Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1871-02-17
The Night of Horror---1572.

that contains rather half than whole
truth. In matters of personal injury is
always both magnanimous and right to
be ready to forgive; and remember who
1t was that taught" If ye forgive not
men their trespasses, neither will your
Heavenly Father forgive you your tres
passes" Forgiveness of personal injur-
les can sarcely be complete unless there
is kind oblivion of the wrong; the lat
ter being in many cases even harder than
the former for we can more easily con-
troll our anger than our memory. Still,
divine grace, which alone can preserve
us from the evil of our own hearts, will,
if we ask it, enable us both to forgive
and forget. Butthere are deeds inscribed
on the page of history that it would be
weak and sinful to forget, warnings that
appeal to the reason and the feelings of
all generations and that, as time brings
round the anniversary of their occur
renee, demand solemn reflection. The
day after onr pages are in the hands OF
our readers q. c. the oath of August is
one os those ever-memorable period.
Exactly 295 years back occurred the
massacre of Protes.ants (Hugurnots) in
Paris, known as the Bartholomew Mas
sacre; an enormity which showed the
sanguinary and crafty character of the
Church of Rome in all its deadly atroci.
ty.
Visitors to Paris have not failed to no.
tice the grand though somewhat gloomy
facade Of the Church called St. Germaine
rAuxerroi', exactly opposite the south
east front of the Louvre. That church
can never be looked on without awe.
On the night in question, at a given signal
the tocsin rang. 1t was answered from
the towers of st. Sulpice on the other
side of the river. And there began, in
the most polished city in Europe, hid
eous carnage Ia massacre Of helpless,
unoffending people of all ranks, simply
for the one offence of protesting the Re-
formed Faith. EighthundredP Protestant
noblemen and gentlemen had accompan-
led Henry, Kingof Navarro Henry IV)
to Paris to be present at his betrothal to
Margaret, youngest daughterof the blood
thirsty Catherine de Medici. This reti-
nue. from Bearn, and the approaching
nuptials, had, of course, attracted to
Paris all who were interested in the brave
young king, all who had loved and al
mired the wisdom and piety of his moth
er, Queen Jeanne of Navarro. So that
guests were ihronging the beautiful but
treacherous city. Every right of hospi-
tality, every feeling of mere worldly hon
or, was outraged in that awful night.
Admiral Coligny, the head of the reform
party, already lying on a sick bed from
the pistol shot of an assassin, was mur-
dered on his couch. In few hours the
total number of slaughtered persons ex-
ceeded ten thousand The streets of
Paris ran with blood, everywhere there
echoed cries and groans, mingled with
the clangor of bells, the clash of arms,
and the oaths of murderers. The King,
Charles TX, the cruel son of vile moth
er, it is said, stood at window of the
Louvre, and every now and then fired on
the fugitives who were trying to reach
the river in the hope of escaping. Every
form of guilt, cruelty and suffering, made
that fearful night hideous and ppaIling.
Never in any city where the word Chris-
tain had been adopted as designation
was there such saturnalia of blood and
crime.
But it may be said, why recall the
horrid atrocities of remote time? for
this simple reason-that the deed was
not, as some suppose merely the treach-
erous act of hyana-like woman, and
her brutal son, but it must ever be re-
membered that 1t received the sanction of
the Church Of Rome as nseritorious DEM
onStration-of fidelity to Romish precepts
and doctrines. When the tidings of this
wholesale massacre were received in
Rome, the cannon Of st. Angelo saluted,
the city was illuminated, and Pope Greg
ory XIII. and his Cardinals made pro-
cession to all the churches, and offered
thanksgiving at the shrine of every saint.
This fact has never been questioned, for
there exists ample corrorborative testi-
mony in Papist annals. The Cardinal
of Lorraine wrote letter to Charles TX,
full of admiration and applause at the
deed, saying, "That which you have
achieved was SO infinitely above my hopes
that should have never dared to con-
template it /: nevertheless / have always
believed that the deeds of your Majesty
would augment the glory of God and
tend to immortalize your name."
A benevolent lady hearing that the
failure to subdue late fire was caused