schoolmaster, sub-distinguished as an but the thing cannot: nor is it evaded XY schoolmaster, is adjudged to in our daily conversations. come within the meaning of the law. 1. The Case of the Jaffa Massacre. But scarcely is this sub-variety dis- - No case in the whole compass of posed of, than up rises some decom. casuistry has been so much argued to plex case, which is a sub-variety of and fro-none has been argued with this sub-variety: and so on for ever. so little profit; for, in fact, the main

Hence, therefore, we may see the elements of the moral decision have shortsightedness of Paley in quoting been left out of view. Let us state with approbation, and as if it implied the circumstances :—On the 11th of à reproach, that the Mussulman reli- February 1799, Napoleon, then and gious code contains “ not less than for seven months before in military seventy-five thousand traditional pre- possession of Egypt, began his march cepts. True : but if this statement towards Syria. His object was to shows an excess of circumstantiality break the force of any Turkish invain the moral systems of Mussulmans, sion, by taking it in fractions. It that result expresses a fact which had become notorious to every person Paley overlooks-viz. that their moral in Egypt, that the Porte rejected the code is in reality their legal code. It French pretence of having come for is by aggregation of cases, by the ever the purpose of quelling Mameluke lasting depullulation of fresh sprouts rebellion-the absurdity of which, and shoots from old boughs, that this apart from its ludicrous Quixotism, enormous accumulation takes place : was evident in the most practical way, and, therefore, the apparent anomaly viz. by the fact, that the whole reve. is exactly paralleled in our unmanage- nues of Egypt were more than swalable superstructure of law, and in the lowed up by the pay and maintenance French supplements to their code, of the French army. What could the which have already far overbuilt the Mamelukes have done worse? Hence code itself. If names were disre. it had become certain that the Turks garded, we and the Mahometans are would send an expedition to Egypt; in the very same circumstances. and Napoleon, viewing the garrisons

Casuistry, therefore, is the science in Syria as the advanced guard of of cases, or of those special varieties such an expedition, saw the best which are for ever changing the face of chance for general victory in meeting actions as contemplated in general those troops beforehand, and destroyrules. The tendency of such varia ing them in detail. About nineteen tions is, in all states of complex civi- days brought him within view of the lisation, to absolute infinity.* It is our Syrian fields. On the last day of present purpose to state a few of such February he slept at the Arimathea of cases, in order to fix attention upon the Gospel. In a day or two after his the interest and the importance which army was before Jaffa, (the Joppa of surround them. No modern book of the Crusaders.)—a weak place, but ethics can be worth notice, unless in of some military interest,t from the so far as it selects and argues the more accident of being the very first fortiprominent of such cases, as they offer fied town to those entering Palestine themselves in the economy of daily from the side of Egypt. On the 4th of life. For we repeat that the name, March this place was invested; on the the word casuistry, may be evaded, 6th, barely forty-eight hours after, it

12

* “ To absolute infinity.” We have noticed our own vast pile of law, and that of the French But neither of us has yet reached the alarming amount of the Roman law, under which the very powers of social movement threatened to break down. Courts could not decide, advocates could not counsel, so innumerable was becoming the task of investigation. This led to the great digest of Justinian. But, had Roman society advanced in wealth, extent, and social development, instead of retrograding, the same result would have returned in a worse sbape. The same result now menaces England, and will soon menace her much more.

+ “ Of some military interest.”—It is singular that some peculiar interest has always settled upon Jaffa, no matter who was the military leader of the time, or what the object of the struggle. From Julius Cæsar, Joppa enjoyed some special privileges and immunities about a century after, in the latter years of Nero, a most tragical cataswas taken by storm. Thisfact is initself-murdered as foully as the infants of important; because it puts an end to Bethlehem ; resistance being quite the pretence so often brought forward, hopeless, not only because they had that the French army had been irri- surrendered their arms, but also be. tated by a long resistance. Yet, sup- cause, in reliance on Christian honour, posing the fact to have been so, how they had quietly submitted to have often in the history of war must every

their hands confined with ropes bereader have met with cases where hind their backs. If this blood did honourable terms were granted to an not lie heavy on Napoleon's heart in enemy merely on account of his ob- his dying hours, it must have been be. stinate resistance? But then here, it is canse a conscience originally callous said, the resistance was wilfully pushed had been seared by the very number to the arbitration of a storm. Even of his atrocities. that might be otherwise stated ; but, Now, having stated the case, let us suppose it true, a storm in military review the casuistical apologies put law confers some rights upon the as- forward. What was to be done with sailants which else they would not these prisoners? There lay the diflihave had_rights, however, which culty. Could they be retained accord. cease with the day of storming. No. ing to the common usage with regard body denies that the French army to prisoners? No; for there was a might have massacred all whom they scarcity of provisions, barely suficient met in arms at the time and during for the French army itself. Could the agony of storming. But the ques. they be transported to Egypt by sea ? tion is, Whether a resistance of forty- No; for two English line-of-battle eight hours could create the right, or slips, the Theseus and the Tiger, in the least degree palliate the atrocity, were cruising in the ofing, and watch

