[Ads-l] Quote: Military Justice is to justice what military music is to music

ADSGarson O'Toole adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM
Tue Oct 6 02:03:50 UTC 2015


Fred has a listing for a quotation attributed to Georges Clemenceau in
"The Yale Book of Quotations":

[Begin excerpt]
Military justice is to justice as military music is to music.
Attributed in United States Law Week, 3 June 1969
[End excerpt]

Barry examined this topic a few days ago and found a citation dated
October 17, 1968:
http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/military_justice_is_to_justice/

I located an interesting match in 1961 (in English) which pointed to
the French periodical "Journal Du Dimanche":

Date: January 22, 1961
Newspaper: The Hays Daily News
Newspaper Location: Hays, Kansas
Article: World Echoes: Cop Coppered Many A Slip
Article Byline: North American Newspaper Alliance
Article Introductory Line: Humorous items from the World Press
Quote Page 11, Column 4
Database: Newspapers.com

[Begin excerpt]
Ministerial Bon Mot
The bon mot of a French minister after listening to bitter criticism
of certain recent trials: "Military Justice is to justice what
military music is to music."--(Journal Du Dimanche, Paris).
[End excerpt]

There are some matches in French in the Google Books database. But I
couldn't find one in 1961. Circa 1965 (or 1966) the saying was
attached to Clemenceau: (Special characters stripped out)

[Begin raw GB match]
Le Nouveau planete - Issues 23-25 - Page 157
Antonin Artaud - 1965
La justice militaire est a la justice ce que la musique militaire est
a la musique. Clemenceau Qui a invente le cochon? On ne sait pas.
Peut-etre le charcutier. Carlyle l'ai connu le bonheur, mais ce n'est
pas ce qui m'a rendu le plus heureux.
[End raw GB match]

[Begin raw GB match]
Les Francais sont droles - Page 121
Herve Lauwick - 1966
Le Francais type, ce fut Clemenceau, l'homme etonnant qui ecrivit :
"La justice militaire est a la justice ce que la musique militaire est
a la musique." (Ce même homme, lorsqu'il disposa du pouvoir, fit
fusiller tous ceux qui lui tombaient sous ...
[End raw GB match]

Garson

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