The sun., 1897-09-12

/
| he had been chosen a member of the Tou-
louise Academy of Sciences and of tho
| Academy Of the Floral Games. A lawsuit
| took Barero TO Paris In 1888. and, tho next
| year, he returned thither as n Deputy OF the
Tiers Etat In tho States- General. From tho
moment OF his arrival he began to connect him
self with Bailly and Mirabeau. He spoke in
favor OF adopting the name National Assem- bly,
and originated tho idea that this title should
not bo adopted until tho liberalmindod minori.
ties among the nobility and clergy had aban-
doned their respective orders to rally to tho
Third Estate. Having become member OF the
Committee Of General Warrants tLcttrcs dc
CachetI. he presided over tho inspection OF tho
entries In the calendars OF all the State prisons,
whereof there were thirty.two in Paris alone.
Thanks TO his active sollctudc, crowd Of cap
tives were set at liberty. Two nbominablo
abuses established by tho royal despotism,
either for It's own purposes, or to pander to
the pride and greed Of powerful families, were
upearthod and repressed. One was tho do
tention Of people that ono wished to got rid
Of under the pretenco Of insanity. The other,
moro recent and more difficult to discover, was
tn procurement OF the imprisonment Of Fren h
subjects in foreign parts through the complais.
ance OF foreign our 8. Ono Crequi, having
offended his family. lay thus forgotten In the
Minister for Foreign Affairs to secure c. Gqui's
liberation. When the Assembly was delibor.
Ating on he new judicial organization, Barero
proposed he establishment Of tho jury in civil
as well as In crimin proceedings He secured
decree that 1 Protestants, banished by tho
revocation Of tho Edct OF Nantes. might return
TO France and recover their property. which
was unsold and which had been under the ad.
mipistration OF the Domains Among other
DEGREES Of which he was tho principal nstiga.
tor may be mentioned that which abolished tho
custom Of forfeitng to tho Cr,wn the property
Of alien on his death, and another which
granted pension to the widow OF Jean jacques
Rousseau. When tho death of Mrabeau was
announced Bnrerc moved that the whole OF tho
Assembly should attend his funeral In May,
1901. he proposed TO recognize the right of no
groes TO active citizenship. provided they full
iilled the conditions demanded by law. In July
OF the same year he supported the first penal
measures against tho emig rating mobiles. In tho
esIno month and year he published an address
TO tho Department OF tho Eastern Pyrcnees, in
which he boldly demanded q republic. Never
theless. when he was sent by the Assembly on
July 80 to protect the return OF the royal family
after it's arrest at Varennes he discharged the
duty zeslously and firmly. He and GreEore
took charge Of the young Dauphin. whom they
Quoted his parents through exasperated
and threatening crowd. Although he had
declared himself in favor of repub-
lilo, Barere was not classed In tho Constit-
uent Assembly rs n Republican. There he was
regarded rather as a moderate parliamentarian,
and the eConstitutionalists OF the court party
thought Of giving him the post OF Home Secre-
tary. In spite Of his youth. In the month Of
October. 1901, after tho closing Of the Con-
stituent Assembly. Barere took the seat to
which his department elected him in the Su-
preme Court OF Appeals. In the month Of Sep
tembcr. 1892, the same department elected him
o momber of the National Convention. The re-
public was enthusiastically decrced in the first
sitting OF this body. Barere seems to blame the
assembly for not having regular debate before
sanctioning this great measure; lone fitted"
10 he says, to sanction such a change by the
opinion OF tho natioh." His Republican opin-
ions. indeed. did not take definite root until
sept 81, 1892. and he seems to have re-
nounced them ultimately. Tho republic"
he says in his Memoirs, mo more suits
the French than English government would
suit the Turks" Elsewhere he says: THE
French can never get out OF the small. brilliant
circle that royalty has drawn around them.
They will never be able to raise themselves
above monarchy and social inequality" And
again: The French have habits and govern.
mental traditions that opposed to the liberty
and energy Of republic" When he wrote thus
he was thinking of the three generations conf TEN.
porary with himself. He believed in the eventual
establishment OF republican institutions as one
OF the last entries in his manuscripts will show:
" The condition of political States moulded by a
royal regime doubtless displays distressing
disproporton between the desire and the rcali.
ty. between tho actual state of institutions and
Nla
present generation. But. later, the desires
OF Intelligent freemen will bc accomplished;
time is the implacable, irresistible revolution
ist, destined to bring youth and civic virtue
into the state Of society,"" Barere has been
sometimes accused of being one Of the mem.
bers of the Orleanist party. The editor OF
the Memoirs absolves him from the charge
OF political connivance. But that he was friend.
ly to Egalite seems clear from a passage in
one OF the manuscripts printed in this book.
THE French nation" Barere says, WAS
not guilty OF the death of the Duke OF Orleans.
The people were attached to him by gratitude
and sympathy. Louis XVIII. must he accused
OF this. he who secretly Intrigued at Paris to ex.
cite the people against his brother Louis xvi,
against Marie Antoinette and Mime. Elizabeth;
this is proved by letters and documents at
Vienna in the Emperor's cabinet" 1t is certain
that soon after the accession OF Louis Philippe,
the author of these Memoirs received a thou.
sand dollars from the King. and like sum was
sent to him every year during his life.
1t seemed to be settled In advance that Barere's
place in tho convention would DO among the
Girondists. Such an affiliation seemed pointed
out by his literary talents. the opinions which
he had upheld In the constituent assembly, and
his tendency to Federalism. Az a matter of
fact, Barere was intimate with tho greater num-
ber Of the Deputies from the Girondo. but he
did not embrace their cause or support their
programme He felt that every obstacle to the
march Of the revolution n crime not only
against the country. but against the liberty OF
the world. and he considered the appeal to the
people, which was the rallying cry of the Giron-
dists during the trial of Louis XvI., as an ap-
peal to civil war. 1t put In question tho au-
thority OF the Conventional Government which
the country had created to work out its
salvation, and offered a handle to coward
ice to avoid the responsibility that immense
power brought with it, The trial began, while
he presided over the Convention, and In his
dealings with the royal prisoner he was