The Labor enquirer., 1886-03-27

is true, at one time to "Vive la Republi
que; )" and again to "Vive la Commune .
butalways embodying as its sterling
principle tnat broad, grand, glorious
sentiment and natural Truth-"Lone
live the People,"
The words of that grand Frenchman
Lafayette, whose voice was ever raised
in behalf of Liberty, and whose sword
was unsheathed against British tyranny
in our own land, were ever peculiarly
applicable to the people. of his owr
country. Said he: Call to mind the
sentiments which nature has engraved
in the heart of every citizen, and which
takes new force when they are SOL
emnly recognized by all for nation to
love Liberty, it is sufficient that she
knowsit; and to be free it is sufficient
that she wills It," Hugo the greatest Of
all Frenchmen, and the grandest figure
in the nineteenth century, said ''Nol
to be slave. Is to dare and dop
l ask you comrades to go back with
me for few moments to 1889. the Pc
riod of the first important political and
economic Revolution in France. Louis
XVI. was, in name the kim of France
but the mobiles, aristocrats and priests
who formed his royal retinue, hated the
people and conspired. under the leader.
ship of d'Artois, the kings Youngest
brother, to demolish the National As,
semblv, seize its members, and by q
COUP de main, crush all hopes of free
government. The Bastile that monster
of all monster prisons, before W hose re-
cords the tales of the inquisition pale
was crowded with men and women who
had dared to raise their voices on beha
of Liberty. The walls of the distressed
the yearning of the oppressed were an
swered with scofs, prisons and death,
and the fooli b, impotent king dawdled
away his hours in his tinkerer's closet,
hammering and filing at pieces of dead
metal, while millions of his people were
starving under despotism of which he
was the nominal head.
The people of France felt no special
bitterness towards Louis-only pity and
contempt, that one in whose hands lay
the destiny of one of the greatest ma
tions of the earth could content himself
with daIlying at the locksmith's tools
while his people were crying for justice
and bread; that the sounds of'his ham.
mer and file could shut out from his
hearing the lamentations and jn stly-
provoked curses which issued from mil
lions of famished throats. s. l say, IT
was not the figure-head of despotism
against which the people of France re-
volted in 1889; but against the despotic
principles Of the government. enforced
by those into whose hands the foolish
king surrendered his sceptre. His folly
cost him heavily,-his head and the
head of his queen rolled from the gull
lotine to the gutter, at the behests of a
neglected, BETRAYED and enraged people,
and were made the ghastly crowns Of
pixies borne through the Streets
The conspirators whose object 1t was
to nip in the bud the lncipient revolt
and at the same time rebuild and
strengthen the despotism, began their
actual work upon the twelfth of july
1789 They planned to amass the for
eign troops, which were in the pay oi
France, to the number of about 25,000
under command of Count de Broglio
and to crush the National Assembly and
the people in one sweep. De Broglio
has been described by writer of the
time as "a high flying aristocrat; cool
and capable of any mischief" The Ma
tional Guards, less than 1000 in number
were in sympathy with the people, but
their officers we're under the control of
Brogllo. The soldiers of Broglio ad-
va nced into the city. An officer in com.
mand of a body of German cavalry
struck an old man, who stood in the
road, across the face with his sword
This was the spark which started the
corfagration, and the cry ITO Arms
To Armsw spre I'd in moment over the
whole CITY.
The people were without arms, and
few among them knew how to use them
if they had had them, but they were in
spired with a desperate resolution
which they builded into the barricades
made of paving-stones, carts, brick and
everything to which they could lay their
hands. They had cause at stake. The
issue of this struggle would be either
Freedom or Slavery. They surrounded
magazine in which was deposited
arms, captured the guns and ammunl'
ton, and thus equipped marched agains
the Bastile, while the 10000 soldiers
seemed over-awed and powerless. The
Bastile fell into the hands of the people
on the fourteenth of July and with i
fell the conspiracy; the conspirators
fed and the troops of Broglio dispersed
I cannot dwell upon this event as
should like. Time will not permit me
to detail the acts of heroism which were
performed by comparatively unarmec
people; of the bravery of women anc
little children, who with weary limb
worked upon the construction of tn,
barricades and then defended them