Daily Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1876-1884, 1878-04-07

rne chief of tho Commune.

NEW York, March 29th.-The
World has just discovered in ma
chine shop in this city, one of the
leaders of the Paris Commune, and
the man who headed the party of
May Gath, 1871, and shot Arch
bishop Darboy, and five other hos
tages in the hands of the commune.
His name is Edward Megy. and he
IL leading spirit among the COM
1nunists of the city. At the down.
fall of the Commune he was COM
PEELED to flee the country, and SO he
came to New York, where he has
diligently followed his trade, and
won place of much influence and
consideration among the commun-
lists of the city. Megy is the hero
of six murders. He was in the
xalleys at Toulon and was awaiting
transportation for twenty years to
New Caledonia for the murder of o
police agent when the republic was
declared, and he was released by
decree of the Government. He was
in Marseilles when the Commune
was declared and he headed the
outbreak there, and after remain
ing in command eight days went
10 Paris, where he was put in
charge of the defense of Fort Lissy.
On May Oath he learned that Ferret
and De Lesclusse had given the
order to shoot Darboy and the other
hostages because the troops of
Thiers on the same day had shot
six officers of the Sixth battalion.
He at once went with the party to
La Rouquette to assist in the exc
cution. "When we went there"
he said, tive were one hundred and
fifty strong, but a number of men,
about one hundred and twenty OF
them, got frightened, and the thirty
of us that remained had to do the
work"
"What did you do ?" he was
asked.
- -"Well, I do not care to speak
much Of what did. 1t might in
jure me here where l work. we
just called for the men we wanted
to shoot, and we shot them, as 1T is
customary to shoot men under such
circumstances. We took them out
into the yard and placed them face
to the wall, and the word was Civ
en- and they were shot; that's all.
1t was all Thiers's fault. We of
fered to give up all the hostages if
he would surrender Blanqui to US,
but he refused, and so we shot the
hostages"
Fifteen days after the Commune
was overthrown Megy left Paris IN
70 Hnnnua
A friend advised him to go further
away, and $50 l went" he says,
ITO London and came to New York.
l returned to England in 1875, and
worked at my trade in London and
Birmingham until last December,
when / came to this country again,
and am now working at my trade
here"
Megy says of ex-Minister WASH
burne: "Before the Commune end
ed some of our people went to him
and asked him what the Govern
ment would do to us in case we sur
rendered or were defeated. Il as
sure you of this he replied, that
all who are taken will be shot.
During the siege of Paris Wash
oulD0 Wuo aCtli6 30 . SPy Aci 49,
Germans. He is an old rascal oil
the worst kind. We shall have
another Commune i'll Paris" Megy
continued; 1--WE were badly beaten
but in case of a revolution against
MacMahon, we should try again
and probably succeed. In the
United States" he said, "organiza
items are being completed every
wherein New York. Chicago
San Francisco, Paterson and New.
ark. We have correspondents ev-
erywhere. A revolution cannot be
foreseen, of course, but L see 1t:
elements here distinctly. 1t Will
come in the opposite way to what
it will in France. There it is not
the poor who revolt-it is the intel
ligent workingmen; but here it il
the most miserable" He processes
to believe that the grievances o
the laboring classes here will some
day cause an upheaval of the mass
es in this country similar to the
Paris Commune of 1871.