FRANCE AND FRANCS

Waipa Post, Volume 31, Issue 1766, 5 June 1926, Page 6

FRANCE AND FRANCS

HABITS OF THE PEOPLE,

HOARDING OF MONEY,

Side by side Avith the ultra-extrav-agant attitude of the Chamber of Deputies towards the French financial problem comes one more instance of treasure-hoarding, Avhich is the other side of French life and, which makes so impossible of calculation the amount of French resources (says an English Avriter).

Mile. Anais Leroy*was murdered the other day for a million and a quarter francs which she insisted on keeping in the house —probably in the linen cupboard or under the mattress. Every day she filled her oavii coal-scuttle and did her ow r n Avork, saving every sou to add to the hoard for A\ T hich she lived. She is an outstanding example of French thrift, degenerated into avarice and miserliness, but she is extraordinarily representative. In every village there are seemingly poor old Avomen and wretched old men AVho are suspected, by their neighbours of having considerable fortunes, and, unlike most rumours, most of these prove to be true. In Brittany not long ago an old woman AVho Avas given a sou every week by a charitable per-' son, in addition to a cup of coffee, fell ill and had to be cared for by her neighbours. In her linen cupboard were found many thousand francs. At Verdun an old woman Avho did all her own Avashing in the stream Avas found during an illness to have a large fortune concealed above the chimney. A butler and hig Avi'fe over a long period of service accumulated their Avages until they had saved about 10,000 francs. They did not invest it, but kept it locked in a suit-case. Its value to-day has to be divided by five.

This hoarding of money and keeping it idle perhaps for a lifetime is common all over France, especially peasant France, which mistrusts banks and believes in portable property that may serve in time of Avar. For the number of cases which are revealed through burglaries and murders, there are many more Avhich come to light only Avhen the question of inheritance arises. The conditions imply an enormous amount of buried treasure in France, which* does no good to anyone, except in so far as the depreciation of the notes at the pree ; snt moment relieves the French Government, at least temporarily, of some of its obligations. Old women in particular hoard their money, often living in terror at its possible loss, rather than in the comfort Avhich it might provide for them. This instinct is much truer to the French character than the irresponsibilities of the French deputies with an axe to grind. It’may be that the salvation of French finance 'lies in finding some method which still encourages the saving tendencies of the people, but gives them reason to entrust these savings to their public representatives.