, of putting prisoners to death in cold ing the interjacent seas of Egypt and bloou? Four days after the storming, Syria. Could they be transported to when all things had settled back into Egypt by land ? No; for it was not the quiet routine of ordinary life, men possible to spare a suficient escort; going about their affairs as usual, con. besides, this plan would have included fidence restored, and, above all things, the separate difficulty as to food. after the faith of a Christian army had Finally, then, as the sole resource left, been pledged to these prisoners that could they be turned adrift? No; for not a hair of their lieads should be this, was but another mode of saying, touched, the imagination is appalled 6 Let us fight the matter over again; by this wholesale butchery--even the reinstate yourselves as our enemies; apologists of Napoleon are shocked hy let us leave Jaffa re infectâ, and let all the amount of murder, though justify- begin again denovo”_since, assuredly, ing its principle. They admit that say the French apologists, in a fortthere were two divisions of the prison- night from that date, the prisoners ers—one of fifteen hundred, the other would have been found swelling the of two thousand five hundred. Their ranks of those Turkish forces whom combined amount is equal to a little Napoleon had reason to expect in army; in fact, just about that army front. with which we fought and won the Before we take one step in replying battle of Maida in Calabria. They to these arguments, let us cite two composed a force equal to about six parallel cases from history: they are · English regiments of infantry on the interesting for themselves, and they common establishment. Every man sliow how other armies, not Christian, of these 4000 soldiers, chiefly brave have treated tlie selfsame difficulty in Albanians-every man of this little practice. The first shall be a leaf army was basely, brutally, in the very taken from the great book of Pagan spirit of abject poltroonery, murdered experience; the second from Mahome

trophe happened at Joppa to the Syrian pirates, by which the very same number ser. ished as in the Napoleon massacre, viz. something above 4000. In the 200 years

of the Crusades, Joppa revived again into military verdure. The fact is, that the shore of Syria is pre-eminently deficient in natural harbours, or facilities for harbours-those which exist have been formed by art and severe contest with the opposition of nature. Hence their extreme paucity, and hence their disproportionate importance in every possible war.

**

tan: and both were cases in which tesy to that prince, were placed at his the parties called on to cut the knot disposal. Now, in this case, it will be had been irritated to madness by the alleged that perhaps the main feature of parties lying at their disposal. Napoleon's case was not realized, viz.

1. The Pagan Decision. In that the want of provisions. Every RoJewish war of more than three years' man soldier carried on his shoniders a duration, which terminated in the de. load of seventeen days' provision, exstruction of Jerusalem, two cities on pressly in preparation for such die the lake of Gennesaret were besieged lemmas; and Palestine was then rank by Vespasian. . One of these was with population, gathered into towns. Tiberias : the other Tarichæ. Both This objection will be noticed immehad been defended with desperation; diately : but, meantime, let it be reand from their peculiar situation upon membered that the prisoners personwater, and amongst profound preci- ally appeared before their conquerors pices, the Roman battering apparatus in far worse circumstances than the had not been found applicable to their garrison of Jaffa, except as to the one walls. Consequently the resistance' circumstance in which both parties and the loss to the Romans had been stood on equal ground) of having had unexampled. At the latter siege their lives guaranteed. For the priVespasian was present in person. Six soners of Gennesaret were chietiy thousand five hundred had perished of aliens and fugitives from justice, who the enemy. A number of prisoners had no national or local interest in remained, amounting to about 40,000. the cities which they had tempted or What was to be done with them? A forced into insurrection ; they were great council was held, at which the clothed with no military character commander-in-chief presided, assisted · whatever; in short, they were pure (as Napoleon) by his whole staff. vagrant incendiaries. And the popuMany of the officers were strongly for lous condition of Palestine availed having the whole put to death: they little towards the execution of Vespaused the very arguments of the French sian's sentence: nobody in that land

