New-York tribune., 1910-01-30

ministers,
and themselves. Letters to him passed through the
post free of charge. in order to give free scope
vention had in addition furnished him with such an
arsenal , Of laws that almost every head in France
for anybody who could not show that he had
been in continued residence since May T. 1882 "
not necessary to prove the crime OF having emil
grated it sufficed if the accused were unable 70
for any priest who not having taken the oath be-
fore March 23 had avoided the transportaton decree
or returned 10 the territory OF the repuOiIc Ana
there was death for whosoeyer was convicted OF
the Convention or counselling murder and pillaSe-
The story of what was done under this war
rant by group of men rendered almost insane
by the exercise Of authority the lives OF
their contemporaries SO soon reaches climax
that, almost insensibIy, the reader grows accUs-
toned TO episodes of horror and mechanically
tells off the murders committed. There was at
the outset some show of respect for ordinary
process of law and. into the bargain. some dis
position among the members of the tribunal
to recognize the claims of humanity. For
ample when Leonard Bourbon a member OF
the Convention, roughly handled by some
of the people of Orleans, and thirteen prisoners
from that town We're tried on charge Of hav
ing ''massacred" him. the sentencing of nine of
them to death proved so difficult a job that the
judges themselves had to retire to their council
chamber and there burst into tears. But, as
NJ Lenotre observes. what were they to do?
terrible machine was in motion. and that unless
they shattered it to pieces it would crush these
innocent men But. supposing they shattered
it, what risk would they run? Would not they
themselves be injured and be called mOderates.
nay, even aristocrats? Were they not there
for the express purpose of condemning?' They
thought of suspending action and carrying their
problem back to the Convention They thought
of substituting sentence of transportation for
Tprrr
said Foucault. a judge with a heart of stone.
"they had committed assassination and
merited deathr' Bourbon looked on. indifferent
and SILENT" while the nine went to their fate
The author reminds that at the very hour
which witnessed the execution Marat was be-
ing stabbed by Charlotte Corday, but that was
not by any means an earnest of early VEN
geance upon the men who constituted the Tri-
buna1 of the Terror. On the contrary. the
work of that incredible machine was carried
on with redoubled energy
Judges and jurymen might again and again
be moved to shed tears, but they were bound
TO keep the guillotine going. Again one asks.
what could they do? No man knew when he
might be caught UP into the car of juggernaut
and instructed to do what the Convention i'm
posed upon him a duty. \ citizen summoned
to serve the jury received a communication
from Gohier. the Minister of Justice, contain
placed in your hands 1t is to you that the
people look for the consolidation of their lib
erty, the punishment of traitors and the de-
structiOn of all the hopes of our outside enc
miles, who can obtain success only through per-
idy and treason. Your proved patriotism is a
sure guarantee that you will lose no time in
taking up the important duties to which YOU
have been called by the honorable votes of the
representatives of the people" The bravest ard
most generous of men must have trembIed pc
fore responsibility thus imposed, knowing iull
Well the impossibility of evading the task or
of executing it with free hand. Then too.
there We're always plenty of men appointed TO
the jury through the intervention Of Robes
pierre or Fouquier- -Tinville, and in any case
the majority quick to take its cue from
those incarnations of malice The leaders
fairly painted for blood and frantically urged
on the executions The slightest delay infuri-
ated them. THE Tribunal" said RObeSperre.
must be active as crime itself. and con-
clude every within twenty-four hours"
When the terribly burdened machine threatened
to creak he and Fouquier-Tinville put their
heads together and obtained DEGREES which
shortened procedure and steadily diminished
the interrogation of witnesses. They wanted
to dispense with witnesses altogether. they
wanted simply to seize man. put him with