Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1914-04-24

were, previous to the revolution, op
pressors of the poor. True, the power
they possessed rendered many of them
tyrannical, especially those about the
court, but through the country there
were instances of mobiles who were
much beloved by their interiors in
rank.
Among these was the young Count
de Isle, who On his twenty-first birth
day came into a fine property in the
province of Maine not far from Paris.
He had a tender heart, and the condi-
ton of the peasantry panied him ex-
ceedingly. When he fell heir to his
estate there were 100000 francs for
him in currency in Paris bank. Half
of this he distributed among the poor
on or about his domain.
He Furthermore resolved that he
would devote his life to the cause OF
the betterment Of the condition of the
oppressed lower classes. Had he been
older he would have realized that the
many years of wars and extravaganza
on the part of royalty and the mobiles
had so Impoverished France that those
| who had wasted the wealth of the ma
ton must be put out of the way be-
/ fore France could begin necessary
retrenchment.
| When the revolution came on the
count threw himself heart and soul
| into the cause OF reform. He went to
Paris, where he attended a meeting in
the Palais Royal composed largely of
the best men of the middle class in
France, and there raised his voice in
| behalf of the overtaXed people.
But in the rising cloud of revolution
was a thunderbolt, unseen by the in
telligent middle classes, who We're I'M
consciously fostering it. Nine. Roland,
the leader of the Girondists, feared
that the excitement would die away
before the constitutional rights requir-
ed by the people from the sovereign
had been granted. 1t was not long be-
fore the storm broke, sweeping away
her and her associates in the work.
They all persisted on the guillotine,
singing the "Marseillaise," the volume
of sound lessening as each head fell, |
till the last died singing alone.
: One day news came TO the tenants !
of the Count de Isles estate that cast |
a gloom upon them. The count had |
been arrested in Paris. A few there
were who, having become rabid by the !
flow of blood, rejoiced that another
noble head would soon fall and there
would be one less of that class who
had Impoverished France. The young
Countess Julie de Lisle had sent mes
senger after messenger to her husband, |
begging him to come home and leave
f6A A1Yrtin tcts 70 nrl- fhnir |
own salvation. But he had entered
upon the work of ameliorating the con-
dition of the oppressed people and
would not turn back.
He had been warming serpent in
his bosom. At the height of the tenn
pest, when the leadership fell into the
hands of representative of the lowest
classes and the cry was raised TO ex-
terminate all royal blood and all no
bles, De Isle was denounced as an
enemy of France and thrown into pris-
on. A few days later he was taken
before one of those tribunals, consist
ing only of so called judge-a man
without any knowledge of law and
usually even without education-whose
business it was to condemn those
whom the people wished to get rid of
IN order that they might be executed
with the semblance of justice. What
was the counts establishment to see
sitting in the judicial chair behind '
l pine table Henri Denier, one of {
lis own tenants, who had received {
portion OF the $4,000 francs that the I
,ount had distributed on his coming of s
lge. |
The two mems eyes met for an IL i
tant. Then those Of the judge fell S
before the steady gaze of the one who 6
lad befriended him and whom he was @
low called upon to order to execution. 8
lor was it in Denier's power to re- b
rain from this course. Behind him t
we're the people, who had put him /
here, not to judge of guilt or inno- /
ence, but to pronounce sentence. He v
vas compelled either to send his bene-
actor to the guillotine or go there him 4
elf. And by refusing to pronounce II
entence of death he would not save e
he count. who would be condemned d
v Denier's successor. Il
1--WE have met before" said the a
cunt n
Yes" replied the judge mechanical fl
2, I'VE have met before"
(which one of us has contributed b.
lore to the cause of the French people, v
on or I?' &C
The room was filed with revolution OF
It's. Denier was aware that every &C
sc was upon him. Should he finch cf
his duty to the cause of extermina- 81
on he would at once be reported az In
4 enemy of France. W
THAT is not the question before us. ii
tizen," he said. You have been de Ell
and it is my duty to pro- OF
ounce sentence upon you" Then 10 w
lie guards, Take him to the concier- w
,rie." tn
Until this moment Henri Denier hao sill
zen revolutionist OF the extreme hi
pc. He had inherited little patch Sc
ground and some money from his I'M
ther. but the taxes he had been
'lSed to pay had eaten up hfs patri-