The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1879-11-20
A NEW ORATOR IN PARIS.
He 10 a Communist and Full of
Brightness.
IParis Lsetter.1

lParis Letter.l
A press prosecution, which was a sad
blunder, has brought out rival in the
faubourgs to Gambetta. The paper pros
ecuted is the Marseillaise, TO which
Henri Rochefort contributes weekly
three pungent articles. Its offense was
printing the speech which Humbert, the
pardoned communist, made at an electo-
raj meeting in the Javel district, where
he defended acts deemed criminal by
the tribunals, and insulttd the courts
martial of Versailles in saying that they
prostituted justice" Humbert is still
young, and decidedly handsome. He
spent three years in the galleys of New
Caledonia, and was removed from them
to the Isle of Pines because it was found
that he was suffering for the offense of
another individual.
The amnesty restored him to his
friends and fanoee-a golden-haired
Parisienne, to whom he will be shortly
married, and the electors of Javel, by
way of signifying adhesion to Louis
Blanc's demand for general amnesty
returned him to a seat in the municipal
council. 1t would be well if military
justice were not what Humbert called it,
and if it were anything but painful
duty for the officers who sat on courts
martial to sentence those who had the
misfortune to be brought before them
People still recall that Col. Boisdenemez
rubbed his hands after a capital case
had been got through, and said to his
brother officers; "Now for another
rascal"
1t is unfortunate that NJ. LIE Boyer
should under the presidency of the hon
est Grevy, have thought it needful to
truckle to Bonapartist officers in order
ing the prosecution of Humbert and the
Marse llaise. The Minister of Justice was
untrue to his principles in taking the
step he did, the falsity of which he must
now see. In sowing wind he has reaped
whirlwind. The issue Of the Marseil-
laise, which has appeals against the judg-
ment condemning its manager TO fine
of 5000 and months Imprisonment, and
Humbert, as sub-editor, to six months
and $1,000 fine rose, yesterday from
1900 to 250,0O0! Four editions came
out, and were snatched up by public
eager to read full report of the trial.
The news had gone through the city
and penetrated the provinces that the
favorte of the Javel district lad re-
veaied himself an orator of unusual
power, and that his skill was equal to his
vigor. M. LIE Roger had done M. Wad-
dihgton, the monarchist journals said,
the pleasure of finding a match for Gam
BETA, and future vanquisher of the op
pprtunist chief at Belleyille. This was
saying too much. Humbert, l doubt
not, will be sent to the Chamber by some
advanced constituency, and he may be
pitted against Gambetta in the district
where NJ. Braleret has been for over thir-
teen years the Grand Eector. Of Hum
bert's oratorical capacity ono can not
speak too highly.
He has fire, and is its master; he has
exquisite tact; he has the power to fell
in blow; is concise, trenchant, pathetic,
and in the storm and whirlwind of pas
sion never loses his head or lets the
thread of his discourse get into tange.
But he wants the long apprenticeship to
public affairs of Gambetla. He is not
a Demosthenes but Marc Antony, and
in the tribune, speaking on some other
subject than the one which he brood ed
over in New Caledonia, would not, ap-
prehend, express himself with the COM
municative eloquence which has enabled
NJ. Emile de Glrardin to institute par
allel between the Baudin case, that placed
Gambetta ON pedestal, and the Humbert
trial
The new ly-discoyered orator was young
when he and Vermesch started that
ignoble print, LIE Pere Duchene. He is
now acquitted of the charge Of having
denounced Chandey to the sanguinary
Raoul Rigault in that paper. 1t is just
to me to mention that, on returning to
Paris from the antipodes, he refused to
stand for the Quarter Javel and only
consented after Waddington's iniudicious
declaration at Laon that the government
would not bring in bill fer a supple
mental amnesty, nor consent to one being
brought in. Humbert showed dignity
in refusing to make capital out Of his
personal wrongs, grievous as they had
been.
He alluded with tact in his speech to
the attitude he assumed at the begin
ming, and to the insults which drove him
from it, of men vino were dancing at
Compeigne while he was a prisoner at
St. Pelagie for having written in Re
publican journal. The persons at whom
this aspersion was aimed were M. Ed
mund About and some of his sub-edi-
tors, who threw at Humbert "Chandey's
corpse" He retorted with twenty-five
communists shot by the Yer
As to qualifying the courts
martial as a prostitution of justice, he
quoted Montague, who said: "One
should be careful not to fall into the
hands of a judge who is an enemy, vic
torious and armed"
Were not the military judges at Yer
sailles all xlree9 Chosen exclusively
from among the officers who vanquished
the commune, could they be impartial?
Humbert waited for reply. Were they
(the officers) justs How could they be
so in their hot haste9 Versaillist soldiers