Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1883-11-07

manner .AraBO, WHICH "uOFeO VIC JuJ
In the assize court to ind lex
tenuating circumstances. Such yer
dict was naturally resented by the Rus
sian court and people as Just1hcatloD
of Berezowskis crime, and from that
time it may be said that Russia became
estranged from France. 10 the close OF
the second empire Alexander IL. main
tanned the kindllest dispositions toward
Napoleon III. and his family, insomuch
that Gen. Fleury, the French ambassa-
dor at st. Petersburg, writing home
about year before the war, stated that
the czar showed him more favor than
any other member of the diplomatic
body. But toward all Frenchmen who
were not overt Bonapartists, the czar's
heart was hardened. After Sedan, when
M. Theirs went to st. Petersburg, to try
and prevail on the Russian government
to intercede on behalf of France, he
found, as he described it, "only wooden
faces" The government of the national
defense, which commissioned him (and
one of whose members was Nj. AragO,
Berezowskls counsel, had, with an al
most incredible want of tact, appointed
NJ. FlOquet, the czar's insulter, TO be
one of the deputy mayors (adjoints) of
Paris. Before long the czar got another
proof of republican good will under the
form of petition which was signed
by large number of French journalists
barristers and worklngmen, and prayed
the national defense government to re.
lease Berezowski from New Caledonia.
One of the first acts of the commune was
to decree this criminals pardon Ga de-
cree, which, OF course, remained lnoper-
atIve), and 1t may be recollected that o
couple OF. years ago a radical journal III
Paris was allowed to get up public
subscription for presenting Berezowsk1
with revolver.
1t must be repeated that the effect of
this series of Incidents, following upon
the anti Russian demonstration of 1867,
has been simply disastrous to French
interests. To begin with, when the ear
returned from his visit to Paris one of
the first acts was to prohibit the teach
ing of French in Polish schools, and to
expel all Frenchmen not recommended
by Napoleon Ill. s government from
professorships In public schools and uni
versities and other state posts through
out the Russian empire. Additional &C.
verities of all sorts were then heaped on
the Poles, and as the French government
for its own part felt bound to be less
hospitable than it had been before abou
allowing Polish refugees to reside IN
Paris, this drove number of Poles to
mix themselves up in French politics,
with the result that under the commune
the insurgent forces were at one time
commanded by three Poles-Dombrow
ski, MilkieWicz, and Okolowicz. This
was an entire departure on the part of
the Poles-or, rather, of few misguid-
ed PoIes-from the caution which they
had always observed in France, where
successive governments had treated
them with so much kindness. Relief In
money and employment In government
offices had been generally given to
Polish refugees after their various in
surrectlOns, and there was a Polish col
lege IN Paris supported mainly by state
endowment. After the commune, how
ever, all these subsidies were withdrawn;
and honorable members of the Polish
community found to their shame and
sorrow that there was a general DISPOSE
ton among conservative Frenchmen to
place them all under the ban of reproba-
ton which had been deserved by few
of their unworthy countrymen. But the
lOng-draWn consequences of the foolish
affront on Alexander H., did not end
here; in fact, they have not ended yet.
The present czar before he came to the
throne was somewhat noted for his anti
German prCclivitles, and while the Due
Decazes was foreign minister in France
he based most of his hopes of a Russian
alliance on this circumstance. How &C
lively the duke worked In view of secur-
ing an understanding with Russia on the
eastern question through the influence
of the czarow1tz and Count Ignatieff is
pretty generally known; but whatever
may have been the cZarowitz's feelings
toward France governed by royalists and
imperialists, her sentiments toward that
country cooled as soon as the republic
got fairly established; and only few
days ago it was plainly asserted in the
semi-Cfficial journals Of Berlin and st.
Petersburg that the car would never
think Of entering into any sort of politl-
cal compact with the French republican
government. 1t may not be worth while
to dwell further on this matter; but the
misconduct of Partisan mob toward
Alfonso XII. has made it almost neces-
sary that one should point out what
sorry piece OF work much smaller body
of Frenchmen did when they affronted
Russian emperor. One can only hope
that what happened IN the one case may
not be ominous of what Is going to occur
IN the other.