Seventeen Years in Paris: A Chaplain's Story

by H. E. Noyes

It was astonishing how many English people lost their purses, either on the journey over or soon after arriving in Paris. Almost every week we had the same story, which, in many if not most cases, was only an excuse either for having given way to drink, or having been in bad company.

The committee is always desirous to get British people who are not doing well to return to their own country, especially the younger people. Old people who have lived most of their life in France and have lost all their relatives cannot well be sent home. The fascination of Paris is, however, so great, that it is often very difficult to persuade even the poorest to leave, and all sorts of excuses are given against leaving. Upon one occasion an old man came to the committee asking for relief. He was asked “How long have you been in France?” He replied “Over twenty years.” “Do you speak French?” “Only a few words, sir.” (This is quite possible. Englishmen working together in a stable will have little need to speak the language.) “Are you in work?” “No, sir.” “Have you any prospect of work?” “I think not.” “Will you return home?” A decided “No, sir.” He was then asked a number of questions in the endeavour to discover his reasons for wishing to stay, as he was getting old, was unmarried, and had no relatives in France. At length, with some reluctance, he said, “Well, sir, its the wine. We can’t get the claret in England.” And nothing would persuade him to return. He is probably still there, ekeing out a miserable existence. I am glad to hear that the committee are about to purchase or build more suitable premises in which to carry on this important work. This is a real necessity, as the present rooms are too small and badly ventilated. Visitors are always welcome on Wednesday afternoons when the committee meets, and the study of human nature at these gatherings is most interesting. There are usually between 90 and 120 applications for relief each week.

Next in importance to the British Charitable Fund is the “Hertford British Hospital.” This was the noble gift to the Colony of the late Sir Richard Wallace, Bart., and was partly the outcome of the Franco-German war, and the Commune in 1870-1871. This philanthropic nobleman opened a hospital in the Rue d’Aguesseau for the reception of wounded, and in January, 1871, added two wards for the “Sick British Poor,” and also a dispensary. At the end of the year only one soldier remained under treatment, and upon his discharge it was closed. A few weeks subsequently Sir Richard Wallace communicated to his friends his intention to found and endow a hospital in Paris for poor British subjects, to be called the “Hertford British Hospital,” in memory of the late Marquis of Hertford. The foundation stone of the present building was laid by Sir Richard and Lady Wallace in August, 1877, and opened at a visit of the late Lord Lyons in 1879. The hospital was visited in June, 1879, by their Majesties King Edward VII. and Queen Alexandra (then Prince and Princess of Wales), who named the principal wards “Albert Edward” and “Alexandra.” In 1900 Lady Wallace made over the hospital by deed to the British Government, who appointed the present management. This hospital is especially fortunate in having an endowment sufficient for its requirements, so that the management have no need to apply for subscriptions. The hospital contains 40 beds and cots, and has an average number of 350 in-patients, and some 2,000 out-patients.

HERTFORD BRITISH HOSPITAL.

It can hardly be realized, except by those resident abroad, what a boon an English hospital, with English doctors and nurses, is to the British poor.

One cannot speak too highly of the kindness of the French hospitals in receiving English people for treatment, and I received many testimonies from grateful patients of the benefits obtained. I frequently, however, heard the poor say: “When one is ill, it is such a blessing to be able to talk your own language to those about you,” or “I am afraid they did not treat me properly because I could not explain to them the symptoms,” and such sayings illustrate what I am sure all feel, viz.: that it is very difficult in illness to explain as one would wish to one who is a stranger to our language. So that the English hospital for this reason (and it is only one of many) is a real boon to the British poor in Paris. You no sooner pass the iron gate than you feel as if you were in England. The porter speaks to you in your native tongue; the secretary (though a first-rate French scholar) greets you in the same language. The wards are bright, cheerful, and (especially) airy, and all the surroundings are such as we are accustomed to in our own land. The nurses are all English, and most of them have had experience in hospitals at home. All are under the guidance of an experienced matron, chosen from among many applicants for the post. I have known hundreds of the British poor who have been treated there, and they often are in difficulty to find words to express their gratitude. Certainly the works of Sir Richard Wallace do follow him.

