Well, you know, I think people should be forgiven for things they say in moments of frenzy. We have all said something regrettable in a moment of anger that we would not have said in any calmer moment. It's not something anyone should have to pay for for the rest of their life.

I think that people who are incapable of forgiveness are making a considerably greater error than someone who says something outrageous or unwise in a moment when he has lost control of his emotions.

The man who wrote the book you are alluding to, Rapaire, was trying to make a point about the value and enduring worth of patriotism and love of country. Thus he put together a dramatic story to illustrate the point....but there's no way a man should be banished for life from his own country for uttering something like that in a brief moment of anger.