Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1880-02-23
THE FRENCH COMMUNE.

Ihe french kepubllc second ordeal
namely, the withstanding the faults of its
friends-is now assuming rather threaten
ing proportions and interested alarmists
have been so successful in spreading fear
full rumors that "the coming storm in
Paris begins to be spoken of by Royalist
and Imperialist papers, both in France and
Germany, as thing from which escape
is scarcely to be hoped for. This coming
storm is, for the present, nothing more
than an empty phrase; but it would be
vain and even foolish to shut ones eyes to
the fact that distrust and discomfort arc
growing, and that the Government seem to
be intent on doing their best to increase
instead of allaying the angry displeasure
of the public. This is the more provok-
ing, as NJ. Grevy's first Cabinet had every
thing smooth before them, and are willfully
spelling the most splendid situation a
Cabinet could have dreamed of.
The Communist movement of 1871 was
an exceedingly complex one. Two main
feelings, however, were easily discernible
in it :: On the one side feeling of uncon-
trollable rage against the Government
which had brought the insane German war
upon us, and against the now universally
acknowledged incapacity of the imperial
military chieftains and, on the other, a
most intense feeling of attachment and de-
votion to the municipal institutions, on the
strengthening and free development Of
which the people OF France at large, and
most of the people at Paris, relied to raise
France again from the abyss of grief and
shame into which she had fallen. Add tc
these the repeated and persistent provoca
tons of the Monarchist Assembly, which
first at Bordeaux and soon after at Yer
sailles, openly Knocked at restoring mon
archy, and at taking from Paris not only
her glory as the French capital, but all hel
municipal liberties and you will, without
the shade of doubt, come with me to the
conclusion that the day when the Versailles
Generals would ask the Parisians to give uI
their arms would infallibly be the first day
of tremendous battle. Everybody knew
this would happen and everybody on the
Versailles side as well as on the Paris side
madly rushed into the fratricidal civil war.
After a six-weeks struggle the victory re,
mained with the Versaillese ; and the way
they achieved their victory can be summed
up in few words ds-indiscriminate shooting
and wholesale massacre When the mas.
sacre was put an end to, another and
scarcely less terrible kind OF retribution
began, namely, the trial of Communist
prisoners by the very men who had fought
them, and who were still hot from the
fray. Giving to this kind of trial the name
of Justice seems to me to be rather per.
version of the meaning of words. Never
was so cruel or so bloody page written in
the history of the French nation, and
am not surprised that the great majority
of the French people are haunted with an
impatient fdesire to throw the thickest Of
walls over the remembrance of those
unfortunate, and, to say the truth,
shameful days. l particularly and
fully realize the wish of the gov.
erning classes to see the French workmen
forget that civil war and the devilish
hatred with which it was repressed. But
this is not quite so easy as our well to-do
feilow-citizens pretend. Wives who lost
their husbands, mothers who lost their
sons, children who pined away their miser-
able life for want of the loving bread-win-
ner who for pine long years was heard ol
only at long intervals from New Caledonia
these cannot, even if they would, forget
the sufferings they have gone through,
anu lltc utIu, lClChVitoo vi uOiVy thSy navy
experienced at the hands of those profess
| ing to be their betters. One thing, and
one only, could have to certain extent
assuaged the popular feelings: it was q
! full, generous amnesty, instead of which
we could get from the present Cabinet and
Chambers only grudgingly particle (par
tial) and partiale (biassed) amnesty.
The mistake of the present Government
is to believe that there are in the lower
ranks of the French people large numbe,
OF men, or families, who wish to revive
something like the horrible situation Of
which the outcome was the Commune
This is a complete mistake, an error the
more dangerous as it can be acted upon by
the enemies of the Republic-not the Com,
mHnists, but the Bonapartists, Legitimists
Orleanists, and all the Clericals. History
teaches us that when their blood
is up the French working CLASSES are
the most dangerous. 1t is war
real war, which they mean then
not boxing or fisticuffing. But it requires
series of expressions to bring them up tt
that terrible state, and in their usual moo(
they are the most easily governed people
on the earth. The guiltier are their Gov
ernments not to understand this good dis
position, and avail themselves of it to carry
/ out improvements by ever so slow pro
cesses but never failing installments of re
form. A. Ta,andier on "The Politica
Situation in France, % in international Re
view.