The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1879-02-23
Impeachment and Amnesty I'm France.

BY majority of over two hundred the
French Chamber Of Deputies has refused to
accept the extreme proposition of the radi-
calls that oil offences committed in the
name Of the Commune in 1871 should be
wiped out, and has refused by majority
only little smaller to accept several other
propositions on the same subject only
shade less absurd. In the demand for
complete amnesty the extreme Left pre-
tends that all the murders and other horrors
committed in those days were political
offences" and that the men who are now
under the ban Of the law on account of them
are only the members Of defeated party
prosecuted for their principles. Every
atrocity committed in any riot might with
equal justice be defended on the same
ground, and the sweeping vote by which
the proposition was put down exhibits how
very little the majority now in power is dis
posed to yield to ridiculous propositions
merely because they are put forward in the
namc of republican principles. But the
Assembly by its vote has given the
government ample power to deal with
oil those cases of the offenders of this
class in which the inAiction of the full
penalty of the law may appear oppressive,
or in which there Is any reason why dis
tinctions should be made between criminals
who while technically guilty of the same
offences were morally not of the same de-
grees Of turpitude. In the suppression OF
the Commune there was not little Of the
element of vengeance. An army that was
unable to face the foe it had last dealt with
wreaked kind of savage fury on the first
foe which subsequently came in its way and
that it could face and throngs of men and
women were shot down or swept into Com
munist prisons who were guilty of no other
offence than the energetic expression of
offensive opinions. But they were sifted
out when the trials came. Yet the trials
were before military courts and were not
without q portion of the animus that in
spired great part of the nation
| at that time Plenty of occasion has
| been found to review the judgments.
and it has been utilized, and the govern
| ment has, in the bill now passed, latitude
enough for oil necessary further revision I;
but to 20 beyond this and say there is no
occasion for the infection Of any penalties
is to confound mercy with Indifference to
the protection of society. AS the vote
cast-three hundred and forty to ninety
nine-has completely put down one project
of the extreme Left it will probably give q
practical quictus to another project favored
| in that drection-the scheme for the i'm
parchment of the De Broglie Ministry.
Apparently facts enough have been discov-
cred to supply basis for such proceed
ing, although the record of the dis
covery has not yet been made public.
But it is probable that an accusa-
ton could be made, and be sustained
by evidence, that an understanding for q
coup dftat was actually had between the
Ministry of the 10th OF May and somo high
placed military commanders 1t would,
however, hardly be wise thing to push
that prosecution now. 1t is not necessary to
save the State from any danger, and party
revengcs are not proper object for politi-
cal acts. Perhaps it may be fairly said
that such proceedings supply salutary ex-
amples against future attempts, but the best
guarante tee against repetition LII such cases is
the failure of the attempt itself Probably
the good sense of the Assembly will content
itself with the publication OF a report which
may make the plotters infamous.