The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1927-07-21

Other articles will review additional SUBJECTS Oh IN
terest,
IT would be easy to draw differences from the fact
that the headquarters of French Communist Party
is located 100 Rue Lafayette, the Paris street named
after the young French soldier who aided the American
revolution in its struggle against the British tyranny
in 1776.
For it is the Communists of today in France, like
Jacque Dorot just returned from China, who are aid
ing the revolutionary movements in foreign lands not
to the liking of French Imperialism, especially where
it's own colonies concerned Dorot was acclaimed
by the French workers and farmers his return
from China The government had six months prison
sentence awaiting him. The latest reports are that
Marcel Cachin editor of PHumanite central organ OF
the French Communist Party and Doriot went to prison
on Monday of this week
It is remembered that the great key of the Bastle
given by Lafayette to the American revoutlonst
Tom Paine, present for George Washington 1t is
now at Mount Vernon, in Virginia, the Washington
estate.
Thus Rue Lafayette is linked historically with the
Place de la Bastle or simply "La Bastle" which was
once the site of Bastlle st. Antoine castle built in
1970-S3 and spared when the old Notifications
demolished under Louis XIV. This fortress which had
become odous a place of arbitrary and tyrannical
imprisonment made historically famous by its total
destruction July A. 1889, by enraged populace
the beginning of the French revolution of that year
In place of the Bastile there is now huge open
space adorned by the Coonne de Juliet erected under
Louis Philippe in 1S31-40, in memory Of those who
fell in the revolution of july 1880. The giant bronze
column 154 feet high and Is feet in diameter rests
a massive round base of white marble. Under this
base are two huge sarcophag for the remains of the
victims of the July (1830) revolution, and also for
those who fell in the revolution of February, 1848
The Place de la Bastille also played a memorable
part in the revolutions of 1848 and 1871 In June 1848
the revoutonss erected their strongest barrcades at
the entrance to the Rue du FaubourgSt Antoine. In
May 1871 this of the last stronghods of the
harri
caded.
French revolutionary history, however is still in the
making The Bastille levelled to the ground and it's
stones used in the building of the Place de la Concorde
may be horror of history. But there is new "Bas-
tlle in Paris for the political prisoners of today, La
Sante Prison. where Pierre Sonar, the secretary of the
French Communist Party is being held and where many
other Communists have served serving prison
sentences for their championship of the revolution
Sonar had been of the delegates Of the French
Party at the sessions of the penum of the Executive
Committee of the Communist international In Moscow.
l had looked forward to seeing him carrying his
work the French Partys headquarters in Paris But
instead he in prison. l told that he not
allowed to visitors in prison, except for an
occasional visit from his wife and child During Semars
stay prison. his assistants at the party headquarters
1o6 Rue Lafayette, keeping up the work of the
party. (Snce my stay in Paris, Sonar has been re-
leased and again returned to PRISON.
attracted by magnificent display of literature in front
of pretentious bookstore. Here the writings
of the revolutionary days that gone of Robesperre
and Marat, Of Danton and Babeuf, of Rousseau and
Gambeta. had many of the books and pamphlets
of these earlier reyoutionsts in the original editions
and copies of the newspapers they had edited, in a
carefully prepared exhibition at the Marx Enges Inst-
tute in Moscow
Here the booksall of the French Communist Party,
in Rue Lafayette, in June, 1927, however, were the
books and pamphlets of Lenin and Bukharn of Stain
and Cachin of Marx and Enges, of Jaures and Bar
busse, the writers of today's revolution
The entrance to the party headquarters is thru
hallway to the left. l find comrade guard at an
outer office In fact, here Paris at Berlin and
Moscow found strictly business" the rule of the day
everywhere The party headquarters constituted place
to work and unless you vitality connected with this
work the comrade in the outer office" would quickly
turn you back
could not read English But he could understand the
meaning of the Hammer and Sickle on my American
Communist Party credential. So he pressed button
his desk that opened heavy, latticed door that
led the way to the stairs to the floors above.
Every party activity had its separate room with the
proper sign affixed to every door There the trade
union work. the work in the colonies womans work,
work among the youth and the children, the organiza-
ton department and the political bureau Stenographers
busy usual in the secretarys office in fact,
some of their typewriters American makes. The
party fraction in the chamber Of deputies was in SEES
sion discussing policies to be pursued in the meeting
that would open shortly this very afternoon Marcel
Cachn the chairman of the fraction with Gachery
as secretary. There is a bureau for work among the
farmers. In fact it was very clear that the French
party functionng energetcally in every possible
direction that the parys $4,000 members kept hard
at work strengthening the forces of the revolution in
France.