" that, being people now destitute would have bought such prisoners : of habitations, they would infallibly nor, if they would, were there any urge any cities which received them

means available, in the agitated state into a war:

fighting, in fact, hence- of the Jewish people, for maintaining forward upon a double impulse-viz. their purchase. It would, therefore, the original one of insurrection, and a be necessary to escort them to Cæsanew one of revenge. Vespasian was rea, as the nearest Roman port for sensible of all this; and he himself shipping them : thence perhaps to remarked, that, if they had any indul- Alexandria, in order to benefit by the gence of flight conceded, they would corn vessels: and from Alexandria assuredly use it against the authors of the voyage to remoter places would be that indulgence. But still, as an an- pursued at great cost and labour-all swer to all objections, he insisted on so many objections exactly correspondthe solitary fact, that he had pledged ing to those of Napoleon, and yet all the Roman faith for the security of overruled by the single consideration their lives ; " and to offer violence, of a Roman (viz. a Pagan) right hand after he had given them his right pledged to the fulfilment of a promise. hand, was what he could not bear to As to the twelve hundred old and helpthink of.” Such are the simple words less people massacred in cold blood, of Josephus. In the end, overpowered as regarded themselves it was a by his council, Vespasian made a sort merciful doom, and one which many of compromise. Twelve hundred, as of the Jerusalem captives afterwards persons who could not have faced the eagerly courted. But still it was a hardships of captivity and travel, he shocking case. It was felt to be so gave up to the sword. Six thousand by many Romans themselves : Vesselect young men were transported as pasian was overruled in that instance: labourers into Greece, with a view to and the horror which settled upon the Nero's scheme, then in agitation, for mind of Titus, his elder son, from that cutting through the isthmus of Co

very case amongst others, made him rinth; the main body, amounting to tender of human life, and anxiously thirty thousand, were sold for slaves; merciful, through the great tragedies and all the rest, who happened to be which were now beginning to unroll subjects of Agrippa, as a mark of cour. themselves.

2. The Mahometan Decision.- flying pell-mell to Tunis with the The Emperor Charles V., at different wrecks of his army, he found these periods, twice invaded the piratical very ten thousand Christians in posstates in the north of Africa. The session of the fort and town: they last of these in vasions, directed against turned his own artillery upon himself: Algiers, failed miserably, covering the and his overthrow was sealed by that Emperor with shame, and strewing one act of mercy-so unwelcome from both land and sea with the wrecks of the very first to his own Napoleonish his great armament. But six years temper. before, he had conducted a most splen- Thus we see how this very case of did and successful expedition against Jaffa had been settled by Pagan and Tunis, then occupied by Heyradin Mahometan casuists, where courage Barbarossa, a valiant corsair and a and generosity happened to be habi. prosperous usurper. Barbarossa had tually prevalent. Now, turningback an irregular force of fifty thousand to the pseudo-Christian army, let us men; the Emperor had a veteran very briefly review the arguments for army, but not acclimatized, and not them. First, there were no provisions. much above one-half as numerous. But how happened that? or how is it Things tended, therefore, strongly to proved ? Feeding the prisoners from an equilibrium. Such were the cir- the 6th to the 10th inclusively of cumstances-such was the position on March, proves that there was no ineach side: Barbarossa, with his usual stant want. And how was it, then, that adventurous courage, was drawing out Napoleon had run his calculations so of Tunis in order to fight the invader: narrowly? The prisoners were just precisely at that moment occurred the 33 per cent on the total French army, question of what should be done with as originally detached from Cairo. the Christian slaves. A stronger case Some had already perished of that cannot be imagined: they were ten army; and in a few weeks more, onethousand fighting men; and the more half of that army had perished, or horrible it seemed to murder so many 6000 men, whose rations were hourly defenceless people, the more dread- becoming disposable for the prisoners. fully did the danger strike upon the Secondly, a most important point, reimagination. It was their number sources must have been found in Jaffa. which appalled the conscience of those But thirdly, if not, if Jaffa were so who speculated on their murder; but ill provisioned, how had it ever dreamprecisely that it was, when pressed ed of standing a siege ? Aud knowing upon the recollection, which appalled its condition, as Napoleon must have the prudence of their Moorish masa done from deserters and otherwise, ters. Barbarossa himself, familiar how came he to adopt so needless a with bloody actions, never hesitated measure as that of storming the place? about the proper course :

