The Portland daily press., 1871-05-31
Justice 10 the Commune,

gone out in fire and blood. There is no dan.
ger but the follies and crimes of the insur-
gents will be written down by many pens and
will pass into history with none of their
blackness relieved and none of their enolmi
ty abatec. For almost the first time in mod
ern history the survivors of an unsuccessful
revolt are to be treated as criminals; those
who are captured are shot, and those who es-
cape to other countries are to be treated like
other outlaws and returned, as several CONT
mental governments have alre ady volunteered
to promise, uHder the provisions of their ex-
tradition treaties with France. If ever
swift, relentless, Implying retribution over.
took wrong-doers, it is in the case OF the men
whose last bariicade was taken Sunday, and
whose unburied bodies lie in heaps in the
Partisan streets, blackening under the sum-
mer' sun. Their cause is lost, their lives are
ruined and an indelible stain will rest forever
on their memory. There is no danger, then,
OF impairiDg the solemn moral lesson taught
by the fate Of the revOlutionisls ii we do
them the simple justice of noting whatever
extenuating circumstances there may be in
their case and of relieving them of some I'M
just aspelsions that have been cast upon them
by an enrased and undiscriminating world
With the whole human race on their track,
painting to bring them to judgment, we may
safely commend them to the mercy of their
judges by an enumeration of some points de-
cidedly in their favor.
First in order of importance is the fact
that the main purpose Of the Commune was
political one and that it was right. They
wanted to secure the perpe.uity OF the Re-
public, and they wanted municipal indie.
pendence. They knew that under the exist
ing government their municipal officers would
be appointed by the central authority, as they
were under the Empire, and they believed,
and rightly, too, that Theirs and his govern
eminent did not at heart desire the preserva-
ton of the Republic.
If the workingmen of the National Guard
had not revolGed there is every probability
that ere this the monarchy would have been
restored and King of the house of Orleans
would now have been comfortably ensconced
in the place where the smoke of that wild
beasts lair, the Tuileries, ascends to heaven
as testimony against the monstrous iniquity
OF thrones erected at the expense of the hap
rlness, intelligence, comfort and blood of
millions of suffering men.
There has been no attempt on the part of the
revolutionists to carry into effect their extrav-
agant social doctrines, Undoubtedly they
hold as theories certain notions that are sub
versive OF society as now organized. But
though they were absolute masters of Paris
from the 18th Of March till the 2lst of May,
when the Versaillsts broke through their de-
lenses, 1t cannot be shown that the rights of
private property were any farther ignored
than is usual in times of war. They raised
forced loans and extorted money from the
bank of France and from wealthy corpora
tions All nations engaged in war do this.
There is testimony to the effect II at life
and property. were never safer within the
limits of the city than during the progress of
the last seige. 1t is also said that the de-
meanor of the people was never marked by
more propriety.
Finally, until the rage and despair that &C.
company hopeless defeat overlook them-un.
til, indeed, they had been melted by the
atrocities OF their antagonists to emulate
their example, there soas no reign of terror
certain unfortunate events that occurred in
the very first days of the revolt at Montmar-
tire led the whole world to PREJUDICE the
cause of the Commune, and to assume that it
was repeating the frantic cruelties of 49, No
mistake could be greater or more unfortu-
nate. Some drunken soldiers, whose acts
were promptly repudated and, we believe,
punished by the constituted authorities, MUIR
dered Generals Thomas and Lecomptp.
There were rumOrs at one time that the
guillOtine was to be erected. So far as we
can discover the parallel between 1902 and
1871 stops here. No guillotine was erected.
The counterparts of Robespierre, Marat and
Danton did not appear. In the very last days
OF the revolt, when the government troops
had, as the telegraph reports, slaughtered the
men, women and children of the Commune
the latter took the cruel revenge of murder
ing their hostages, among whom was the
Archbishop of Paris. Given no quarter by
their enemies, they were guilty of useless
and most criminal act of retaliation. Their
Justification for the burning of the Tuileries
and other public buildings we have tried to
show in previous article
In conclusion, we anticipate with great
confidence that it will hereafter be source
of much qualification TO the friends of this
paper that it has done the Communists this
act of justice, though no other paper in Amer
lea has found it desirable to do so.