otnote 494: The political history of the period
since the elections of 1910 has been remarkable by
reason chiefly of the absorption of public
attention by the issues of electoral reform and
labor legislation. Embarrassed by interpellations
with reference to its ecclesiastical policy, the
Briand ministry (reconstituted in November, 1910)
retired in February, 1911. The Monis government
which succeeded lacked coherence, as also did the
ministry of Caillaux (June, 1911 to January, 1912).
The cardinal achievement of the Poincare ministry
has been the carrying of the Electoral Reform Bill
of 1912 in the lower chamber. See p. 323.]

*362. Changes since 1871.*--"The political history of France since the
beginning of the Republic," says a scholarly French observer,
"presents, instead of an alternation between two parties of opposing
programmes, like those of Belgium or England, a continual evolution
along one line, the constant growth of the strength of parties which
represent the democratic, anti-clerical tendency."[495] The
fundamental division of Conservative and Republican persists, but both
of these terms have long since lost their original definiteness of
meaning. The Conservatives have ceased, in large part, to be
"reactionaries." Few of them are even royalists, and the old
distinction of Legitimist, Orleanist, and Bonapartist has disappeared
entirely. The Right is essentially "republican," as is evidenced by
the further fact that the majority of its members in the Chamber are
Progressives, whose forerunners composed the real Republican party of
a generation ago. The Republican groups of to-day comprise simply
those numerous and formidable political elements which are _more_
republican--that is to say, more radical--than are the adherents of
the Right. Among themselves, however, they represent a very wide
gradation of radicalism.

[Footnote 495: C. Seignobos, The Political Parties
of France, in _International Monthly_, Aug., 1901,
155.]

*363. French Socialism.*--The history of socialism in France since 1871
has been stormy. During the seventies proselyting effort was directed
chiefly toward the influencing of the trade-unions to declare f