Three days must have compelled it to without mercy

was his proposal. surrender upon any terms, if it could But his officers thought otherwise : be really true that, after losing vast they were brave men ; " and,” says numbers of its population in the asRobertson, “ they all approved warm- sanlt, (for it was the bloodshed of the ly of his intention to fight. But, in- assault which originally suggested the ured as they were to scenes of blood- interference of the aides-de-camp,) shed, the barbarity of his proposal Jaffa was not able to allow half rafilled them with horror; and Barba- tions even to a part of its garrison for rossa, from the dread of irritating a few weeks. What was it meant them, consented to spare the lives of that the whole should have done, the slaves." Now, in this case, the had Napoleon simply blockaded it? penalty attached to mercy, in case it Through all these contradictions we should turn out unhappily for those see the truth looming as from behind who so nobly determined to stand the a mist: it was not because provisions risk, cannot be more tragically ex- failed that Napoleon butchered 4000 pressed, than by saying that it did young men in cold blood; it was beturn out unhappily. We need not cause he wished to signalize his endoubt that the merciful officers were trance into Palestine by a sanguinary otherwise rewarded; but for this world act, such as might strike terror far and the suceesses of this world the and wide, resound through Syria as ruin was total. Barbarossa was de- well as Egypt, and paralyse the nerves feated in the battle which ensued; of his enemies. Fourthly, it is urged

massacre

that, if he had turned the prisoners gained any thing for himself or for loose, they would have faced him again his army by his promise of safety to in his next battle. How so ? Pri- the enemy: he had simply gratified soners without arms ? But then, per- his own feelings by holding out prohaps, they could have retreated upon spects of final escape. But Napoleon Acre, where it is known that Djezzar had absolutely seduced the 4000 men the Turkish pacha had a great maga- from a situation of power, from van. zine of arms. That might have been tage-ground, by his treacherous prodangerous, if any such retreat had been mise. And when the French apolo, open. But surely the French army, gists plead—“ If we had dismissed itself under orders for Acre, could at the prisoners, we should soon have least have intercepted the Acre route had to fight the battle over again”from the prisoners.

No other re- they totally forget the state of the mained but that through the defiles of facts: they had not fought the battle Naplous. In this direction, however, at all: they had evaded the battle as there was no want of men. Beyond to these prisoners : as many enemies the mountains cavalry only were in

as could have faced them de novo, so use: and the prisoners had no horses, many had they bought off from fightnor habits of acting as cavalry. In ing. Forty centuries of armed men, the defiles it was riflemen who were brave and despairing, and firing from wanted, and the prisoners had no windows, must have made prodigious rifles ; besides that, the line of the havoc: and this havoc the French French operations never came near to evaded by a trick, by a perfidy, perthat route. Then, again, if provisions haps unexampled in the annals of miwere so scarce, how were the unarmed litary man. prisoners to obtain them on the simple II. Piracy. It is interesting to allegation that they had fought unsuc- trace the revolutions of moral feeling, cessfully against the French ?

In the early stages of history we find But, finally, one conclusive argu- piracy in high esteem. Thucydides ment there is against this damnable tells us that angere or robbery, when atrocity of Napoleon's, which in all conducted at sea, (i. e. robbery on future Lives of Napoleon one may ex- non-Grecian people,) was held in the pect to see noticed, viz, that if the greatest honour by his countrymen in circumstances of Palestine were such elder ages. And this, in fact, is the as to forbid the ordinary usages of true station, this point of feeling for war, if (which we are far from be- primitive man, from which we ought lieving) want of provisions made it to view the robberies and larcenies of indispensable to murder prisoners in savages. Captain Cook, though a cold blood in that case a Syrian war good and often a wise man, erred in became impossible to a man of honour ; this point. He took a plain Old Baiand the guilt commences from a higher ley view of the case ; and very sinpoint than Jaffa. Already at Cairo, cerely believed (as all sea-captains and in the elder stages of the expedi- ever have done,) that a savage must tion, planned in face of such afflicting be a bad man who would purloin any necessities, we read the counsels of a thing that was not his. Yet it is evi. murderer; of one rightly carrying dent that the poor child of uncultured such a style of warfare towards the nature, who saw strangers descending ancient country of the assassins; of as it were from the moon upon his one not an apostate merely from aboriginal forests and lawns, must Christian humanity, but from the have viewed them under the same angle lowest standard of soldierly honour. as the Greeks of old. They were no He and luis friends abuse Sir Hudson part of any system to which he beLowe as a jailer. But far better to longed ; and why should he not be a jailer, and faithful to one's trust, plunder them ? By force if he could : than to be the cut-throat of unarmed but, where that was out of the ques

tion, why should he not take the same One consideration remains, which credit for an undetected theft that the we reserve to the end; because it has Spartan gloried in taking ? To be been universally overlooked, and be- detected was both shame and loss; cause it is conclusive against Napo- but he was certainly entitled to any leon, even on his own hypothesis of glory which might seem to settle upon an absolute necessity. In Vespasian's success, not at all less than the more case it does not appear that he had pretending citizen of Sparta. Besides