If there is any drawback in this splendid institution, it is the lack of a separate building for the treatment of infectious cases; and also of a pay ward. This want necessitates a poor Britisher with consumption, small pox, etc., being taken to a French hospital, which often is not desirable, and sometimes a great hardship. The need of a pay ward is also a real one. It often happens that an English person is taken ill in an hotel where it is difficult to get proper treatment, and where expenses are apt to increase very materially under the circumstances. To some hotels doctors are “attached,” who charge exorbitant fees, and, it is said, divide the proceeds with the proprietor. In such cases it would be the greatest boon if the patients could avail themselves of a British hospital, and they would no doubt willingly pay for the necessary treatment. But notwithstanding these omissions, the Hertford Hospital is doing a splendid work, and is an enduring monument to its generous founder.

Another British charity in Paris is the “Victoria Home for Aged Women,” founded by my predecessor, the Rev. Howard Gill, in the year 1888. He found, as I did subsequently, that there were English women who had been governesses, ladies’ maids, and domestic servants, living in loneliness and poverty, generally at the top of the great houses in Paris, where the rents—and the ceilings—are low. For the most part they had led honourable lives, and were respected and helped by the families where they had worked. But they were old, they had lived most of their lives in France, any friends they had in England were dead and gone, and they had no wish to return to their native land, indeed it would be cruel to compel them to do so. The idea of a home where such could be lodged, free of rent, took shape in the year of the late Queen’s Jubilee in 1887. It was then decided that after the expenses of the Celebration, the fund collected should be applied to the establishment of a Victoria Home for the Aged British Poor. However, the fund collected was not sufficient, so it was eventually decided to apply the interest of it in Victoria pensions, until the necessary amount should be collected. However, Mr. Gill would not allow his scheme to rest, and receiving generous help from a few friends, he started a Home on a small scale. This was inaugurated by the Dowager Lady Lytton in December, 1888, and has proved a real success. The conditions of entry may seem rather “stiff,” but the fact that there has never been a vacant room shows that they need not at present be relaxed. The applicant must be a British subject, over 65 years of age, of good character, and have resided at least 30 years in France. It was one of my most pleasing duties during sixteen years to visit this “Home,” and to act as chairman of the committee. Most of the old ladies had an interesting story to tell, and they never wearied relating their experiences. Those who had been governesses in French families delighted to tell of the young ladies to whom they had taught English, and watched over until they had married. The kindness of some of these ladies to their old teachers and nurses was most touching. The late Sir Condie Stephen, an attaché at the Embassy, took a kind interest in one of these inmates, and regularly sent her a present until the time of her death. All these old ladies had passed through the siege of Paris and the Commune, and had interesting stories to tell of that tragic time. I remember one of them shewed me some of the meal which was served out during the siege—very coarse and dirty, and mixed with particles of wood. The Dowager Lady Lytton and her daughters, and afterwards the Dowager Lady Dufferin and her daughters, the Ladies Blackwood, took the warmest interest in the Home, and were constant visitors. Members of the English and American Colonies constantly go out to see the inmates, foremost amongst whom I must mention Miss Thorndike, one of the oldest American residents in Paris, who frequently gives a tea and presents of warm clothing, which are much appreciated. Formerly we rented a house in the Rue Borghèse, Neuilly, but lately a house has been purchased in the Boulevard de la Saussais, and is now being enlarged and made more suitable as a permanent home for this deserving class. Visitors to Paris will always be welcomed by the excellent matron and her daughter, Mrs. and Miss Ffarmer.

Another institution in Paris which is doing an admirable work is the British Schools. These schools were established in 1832, in order to afford a sound education to English-speaking children of the working classes resident in the city, and to enable them to retain their knowledge of the English language. A small fee is charged to those parents who are in a position to pay, and the fees of the poorer children are paid by the British Charitable Fund. I cannot speak too highly of the good work done in these schools, under the mastership of Mr. R. Smith. The children receive an education in both French and English—a French mistress is always employed. They learn shorthand and typewriting in both languages, and thus are able to obtain good positions in French business houses. Indeed it is often difficult to supply the demand for both boys and girls competent to take such posts. The children are taught patriotic songs, and every endeavour is made to instil into their minds love and loyalty for their own country. This is very necessary, for I found that children of English parents who did not avail themselves of the advantages of the schools, had the tendency to forget their own tongue, and to gradually become French. The chairman of the schools is Sir H. Austin Lee, who takes the warmest interest in its welfare, while Mr. H. Webster is untiring in his work as secretary and treasurer.