New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-11-02
kArING TIE ERENCH REPrBLIC.

"A Ministry of Public Safety" Is what men
called W. Waldcck- Rousseau and his colleagues
when they took office The reference was TO
the menace Of the Drcyfus case They would
save the republic from ii and then resign their
PORTFOLIOS They could do 50 despite. and per
hans even because Of. their being hcterogenc-
Gus combination Of Republicans. Monarchsts
and Socialists But. Of course. they could not
hold on after that was done So men reasoned;
not without light. yet not with perfect light.
For VI. Waldeck- Rousseau and his colleagues
arc still holding on. They have avcrtcd the
menace Of the Dreyfus case. and disposed of
that case itself 50 that mention of it IS now a
hollow echo Of the long ago. Yet they do not
resign their places. nor is there any prospect Of
their doing 50. That is because their work
the saving Of the rcpubllc-s not yet done.
1t is only just begun. The French Republic Is
now 10 be saved. if brave and honest men can
save il. not from the menace Of the Dreyius
case. but from those greater and fundamental
evils Of which the Dreyfus case was only
minor outcome.
We have already spoken Of the Marquis Dc
Galliffets admirable work in dealing with the
menace Of mlitarsm. That man of deeds
himself the best living exponent Of the French
army at It's best estate has by few calm but
earnest words dspcllcd the threatening spectre
Of military despotism. and placed the army
definitely and lncontestably beneath the au-
thority OF the civil government. Nor is there a
man I'm France. not even the most swash-
buckling general that over yelled "Conspuez.
who will venture TO assert that the honor OF the
army has thus been furnished or lis efficiency
IMPAIRED But the work does not stop there.
The Government Is seriously taking in hand the
motley crew Of princes, poets and pork butchers
who have been talking and plotting treason.
Ii proposes either TO show them up as shallow
frauds and mountebanks or TO punish them as
would-be assassins Of the Republic and traitors
TO France The need of its doing so and the
seriousness Of It's purpose are both amply de-
monstrated by the sound and fury that IS
raised against IT. VI. De Cassagnac RACES and
the nti-Scmitcs scream and gnash their teeth;
sure indications that The object Of their wrath
IS doing good work.
Hitherto the Savior Of society has been. or
has been supposed 10 be. the man on horse
back" coming In sometimes with Il Whit Of
grape and sometimes with trick eagle and
plebiscite. 1t is something Of a novelty for that
savior to be constitutional Ministry, acting
through Presidential decree and judicial proc
ess Perhaps because Of that very novelty the
novelty loving French people will like II. At
present at any rate. the prospect is that it will
succeed If it does. it will do 50 very largely
because VI. Waldcck Rousseau and his col
leagues realize and practise more perfectly than
many Of their predecessors have done the great
principle that authority ana responsibility must
20 together They have tic courage of their
convictions in an exceptional degree. and they
have the strength of their courage. We are not
sure that any other War Minister could have
Gone exactly what the Marquis de Galllffet has
done because the distinguished military career
OF the latter gives him a unique advantage over
all others We do not know that any other
Ministry could. as a whole have done what
this ono is doing because the heterogeneous
composition Of This one gives IT, as a whole. a
unique advantage. II not. then we have merely
10 recall that when The tale Of bricks was
doubled Moses came.
Now the Ministry if 1t succeeds will do
much toward correcting the one great political
defect Of the French nation. namely. the in
c,lnation 10 divorce popular authority from
popular responsibility. The French people
want 10 choose their own government and die
tate its policy. but they do not want them
selves TO suffer blame If that government goes
wrong or that policy proves disastrous. They
want. i'm the latter case. 10 hold the Govern
ment responsible. just rs though, instead Of
being their own creation il was an hereditary
dospotism. imposed upon them without their
consent When discomfort with VI. Fcrrg's
colonial policy arose the public howled itself
hoarsc with Ferry rcau" unmindful OF the
fact that II had itself put him into Office and
had urged him to the prosecution of that very
policy. What Is needed above all else In
France IS a deeper and more practical reallza-
tion by the people that they themselves are the
sovereign power and that 10 whatever extent
they crticsc their Government. 10 exactly that
extent they criucisc themselves II is for each
individual French citizen to apply TO himself
the Grand Monarques boast. If he thus says