Lord, Paris, May 29, 1871.
ON Wednesday morning the 24th instant news was brought to the Embassy that two
English officers of Engineers, Mr. Noel and Mr. Chermside, had been arrested and taken
to the Barracks of the Louvre. I wrote a letter to General Douai, commanding in the
Place Vendôme, asking for their release, and Mr. Saumarez volunteered to undertake the
matter himself. He thought it adyisable to endeavour to find the officers first, in order to
be able to state positively to General Douai where they were, and to prevent their
immediate execution at a time when prisoners, especially foreigners, were being shot
indiscriminately.
On reaching the Rue de Rivoli Mr. Saumarez found it deserted, and going on under
the Arcades was summoned across the street by a soldier, and then saw that he had been
under the Ministry of Finance, which was blazing. It was also clear that the whole of
the street was under fire from the Hotel de Ville, still defended by the insurgents.
Mr. Saumarez reached the Tuileries, which were burning, and inquired of an officer
whether there were any prisoners at the Barracks of the Louvre. The officer replied that
if there were any they must be burnt or shot by that time, and not till then did
Mr. Saumarez give up his pursuit in this direction. He again crossed the Rue de Rivoli
while the shells were bursting among the Arcades, and succeeded in reaching the Place
Vendôme, where he found the arrested officers, who had indeed been started for the
Barracks of the Louvre and brought back, as it was impossible to reach them.
I should have brought Mr. Saumarez' conduct to your Lordship's notice sooner, but
I have only learnt by degrees the details which I have had the honour to give. On my
inquiring at the time whether he had been successful, he merely replied that both the
officers were out.
X have &c»
(Signed) ' EDWARD B. MALET.
17
No. 13.
Earl Granville to Mr. Malet.
Sir, Foreign Office, June 6, 1871.
I HAVE received your despatch of the 29th ultimo, respecting the ari'est and
subsequent release of two English officers of Engineers, Mr. Noel and Mr. Chermside.
and I have to request that you will state to Mr. Saumarez that Her Majesty's Government
highly commend his gallant conduct in executing the dangerous task of communicating
with these officers with the object of obtaining their release.
I am, &c.
(Signed) GRANVILLE,
c
FRANCE.
Correspondence respecting Public Services
rendered by English Subjects in Paris during the
Siege.
Presented to the House of Lords by Command
of Her Majesty, in pursuance of their Address
dated July 20, 1871.
LONDON!
I'll I NT ED li\ HARRISON AND SON 8.