XXIV.—(Page 384.)
"At the time of the trial of the members of the Council of the Commune before the third court-martial sitting at Versailles, a certain M. Gabriel Ossude came to give evidence as witness against Jourde, in whose arrest he was concerned, he said, in his quality of provost of the seventh arrondissement, and as Colonel Merlin, president of the court, seemed astonished that such a function should have devolved upon a civilian, M. Ossude entered into very precise explanations, which I remember perfectly.
"He declared that towards the end of the Commune the prevotal courts had been instituted by the Government of Versailles in view of the early entry of the troops into Paris; that the number and the seats of the exceptional tribunals had been arranged beforehand, as well as the topographical limits of their jurisdictions; that he (M. Gabriel Ossude) had received his nomination from the hands of M. Thiers, although he held no rank in the army, but as captain of the seventeenth battalion of the National Guard."—Letter of Ulysse Parent, Rappel, March 19, 1877.
XXV.—(Page 385.)
"Near the Ecole Militaire the scene is at this moment very affecting; prisoners are continually being led there, and their trial is terminated beforehand. It consists only in detonations."—Siècle, 28th May.
"The courts-martial functioned in Paris with unheard-of activity at several special points. At the Lobau Barracks, at the Ecole Militaire, the fusillade is permanently heard. It is the settling of accounts with those wretches who openly took part in the struggle."—Liberté, 30th May.
"Since morning (Sunday, 28th May) a strong cordon is being formed round the theatre (Châtelet), where a court-martial is permanently established. From time to time one sees a band of fifteen to twenty individuals coming out, composed of National Guards, civilians, women and children fifteen to sixteen years old.
"These individuals are condemned to death. They march two and two, escorted by a platoon of chasseurs, who lead and bring up the procession. This cortège goes up the Quai de Gèvres and enters the Republican Barracks in the Place Lobau. A minute after one hears from within the fire of platoons and successive musketry discharges; it is the sentence of the court-martial which has just been executed.
"The detachment of chasseurs returns to the Châtelet to fetch other prisoners. The crowd seems deeply impressed on hearing the noise of the fusillades."—Journal des Débats, 30th May, 1871.
XXVI.—(Page 385.)