The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1903-05-17
Police Make Mistake Which They
Try to Cover by Lying and Then
There Is Trouble.
OFFICIALS ARE DISCHARGED.
But Friends Of the Young Persons
Involved Are Now Demanding
the Resignation Of NJ. Lepine,
the City's Great Project.
By ]. coRNELY.

SPECIAL By CABLE TO THE NEW ToRK
HERALD AND THE ST. LOUIS REPUBLIC
Paris. May 1S-tCopyright, sB-)-Paris
for three lays ceased to concern itself with
the Capuchins and oblate Fathers, whose
congregations arc being dissolved, to turn
its attention to the police having super
vision Of public morals, who had the Ill
luck the other night TO arrest, near the
Boulevards. two respectable young women
whom they took for immoral women and
treated them with their usual brutality.
This In not the first time that they havs
been guilty OF this mistake. and It can be
explained by two facts
The frst Is hat the police Of moralS'
are not at the top Of the basket Of polic'
agents.
They look upon the women Of !mmorsl
life much As shepherds look upon the sheep
Of their docks and treat them famtliariy.
Add to this the fact that Parisiennes
sometimes render excusable these mistakes,
especially at night. when all thu cats an
in Paris" as the proverb says.
The result is that sometimes respectable
women are taken for public characters ane
hauled to the police station by the sworn
agents of tho law, whose evidence Is 40
cepted IN the courts.
Generally such mistakes are quickly
recognized but there Is not much noise
made about them because the victims DO
selves.
EDITORS ON wARPATH.
But this time the two women badly treat
ed had the one a brother AID the other q
fancee IN the person OF an editor Of the
Lanterne. who took the story to his paper.
The paper took It up and made a row
about It. The police agents tried to defend
themselves by lying. Their lie was dis
covered by the Project Of Police and he.
questioned by the Municipal Council. was
obliged TO admit the mistake OF his subosdi-
mates and %announce that he had Just re-
moved them, at the same time sending to
the two young women the regrets OF his
department
This confession IL not enough for the
overexcited Journalists. who are calling for
the resignation Of NJ. Lepine. They are
wrong: for not only NJ Lepine Is not per-
sonaIly responsible for the fault OF his sub
ordinates. but he Is incontestaely the best
Project Of Police that the Third Republic
has known, at once energetic and con-
ciliatory. vigorous and attentive. a real
gem.
He Is, moreover. energetically supported.
but Is none the less theoretically attacked.
" lLctc LIZ RSoIho hSk q ~ SaS -
ing powers who blame him for not having
f~oreseen or known how to suppress suf-
fciently vigorously some Of the nantes
tations of which II. Combes has been the
object.
Without reaching the proportions Of this
first scandal. the second one. that OF the
church at Aubervflliere, Is noteworthy also.
preach on the feast day Of his parish
church, last Tuesday. . former Jesuit
named Father Coube. now a celebrated
Franciscan, who had already created q
scandal IN q Paris church. His aggressive
eloquence has made him many enemies.
among whom was a group OF free-thirking
youths represented by the Journal and
Charbonnel. These young men went to the
Aubervilliere Church n made a great
row. trying to prevent Father Couhe from
speaking.
CRIES FOR CoMBEs.
While people were beiaboring each other
with chairs the young men cried out:
Long live the revolution and Long live
Combes." It is not one Of the least curious
Incidents Of the present lime to hear the
Government thus acclaimed by people who
are engaged in creating disorder@that Is to
say. in acts opposed to Government The
police stepped in and the cure and preacher
were obliged to yield.
In this mutual antagonism there Is evf-
dence Of reprisals against the Catholic
party. which really attacked without stint
and without pity those who did not think
with them at the time Of the Dreyfus at
fair. n one need not be surprised II, dis
t%urbances aiding disturbances and excess
leading to excess. this venturesome policy
ends in the separation OF the church and
state: that Is to say. in a reform under
which American Catholics find themselves
very well of, but under which French
Catholics might not find. themselves SO well
OF. because they belong to a nation which
has the habit Of looking to the State for so
much. even for public worship and for the
celebration Of mass.
Besides this event, the week has been full
Of judicial events relative to the applica-
ton OF the law against he congregations
which were Of no interest.