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it in good conscience, Louis Philippe being in possession in
perfect good faith, and the democracy being in good faith
in its attack, the amount of terror discharged by the social
conflicts weighs neither on the King nor on the democra-
cy. A clash of principles resembles a clash of elements. The
ocean defends the water, the hurricane defends the air, the
King defends Royalty, the democracy defends the people;
the relative, which is the monarchy, resists the absolute,
which is the republic; society bleeds in this conflict, but
that which constitutes its suffering to-day will constitute its
safety later on; and, in any case, those who combat are not
to be blamed; one of the two parties is evidently mistaken;
the right is not, like the Colossus of Rhodes, on two shores
at once, with one foot on the republic, and one in Royalty;
it is indivisible, and all on one side; but those who are in er-
ror are so sincerely; a blind man is no more a criminal than
a Vendean is a ruffian. Let us, then, impute to the fatality
of things alone these formidable collisions. Whatever the
nature of these tempests may be, human irresponsibility is
mingled with them.
Let us complete this exposition.
The government of 1840 led a hard life immediately.
Born yesterday, it was obliged to fight to-day.
Hardly installed, it was already everywhere conscious of
vague movements of traction on the apparatus of July so re-
cently laid, and so lacking in solidity.
Resistance was born on the morrow; perhaps even, it was
born on the preceding evening. From month to month the
hostility increased, and from being concealed it became

1420 Les Miserables