New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-12-20


of La vendee, for example, for there is no bet
ter instance of the cold fcrocity of the Terroriss
The so-called patriot commanders were forbidden
by the deputies on Mission to give quarter 10
the enemy. To justify this unheard-of baroarly
the yendeans were accused of massacring patriot
prisoners and it was declared by the Revolution
airy Tribunal that reprisals had become necessary
Now NJ WALTON, in his volume on La Vendce, mas
proved by the strongest documentary evidence that
the Vendeans began the contest on civilized primer
pies They announced their determination to
give quarter to their prisoners. Larocheiaquelln'
adhered to this humane principle. But the dele
yates on Mission answered their preclamations by
ascfibing their clemency to some crafty and sin
lister purpose, They desired, it was said. to con-
vert the patriot prisoners to their views; and
on this miserable and transparent pretence the
murder OF all Vendean prisoners was continued
On one occasion the Vendeans actually gave their
freedam to between 1000 and 5000 patriot
prisoners at once. II is true that this was not
wholly dsinterested act. for they could not
afford to subsist their captives But Revolution
airy delegate on Mission would, in like circum-
stances, certainly have massacred these prisoners
The Tribunal at Paris subsequently pretended that
these things, and the fusiades and "noyades'
at Nantes and elsewhere took place without Its
knowledge Here again NJ WALTON has convicted
proved that nothing was concealed from it as
regards the public atrocities of its deputies, though
PERTAINS it may not at first have been aware OF
the kind of life led by Carrier. Of his private
orgies of his pillagng right and left OF his treat
ment of the women in the prisons.
But il was not ignorant that In the "noyades
and in the massacres by fusiladc helpless infants
in arms old men of seventy and eighty, helpless
paralytics idiots and insane persons, pregnant
women and children of all ages, were ruthlessly
shot or drowned. How, indeed, should such butch-
cries shock body which drew breath amid similar
scenes created at its order? Were not the Paris
prisons, too, emptied at hap-hazard? Were not
the victims 81 the law Of the suspect" hurried
daily to the scaffold without more than pretence
of trial? Was not the main anxiety OF the OIL
Gals TO keep the number of victims at the height
thought necessary Were not young girls
and decrepit men and women daily dragged
through the Paris streets on the tum-
Drills? It was at later date when member Oh
the Convention rose and cried: do we send
our delegates into the Departments to aseassinate
the people ?"-and thereupon a storm of wrath
descended upon the head of Carrier, who defended
and justified himself with characteristic i'm
pudence The law had been so framed that 10
was very difficult to convict any one for abuse
of it. Nothing was easier than to declare any
body conspirator," and at time when trlai
had been dispensed with it was hopeless for the
accused to make denial or offer protest All the
victims of the departmental butcheres were de-
cared to have been conspirators, and o. course IL
was impossible in the absence of judicial records
and after their death, to prove that they were
not. The system of the Terror thus reacted upon
it's inventors, and they in turn went TO tne gun
lotine in accordance with the provisions OF ther
| thinks the Terror was necessary that it saved
France; that its administrators were very aoe
! men, if they did appear somewhat INSCRIPTIONS
1t is not little curious that the principal au'hor
ties cited and relied on by him unite in maintain
ing the opposite of this contention; but wnilc
their facts fully sustain the conclusions they reach
it must be said that his do not
! We find him inexaet in some OF ms
minor details moreover. Thus lie states that when
Charlotte Corday killed Marat she walked stralght
| up to him and stabbed him. without saying
word This is not correct. In fact she had SEM
him note saying that she wished to give him
news of the Revolution at Caen. and when, after
several refusals she admitted to him, She NJ
once began to give him certain names as those
of the deputies who heading the instruction
Marat cooly observed, he wrote down the names
q" In few days i will have all these in Paris and
uttered these words than Charlotte Corday stabbed
him. and he died in few minutes, in fact Just
as he was laid on his bed after being removed
| from the bath. Another case in which Mr..
Stephens allows his predspostion to influence him
unduly is that of the so-called republican mar
riages' which formed the worst atr0city in Car
| riers noyades at Nantes Mr. Stephens cites Wal
lon here as discrediting the evidence this head
But WALTON does not in fact discredt It, Ilc
merely says that he has found little direct evidence
but he clearly believes that the common report
| is welLfounded. So thought the Revolutionary
! Tribunal at Paris, moreover, as their re-
port on the Carrier process demonstrates.
| for they declare this among other charges
to be sufficiently supported to proceed
! to trial upon. In the case of Lyons, Bor
| deaux, Anar, and some Others, Mr. Stephens
shows a plain desire TO minimize the effects Of the
Terror and the extent of its agents crimes. But
the facts are too strong for him, and in the end
his theory of the necessity and benc0cence of a
policy of violence and murderous tyranny remains
| in the air.
We should, however, be doing injustice to o
! painstalting and digent author if we failed to
make il apparent that, despite the defects pointed
ont Mr.. Stephenss history Of the French Revou-
ton is written with great deal of ability, and
| that it presents several views which throw
| light upon the events Of that portentous period
Very curious and interesting, for example, is the
information about Robcsperres standing in the
Committee of Public Safety The old view was
| that he directed the policy and movements OF
the committee and w9s virtually the chief man
| in it, But it is shown by Mr. Stephens that he
was merely accorded nominal Difference, and that
he never controlled majority OF votes in the COM
mttee. series Of careful portraits of the mem
1 ID. l;o Cafa Of tb.a
Representatives on Mission adds mucn to the In
| terest and value of this volume. Objection might
| he taken TO parts of tie characterization Of
| pohorc;erre and MaroL but there so