Star.
London, England, 1830-10-06 00:00:00

FRENCH POLITICAL CLUBS.

TRIBUNAL OF CORRECTIONAL POLICE OF PARIS.-
AFFAIR OF THE SOCIETY OF THE FRIENDS OF THE

PEOPLE.
This trial, as we mentioned yesterday, came on at four o'clock last
Saturday. The defendants were AL Hubert, President of the Society of
the Friends of the People; Al. Thierry, their treasurer; M. Caffin, pro-
prietor of the riding-house where the meetings are held ; and amid, the
printer of their placards.
The President put the usual questions to the defendants, respecting
the numbers of the society, their public discussions upon politics, and
their hand-bills and registers, which they all answered frankly, and
in full avowal of their acts.

The King's Advocate opened the case against them. He said, that
public liberty was the result of a certain sacrifice by a society of a
part of the liberty of each individual for the good of the whole; and
he proceeded to contend that the inevitable tendency of clubs of this
kind was to compromise the independence of the legislature, and to
disturb the public tranquillity.
M. Hubert defended himself, upon the principle that the people had
created a new order of things by their late revolution, and that he was
not amenable to the tyrannical authority of the old code. He said,
while arraigning the conduct of his judges, " For a sufficiently long
time you have not allowed a week to pass without sending to prison
some friend of liberty. The times are now changed : judges of Charles
X. we reject you ; the people have stripped you of your robes in giving
liberty to your victims. You have yourselves evea sanctioned this sen-
tence byfiying while they fought. Behold these tricoloured ribands inwhichl
we appear. Two months have not elapsed since you branded them as insig-
nia of sedition. Dare you nowaffront from your seats,fromwhich theflears
de lig have been torn, those who have chased away the idol before whom so
many victims were sacrificed ? If, in default of justice, a sentiment of
convenient shame does nut induce you to abstain from these proceedings,
then condemn me ; but at least you shall not judge me, for I respect
myself too much to recognize in you a legal tribunal. I may be sent to
prison by your order—but l will not degrade myself by submitting to
you a justification which your antezedent acts put you out of a condition
to understand." There followed from the audience long and loud
applause.
AI. Boinvilliers, as counsel for M. Thierry, vindicated the Society of
the Friends of the People. And N. Pages Gamier, for the other de-
fendants, Caffin and David, pursued a similar course.
The King's Advocate replied, and in speaking of the press said,
" This instrument, which, with a great orator, I call the word all-
powerful,' is like all such instruments, moat useful in one sense, and in
the other, when abused, productive of the greatest evils. Thus the
cannon was a good and useful instrument when it served against the
Hotel de Ville, and played upon the Swiss, but was it not a sad instru-
ment when used to immolate the Parisian people ?"
M. Catlin.—Ay : when we employed the cannon before the Hotel
de Ville, and against the Swiss, we not only sought to demolish the
power of Charles X. and of some of the Peers of France, but we also
combatted to destroy the 19 Ist, 292 d, and 293 d articles of the penal
code, as will as those who were hostile to our liberties. The whole, in
fact, of the institutions and nominations of that King.
At, 6 o'clock the Court withdrew to deliberate. During; its ab-
sence, the members of the Society of the Friends of the People held a
kind of sitting, In which they ordered the discourse of M. Hubert to be
printed. A member even went so far as to propose that this discourse
should be cried through the streets under the title of that of the Pre-
sident of the Society of the Friends of the People. The members pre-
sent also decided, upon the proposition of their President, that no mark
of approbation or disapprobation should accompany the delivery of the
judgment of the Court.

After two hour' deliberation, the Court pronounced the following
judgment :
" It is proved that Hubert is president, and Thierry treasurer of an
Association called the Friends of the People.
" That this association, which has re.united upon certain given days,
k composed of more than 20 persons; that it is formed without the
authority or consent of the Government.
" That Caffin acknowledges to have lent the Riding-house, of which
he is proprietor, to the said society to hold its sittings ; that Caffin has
not obtained for this purpose any permission from the municipal author
ritiel.

" That the acts arc forbidden by the articles 291, 292, and 294, of
the Penal Code.

" That, in principle, the abrogation of a law cannot take place ex-
cept in two ways--either expressly or tacitly, by new legislative dispo-
sitions, contrary to the preceding ones.
" That the charter of 1830 does not contain any abrogation, either
expressed or implied, of the above recited articles.
" That the charter, in declaring by the 7th article, that Frenchmen
have a right to print and publish their opinions conformably with the
laws, and that the censorhip could not be re-established, had only re-
ferred to publications through the periodical press.
" That besides even admitting the application of these articles to any
other mode of publication, the charter consecrated the maintenance of
the laws, with which it was expressly declared they were not to clash.
"That the published project of the proceedings of this society has
this remarkable passage—‘ Let us re-unite to overthrow this Chamber,
the duration of which can only perpetuate the discords excited by it,'
which contains an appeal to material and physical force to overthrow
the Chamber of Deputies.
" That Hubert, as president, and Thierry, as secretary of this society,
are punishable by the art. 293 of the Penal Code.
" That Hubert, as president, did submit this project foe public dis-
cussion.

" That this is a crime by the laws of 1819 and 1822.
" In what concerns Cairn), that be is guilty by the 294th article of
the Penal Code.

" The Court condemns Hubert to three months' imprisonment, and
to pay a fine of 300 franca ; Thierry to three months' imprisonment,
and a fine of 100 francs ; and Caffin to 16 francs fine.
" Ordered, that this society shall be dissolved." (Murmurs, and roars
of laughter in the Court.)
The Court rose, and the audience separated in silence.