Cedar Falls gazette. [volume] (Cedar Falls, Iowa) 1860-1895, 1871-02-03


The surrender Of the forts around
Paris, and the state of quasi surren-
der in which the city is placed dur
ing the three weeks armistice, are
calculated to intensity, rather than
nIlay, the agony with which France
has been rent and torn during this
entire war. The surrender of the forts
that command Paris, the disarma-
ment of The greater portion of the
besieged army, the summOning of -
National Assembly, aud the immedi-
ate revictualing of the city, are facts
accomplished. All beyond this is
still uncertain and contradictory
| The amount of the indemnity which
the Germans arc to exact is variOus-
| ly stated, and whether the cessiOn of
A lsaCe and German Lorraine, Of a
French colony and Of forty French
! war-ships, together with the military
occupation of the province Of Cham
payne 10y the Germans, and the guar
antee of the payment o. the lndem~
nifty by the municipalities, are terms
! to Which jules Favre has already
agreed, or whether they are to be act
Ell upon by the future government to
| he formed hy the National Assembly
! il not yet clear. We infer, however,
that the Emperor William = despatch
to the Empress Augusta includes all
! that had been agreed upon mp to the
! hour il was sent, on Sunday after
noon. If this be true, nothing of a
political character has yet been done.
No treaty'Of cession or indemnity has
! been signed. There has been simply
a surrender of the forts around Paris
and agreement for the disarmament
of the forces in Paris, and for the
victualing of the city as soon as Its
| defenders are disarmed, and in all
other respects the hesiercd and be-
! siegers remain in STATE QUO until the
National Assembly shall have met
and declared its policy. and created
a government to embOdy it in a
| treaty.
There is yet no official statement
OF the German terms of peace, and it
is Impossible to say how far the as
| Sertions of correspondents on this
/ point may he authorized. They i'm
! clude all the demands heretofore an
! ticipated, together with some that
are new, thus confirming the general
expectation that the longer the war
! is waged, the more memorable will
he the humiliatiOns imposed on the
vanquished.
Through France, the brief period
before the sitting of the National
| Assembly, must I've one of intense
| agitation. For the first time since
/ the revolution of rs, the French
people will be called on to exercise
really the prerOgative of seif-gOvern-
/ mani 'FlIn RIninn io : -,
! continuation of war that involves
speedy suhjugation, and the ratifica-
! ton Of a peace which involves i'm
mediate humiliation. and lasting
costs, and modification. AS Cath0-
! lies, they hate their Protestant con
| QuCrOTs. AS mem tiers of the proud
| Latin races, they Gespise the people
| who have vanVuishcd them. Ac-
/ customed to believe in the military
| glory of France, il has hitherto been
worth the life of any political leader
/ to propose peace on any other basis
! than that of French supremacy -
| Quick in their intelligence, they
| have not cOmprehended the extent
! of their disasters, and are even yet
| unprepared in large sections Of
| Franc @ to give up the contest. In
| this dilemma they are called upon to
! choose between u disgraCet and PX.
plOhed empire. whose inc0mpetency
| TO govern is the true cause of ali
/ their calamitiPs, and defeated, i'll.
! starred republic, which has never
! had authority outside OF few chief
cities, and whose authority, from no
| fault Of its own, has bodied no g00d
! to those who exercised or aCknUu'l-
! edged it.
A people who have never voted
! upon any question, except "fOr or
/ against the government, must now
decide which of two hostile govern
ments. both equally djsgraced in
/ their estimation, they Will rutifE.-
| The situation, for France, il one Of
. the saddest and most humbling ever
| presented in the annals Of nations.
She il more completely ANA tMr more
| iugloriOusIy beaten than our South
| err rebellion was at the fall of Rich
mund. From the very pinnacle Of
/ power she has sunk almost to vice.
! royalty, and still size seems forced to
seek Tie elements OF her regeuera
| ton in the very men, materials. ana
/ institutions which have hast. ned
I
! who predict that. when tho voting
takes place, the imprisoned and dis
graced Emperor viii he found to
have still "A majority of the people
with him-uOt those of the largest
cities, not the educated classes, tUt
/ the great mass of the rural pOpula-
! ton. among whom it is still an open
question whether the Napoleon Of
Sedan is not the Identical Napoleon
of Marengo and AusterlitZ. If it
shall turn out SO; it. after the awful
experience of the past six months,
| the French people shall recall the
responsible author of their miseries,
and bow themselves voluntarily to
receive his yoke, then, indeed. will
the civilized world exclaim, in the
bitter words of Junius, that they
have "r0hhed even misfortune OF
! dignity - Chicago Tribune.