Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1871-07-21
Minister Wnshburne.


The Times of Monday last contains a letter
from Versailles which extols, no doubt most
justly, the conduct of the secretary charged
with the direction of the British legation at
Paris during The trying times of the commune
and then adds unfortunately, that this conduct
of Mr.. Maet was in striking contrast to that of
the chief Of an important legation, who was
VIGOROUSLY in sympathy with the commune
This remark | take it for granted applies to Mr.
Washburne, and | write to you for the purpose
of assuring you that the American minister, on
the contrary, VIGOROUSLY sympathized with the
government of Versailles, and condemned ener-
getically from first to last the acts and the men
of the commune. A fortnight ago a Freuch
journal of limited circulation published the
statement that Mr. Washbume was friendly to
the commune, and gave as a proof that a letter
had been found in the papers of Paschal Grous
set, delegate Of the commune at the ministry of
foreign affairs, addressed by the former to the
latter, headed Mon cher ami and promising
certain information which it was supposed was
i'll the interest of the commune Notwithstand-
ing the gravity of the charge, the friends of Mr.
Washburne did not think it necessary to contra
dict it, because of its improbability and because
the paper in which it appeared was not lead
ing one. 1t is now time, however, that an eX-
PLANTATION should be made, and the excuse for
taking up your space is all the better because of
the interest everyone takes in the strange events
through which we have Just passed, During
the commune and after the signing of the pre-
liminaries of peace between France and Prussia,
Mr. Washbune was instructed by the Prussian
government not TO allow any Alsatian or Lor-
rainer to be taken by the commune for military
service against his will. The immediate effect
of this order was that the American legation
was beseiged every day by hundreds of French
men belonging, or claiming to belong, to the
ceded provinces, and who, in order to escape the
service of the commune, sought to place them
selves under the flag of their new coun-
try, and, as might be expected, a GER
tain number of these persons had no right to
the protection asked for. With these crowds of
new born-born subjects of Prussia, therefore,
with the Germans who were constantly man
aging to get into prison. with his own people
who were not always as discreet perhaps as
they might be, and with the interests of some
smaller legations with which he remained
charged, Mr.. Washburne's relations-Or, l
should say, forced relations-wth the commune
were daily and uninterrupted. But precisely to
guard the diplomatic points in the case, he was
careful that all his communications should be
made verbally, through one of his secretaries
SO that, Notwithstanding the considerable num-
Der OF persons Of various natiOnalities he was
obliged daily to extract from prison, and the
frequent contests about the protection of the
property of neutrals the business was always
transacted verbally by an agent whose person
was soon well known to all the officials of the
revolutionary government One day, however,
Paschal Grousset, who, it seems, contemplated
old French family at st. Louis, NO., the district
of country from which MIR. Washburne comes,
wrote letter to the latter asking information in
regard to this family. To this letter, which
was polite note en- tirely outside of all public
business, Mr.. Washburne replied in English in
something like the following Words "Dear
sir; think can obtain for you the Informal
tiOn you desire, and when obtained, will for
ward 10 you," 1t was this letter that was found
in Paschal GrousSet.s papers, and which has
served as the foundation for all the reports
about Mr.. Washburne's sympathy for the COM
mune- The Paris editor converted "Dear sir"
into "Aly dear friend" and supposed the infor-
nation in question to be something cOntraband
There could be no misunderstanding in the mat
ter for any one who kept himself advised OF the
acts of the commune, for Mr., Washhurne has
been too often in litigation with 1t and
too often denounced by it to be one of
its friends. Twice during the last month
of the commune he was obliged, on the author
ity of the Prussian government, to threaten it
With march Of the Prussian army on Paris
within twenty-four hours, if it did not in one
case give up his private residence, which it had
invaded, and in the other case deliver up to him
four German Sisters of Charity taken with 9th,
erS from the convent of the Rue Piopus and
shut up in the ignominlous prison OF St.Lazare.
SO too it must be fresh in the minds of all who
went through the seige of Paris how the clubs
of Belleville, the nest of the commune, mistak-
ing in their ignorance the character of the I'M
grateful attacks OF the editors of Paris on Mr.
Washburne because having for a while allowed
them to see the foreign journals which he alone
in Paris received, and Them at NJ. de Bismarck's
request, ceased to do so-how these clubs, mis-
constituting and pervertng the meaning of the
attacks, added apeculiarly communal postscript
to them by publicly proposing as question for
discussion the propriety of burning the Amer-
can legation and shooting its chief, Rut this
was not ALL As Mr.. Washhurne took no notice
of these iollies, but went on performing his diff
fcult and complicated diplomatic duties, pro-
tecting with strong hand, made stronger by
the esteem in which he was held hv the govern
ment of national defence, the citizens of every
unprotected nationality who applied to him, the
hatred of the communists finally crystalized
into the buresque form of an article in the con-
stitution of the commune, which was to be in
augurated on the 22d of January, after the at
tack on the hotel de Vile, and which article (the
plan of constitution was published in one of the
obscure communist organs of the epoch) read
as follows
Article %. Washburne Is to cease all relations
with Bismarck under penalty of DEATH"