New-York tribune., 1874-08-27
BAzAINE's ESCAPE.
PUBLIC OPINION IN FRANCE.

Marshal Bazaine accomplished his second deprada
ton last Sunday evening or last Monday morning
the very date is unascertained) we are as ignorant
as About all we positively know Is that the
ex-Marshal, finding the island disagreeablo
| Summer residence like tho three sailors
Of Bristol City took ship and went 70
sea-" knotted rope still bangles in the
| imagination of some--possibly did dangle in mate
rial fact-from his late domicle to the water BE-
| meath. marked with bOod-with eleven spots Of
blood" say the well-lnformed imaginative in their
love of accuracy. The said blood issued from the body
of the hero of Metz as he was knocked against the
cruel rocks or the very bestnformed coDjecturers
advise from the breaking out of an old wound in his
wrist. That the ex-Marshal let his very heavy
yearold body down that 9o-foot-long knotty rope
is story better adapted to the faith of marines
than founded fact. The graver sort of calcu-
lators of probabilities apt to guess that this
line If it really did exist thrown out to catch
the guieless eyes and hold in suspense tho early
morning queries of his tardily vigant guardians
We also know that his courageous wife, apparently
aided by spirited American cousin. was the emf
nently principal agent in the escape That she was
right there is no doubt. Whether he was right in
listening to the suggestions of her faithful wifey
love rather than to nice sense OF soldierly honor
or intelligent consideration of his final reputation.
is question. To say. as some mallciously do. that
ne could not be asked to listen to dumb sense and
that there not enough chance left OF good rep
utation be worth botherng about is to evade tho
question. To say, as some delicately scrupulous do
lit is not expensive to be delicately scrupuous In
cases of other folks conscience that there Is no de-
batable question between honor and his act. is re-
futed by the fact that the question is much debated
Here are the outlines of the debatable grounds.
lacf hia nota ofa
acknowledgement to his brother Marshal MaoSiahon.
distinctly not thankfully to accept President Mac
Mahons Communication lat request Of his judges Of
his death to imprisonment in fortress for 20 years.
But the form of this imprisonment was remarkably
modified. The prisoner, spared by grace not only
from public execution, but from what to an honor
able soldier is more bitter than death-the terrible
public ceremony of military degradation-was con-
fined in that fortress of all French fortresses which
all condemned French would select if ever choice
were left them; his domicile there consisted Of an
apartment spacious enough for himself his wife and
three children; his faithful friend Col. Villette
had a separate lodging hard by; he had three
domestics for the service Of himself and family;
he had terraces commanding beautiful view of the
sea and neghboring mainland, whereon to dispor
himself one of them about 100 feet long by 40 feet
wide. 1t is true that they are said to be not well
paved nor shaded and to be somewhat scant Of water
supply for tho little Picciola garden where he
amused himself with horticulture Aso IL seems to
be true that the terraces were unpleasantlv warm
for the prisoner, his family and admitted friends.
IN the middle hours of the midsummer days. be-
lieve this, for there days last month wheE u
was disagreeably warm to 100000 fellow innocentA
confined to the streets and houses of Paris. Whyit
should have been any hotter for the guilty Bazane
than for the garrison and other presumably not
guilty denizens is not shown.
Profting by these quite exceptional ameliorationf
of his imprisonment, which he certainly did accept
and profit by in the island, did he not in a sort
thereby bind himself not to abuse their uses by
turning them to his escaped That he received them
in exchange of bis parole not to abuse them, hai
been stated by ministerial journalists, but with
omission of proof that probably will remain in the
omitted state. That there on the other hand
something very like an implied parole in the Dris.
oner's enjoyment of tho peculiarly favorable con-
ditiOns made for him, which scrupuously honorable
gentleman soldier would have felt to be obligatory
is an idea that seems to have met with some scant
entertainment even in the mind of that
soldier of fortune, Bazaine. We are told
on what pretends to be especially good.
and lwhat internal evidence and few
authenticated external facts save from being I'M
probably bad testimony, that Bazaine himself ad.
sail away till after the results of her well-known
intermediate request to MacMahon to add further
modern improvements to the Ste. Marguerite water
ing-place. 1t would seem as if Bazaine had re-
tained up to the rejection of that impudent de-
mand a certain sentiment of fellowship toward hil
lu,kier fellow Marshal, seeing what the dullest,
most sefshly blinded eye could but see, the
embarrassment which his escape from his careless
keepers must cause to their responsible master his
unsuspecting friend, the more less Imperialist
President Of the Republic. But not only was ths
cool demand for reducing the Summer temperature
of Mediterranean island coldly repulsed. Mean
time, the great Prime Minister and proteg6 OF the
Empire. the Duke de Brogle. had gone out Of Office
and seemingly out of power to so dull politician
as Bazane: Fourtou more honestly Imperialist. had
followed him, and Chabaud- -Latour, one Of the
sternest of his court-martal judges notorious par
tisan of the Orleanist presiding judge. the Duke
dAumale had come to their place!
The few known facts of the State criminals easy
escape are not nearly as curious amusing as the
variety of comments on its domestic and foreign,
POLITICAL internationally legal military and Othes
possible accOmpaniments and later bearings. The
Government, whether responsible for the State
criminals escape not Is more or less, In the per.
son of its chief rather pleased than otherwise that
the Bazalne is removed once for all out OF its
jurisdiction. The public at large does not vicously
stigmatize Bazaine for going away from place he
did not like as permanency 1t amuses them as
clever practical joke played at the Government,
expense-not. however, SO clever or amusing az
Rochefort's witty battling Of the solemn Duke de
Broglie Copies are never so good as originals, but
no one asks of Bazaine. whom no one ever accused
of quick intelligence, to be SO brilliantly witty as
Rochetort. 1t makes the Government look rdicu-
lous, and that is always pleasant to French OBJ
seryers.