, 1877-04-22
L1BERTY OF THE PRESS IN FRANCE.

The recent trial mud conviction of II. PAUL
DE CAssAoNAo, the editor Of the leading Bon
apartist paper in Paris, LIE Pays, for libeling
the Chamber Of Deputies, is curious COM
n1snt upon the liberty of the press in France,
political sentiment upon which Frenchmen
particularly plume themselves. The denoue-
ment in CAssAaSAcs case shows, however,
that what Frenchmen esteem as liberty Of the
press would in this country be considered
absolute tyranny, and raise howl of exc
Grafton from Maine to California It may be
stated that CAssAavAo is Bonapartist, q
due1ist, common scold, hot-headed idiot,
and good deal of public nuisance, seeking
notoriety by reckless personal abuse OF in
dividuals, and scandalizing the authorities rs
several times for press otfenses as we'll as for
dneling, and apparently glories in the con-
victions as profitable advertisements, nnd pro-
moters of his personal vanity. For some
time past the Chamber Of Deputies
has been the target Of his abuse,
and at last, when it became intolerable, the
Correctional Chamber took cognizance of it,
and brought the testy Bonapartist to trial
for libel. As showing the ridiculous brevity
of tho tether Of m editor in Paris, We copy
the following expressions, which were dwelt
upon by the Public Prosecutor as being the
most intolerable and virulent:
The Republican Deputies judge Us by themselves,
and imagine that our convictions, like their own,
are only worth e~franc.piecc We are threatened
tt,ar rt- ~
thingl We viii ding it in their face when wc
choose. Shame on Is francs day! For you
it is good pay, Tor you will drink it more chear1y
but for us it ia tridc, ard Is quite inadequate.
h. To be eensured and stigmatized By friends
men like ourselves, people We honor-woatd be
serious thing calling for reflection; but to undergo
all this from RcpuDicans-peop1e VIC profoundly
despise, and even hatc-is immaterial.,'
The Court held TINT these offensive e1-
pressions we're addressed, if not to every
Deputy individually, at least to the majority
of the Chamber, and we're aimed at the
Chamber itself, and therefore condemned
CAssAGNAo to two months Imprisonment aud
q fine OF 5000 frnncs, aud the pub
Usher to fine of 1000 francs and costs.
1t Pays represents the extreme OF personal
abuse md billingsgate in France aud the
Chicago Times in the United States. The
exact difference between liberty of the press
in the two countries, therefore, may be fixed
by comparing the utterances Of the two. If
the Wel1s-street Bulldozer were liable to i'm
p1isonment every time be wrote such 1ibels
as those for which CAssAaSAc has been
ho would be in the County
Jail as q boarder during the rest of
his life. # any EN- mploye of that
paper were instructed to indulge in
personal abuse, aud did not produce some
thing fifty times as virulent and malicious rs
petty malice, he would be in
discharged as untitled for the
high position of newspaper writer. Com
pare the mud, manure, compost, and gar
oage that were thrown by the Bul1dozcr at
both Republicans and Democrats, and at
both candidates for the Presidency during
the counting Of the Electoral vote, with |
CAssAGSAc's harmless shower Of pebbles, |
and what becomes of the French idea Of lib !
,rty Of tho press?