The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1870-08-26
TrocI,u and Paris.

Trochu and Paris.
Whatever may be the truth about the
etate of affairs at the seat of war in
France. there can be no doubt that Paris
has found tower of strength for the
nations need in the calm, high-souled,
and resolute bearing of her new military
commander, General Trochu. The cable,
with much that is wild and worthless,
this morning brings us al extract from q
letter written by this now illustrious
Frenchman on the situation and the re-
sources of his country, which is worthy
of the best days of the best republics.
Amid the din of arms and the roar of
battle the words Of Trochu sound clear
and high, maintaining tho immortal
supremacy Of courage over the mere in
struments of cournge of moral force
over the machinery by which moral force
vindicates and executes itself And
these are not the words of dreamer
like Lamartine, or of a rhetorician like
Victor Hugo.
They are the words of T. soldier who
was citizen before he became soldier,
and remains citizen still; Of general
who remembers that the proudest and
the lost powerful of armies has no real
claim on the respect Of mankind save as
the right hand of law in the maintenance
of liberty. It is long since such words
rs these have been heard from the high
places Of power in any country Of Eu-
rope. Almost never hnvo such words as
these been heard from the high places
OF power i'll any part Of the world while
war was laundering at tho hearts and
distracting the brains Of men. The SOL
diers who have saved States threatened
as Franco is threatened now have for the
most part worshipped the sword which
served them.
Gen. TrOchu has made for himself n
niche apart in the annals Of his order.
1t remains now to be seen whether twen-
ty years OF Intoxicating prosperity under
the empire, and twenty years IF political
corruption under the House Of Orleans,
have left to Fruuce the moral force nc
cessary to support him rs free people
should support the leader who, in the
face of a. victorious foreign foe, refuses
to lower either the standard of law or
the flag OF the nation. Ii that moral
force he found in France, the most bril-
liant victories i'll the field, it may in the
end be proved, would have served her
less truly than the defeats by Which it
has been evoked The armies OF the
European coalition marching against the
republic OF 1892, reused France to n
sense of her material strength, which
made her for twenty years the terror of
the world. The armies Of Prussia
marching against the empire OF 1852,
bid fair now to rouse her to sense Of
her moral strength, which may we'll
achieve for her quite another and lof-
tier destiny among the nations. The in
terests Of the stock exchange and the
gold gamblers hang about the skirts of
battle like the prowlers on the dreadful
field where the dead lie helpless, and
their spoil invites the spoiler.
The higher and nobler interests of hu-
manity take wing to-day from the ensan-
guined plains of Champagne to watch
the loftier drama beginning now in Paris
The armies of Prussian king may sue
ceed i'll casting down al empire; but that
will DC but Il little matter to France if, in
doing it. they build up State.
Ne,c York World