The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1871-03-20
MONDAY, MARCH 20, 1871.
THE REBELLION IN PARLS.

DESPITE the many terrible dangers and Gala
mites which have recently threatened Paris,
q considerable portion of her citizens are now
engaged in invoking new horrors. Instead of
welcoming peace they are generating san
guinsry civil war, and provoking the destruc-
tion of the remnants of prosperity which
survive the siege. The enormities of the old
revolution are repeated; brutal and unreason-
ing fanaticism rules the hour; generals
of the French army are mas
sacred by the Partisan mobs, which defy
the Government established by the
national will of France. No parallel for such
an extraordinary demonstration can be found
in American history, but the nearest approach
to it is furnished by the draft riot in New
York in 1868. The vile, villainous, ignorant,
desperate, prejudiced, and unprincipled ele-
ments which were embodied in that ebullition
of the worst ingredients of the Democracy of
New York city bear decided resemblance to
he Partisan rioters of to-day; but in justice
to the latter, it should be acknowledged that
they have in their ranks some better men
than the miscreants of Gotham. Both de-
monstrations, however, display intense
Ignorance of the obligations of citizenship,
the most selfish disregard of the general well
ware, and close alliance with the criminal
enemies of society, who, as idle vagabonds,
thieves, cutthroats, convicts, and desperadoes,
cherish deadly hostility at all times to every
form of social order.
One of the pretexts for the late uprising is
an allegation that the present Government
will strive to re-establish monarchy; and this
Ill ;nl
Parisians to look with comparative favor upon
the rebellious movement, and also furnished
the National Guard with an excuse for frater-
nizing with the mob M. Theirs answer to this
charge, however, isthat such revolts constitute
the greatest possible danger to the republic,
and that if they are continued they will ne
cessarily destroy republicanism; and this
seems the true common-sense view of the
situation. The Red Republicanism of Paris
like the Dead Rabbit Democracy of New York,
is incompatible with permanent and just
popular rule; and the French Government
will only discharge an imperative duty if it
literally fulfls its avowed intention to enforce
peace and maintain order at all hazards.
The inaugural speech of NJ Theirs, which
was published some days ago in The TELE-
GRAPH. is replet6 WITH WlSQOm. ne earnestly
beseeched his countrymen to address all their
energies, for the present, to the paramount
task of restoring order, repairing the waste
of the war, recognizing industry, building
bridges, and relieving France from the pre-
sence of the enemy and promised that when
this was done, he would use his best energies
to secure fair test of public opinion in re-
gard to the character of the future National
Government. Unless there are won-
derfully good grounds for suspecting
the good faith of M. Theirs, the course he
thus marked out should, in view of the fact
that his Cabinet is composed of men repre-
senting all the prominent parties, secure the
temporary confidence of all good citizens.
And, under the circumstances, the opposition
manifested by the Partisan outbreak forces
an issue between the domination of Partisan
mob and the will of forty millions of French
men, in which the latter should strive to gain
not merely transient victory, but to estab-
lish forever system under which Paris would
cease to rule France.