Those Jacobins were at it in 1793.

I quote from Stoddard.

The colored members of the 'Commission Intermediaire'* were but the first of a lengthening list of oflBcial appointees from the ranks of the "Citizens of the 4th of April.'* And how white disrespect to these new appointees would be treated was soon made plain by the striking case of the Sieur Theron. The Sieur Theron was captain-general of a parish in the region of Fort Dauphin, and held a brilliant record for bravery and military skill. The captain-general of the adjoining parish was none other than the mulatto leader Candy who had gained so sinister a reputation in the rismg of the Plain. Candy had later quarrelled with the negro chiefs, had made his peace with the authorities, and was now high in the Commissioners' favor. It ap- pears that Theron did not show much resp)ect to the mulatto oflBcers sent through his district with Candy's of- ficial reports, in consequence of which Candy made some personal remarks about the Sieur Theron. When the white leader heard of this he lost his temper and wrote Candy the following letter:

"If the National Assembly has granted you the political rights you now enjoy, we on our part know how to bear it. Of this, you yourself are the best proof; our conduct in your case should con- vince you that we know how to sacrifice to time and cir- cumstance. But the whole nation has not the power to tear from our hearts the feeling of superiority toward you which we have always held and ever shall hold while there remain at San Domingo those negro slaves from which you spring. This is a fact you now overlook,and which it is good some one should teach you. Sir, you make a great mistake if you think that any of us will ever live in friendly famiharity with you and yours. * Good-day'; * Good-bye'; politeness, but exceeding reserve; that, sir, is all you can ask of us, and the law itself can force us to nothing more, because the law cannot command the feelings of the heart. If this same law subjects us to your orders, we will obey you with resignation, but also with a certain dignity which will still maintain us at a great distance from you."

The letter closed by explicitly stating that as this was a private affair the writer trusted Candy would not stir public feel- ing by showing these words to others, but would keep the quarrel a personal one. The infuriated Candy, however, instead of seeking satisfaction of Theron, promptly forwarded the letter to Le Cap. The Commissioners felt that Theron had ex- pressed only too well what all the white colonists were thinking, and the captain-general's very prominence in- creased their resolve to make an example of him. Ac- cordingly, the Sieur Theron was summoned to Le Cap for trial. Sonthonax op)ened the examination by asking Theron why he had written Candy such an insulting and provocative letter; to which the captain-general replied that he had wished to abate the pride of Candy. To this Polverel observed that the air of superiority in the letter was a manifest violation of the Law of the 4th of April, which had established equality between all citizens re- gardless of color. Theron replied that he had expressly wished to keep this matter between Candy and himself, and that he could not see how he had violated the law, 1 SONTHONAX'S RULE IN THE NORTH 197 "which commanded execution and resignation, — not the feelings of the heart"; and that therefore he had con- sidered himself free to choose his friends. But the Com- missioners observed severely that this was not a case of "feelings kept carefully within the heart, but an overt act squarely against the law**; and to Theron's further objec- tion that this act, though overt, concerned only Candy and could never hinder the law*s execution, the Commis- sioners answered that by showing Candy his sentiments Theron had increased race hostihty and had been guilty of sedition. Thus the trial proceeds for many pages, in which it is instructive to note both the cold severity of Polverel and Sonthonax*s brutal invective. The verdict was, of course, certain from the start: "Considering that it is necessary to take severe measures to repress a preju- dice whose annihilation can alone save the colony," the Sieur Theron was degraded from his office and shipped a prisoner to France to answer for his "incivism** before the bar of the Convention. When we remember that this same Candy had torn out the eyes of his wretched pris- oners with a corkscrew and had been guilty of unspeak- able outrages upon white women, it is easy to understand the wild despair that settled down upon white San Do- mingo. The Sieur Theron had been in error: Jacobin law did "command the feelings of the heart.