* Cologne, February 17. Every market town has its esprit fort; the Cologne bar also has its own. The esprit fort of the Cologne bar is a certain – Saedt. Homo novus atque ignotus. (In German: a deep thinker.)

There is a double insolence, an insolence of superiority; there is an insolence of intellectual narrow-mindedness, which draws its strength from its official position, from the consciousness that it fights with privileged weapons and the like. Which of the two superiorities the esprit fort of the Cologne bar displayed in his indictment yesterday afternoon against Kinkel, the public will decide as soon as the proceedings are before it. It will at the same time take into account that Mr. Saedt is still young.

But we would not know how to reconcile it with our journalistic task to keep an utterance of our esprit fort from the European public any longer. We know that the Demosthenes of the Cologne bar tried to make good the passage to be cited by a subsequent interpretation. But we respect the original inspirations of the surging genius too highly to allow them to be marred by the weakening commentary of an after-born reflection.

Mr. Saedt, deputy public prosecutor, spoke:

In German: “You may refute everything I say, but you must not criticise my speech.”

In French: M. Saedt, substitut du procureur du roi, s’adressant à l’accusé: « Libre à vous de réfuter tout ce que je viens de dire, mais il ne vous appartient pas de critiquer le réquisitoire d’un substitut du procureur du roi. » (Avis à la « Réforme », la « République » et à la « Révolution ».)

In English: The queen’s counsel, Mr. Saedt to the defendant: “You may refute all I say, but you have no right to criticise my speech.” (N. B. Our English contemporaries, principally the Northern Star, are requested to publish the above).

In Italian: Sig. Saedt, accusatore publico, replicò: «Dite quanto volete in rifutazione di questo che ho detto, ma vi è difeso di criticare il mio requisitorio.» (Avviso all’ „Alba“, al «Contemporaneo» ed alla «Concordia».)

In Spanish: El fiscal, Señor Saedt, dijo, hablando al acusado: «Señor, Vmd puede refutar todo que he dicho; pero el que vengo de decir por requisitorio, es defendido de tocarlo.» (Rogamos a los periódicos radicales de Madrid de publicar esas líneas.)

In Danish: „De kunne gjensige alt hvad jeg siger, men De have intet Ret at kritisere mit Requisitoire (Angreb).“ (De danske demokratiske Tidender ville være meget glade at meddele det danske Publikum den foregående Bevis af de preussiske Magistraters Sundhed.)

Mr. Saedt may decide for himself in which language his utterance sounds most cheerful.