The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1870-09-10 00:00:00

THE CAREER OF NAPOLEON 111.
(From the Daily Telegraph.)

8 trogr yi
its
st3h2e. Tahnirt d.Nwainleaotns'eecd.:‘,rneetr4 ciosinar, eann cdin gth
nat.
embracing eearly forty years of exile, patience, conspiracy
adventures, imprhumment, escaper, political matte:lvrea:
pelace life, victorious war, successful statesmaiiship. and
European tame, ends with a catas,rophe to which there fa
no parallel in modern hietory. A few short weeks ago, he
was one of the greatest men in Europe—he is now a prisoner
of war in the hands of his enemies. All France wee his, to
guide it as he pleased; and what "Flares" Meant the world
well knows. trance' fanatic a history full of a glory anti
a greatness that nal Miler die away from the memory of
men. It means a people of forty mtVione, ingenious in art
bright in spirit, furl of life, blessed with a glorious climate,
groducing everywhere, in city and town, In the peanut's
vineyard as its the al.isaii's workshop, [Mugs to delight
the senses or the sem! of matt. This Fr time lie rule d
with almost absolute sway, or, if it now era then
moved, it wes as the curvettlugs of "a steed that
knows its rider." Its great fleet, created under his eye,
obeyed his command. Its commerce, largely stimulated by
his wirdom, hotted to hint tor encouragement. Its pro-
ductive industry, enormously develop, el by his care, grew
every year beneath his sway. Its agriculture, which owed
Much to his povincial nelnitiditration, was improving every
day. These sources supplied a rich and various reserve
against ai.y day of disaster is the forefront of this
exuberant and ever-grawing national life was a large army of
train< it non, wills a halo of past glory still circling their
eagles, and wonderful traditlinis of vicmry firing their
hearts All these things lay, as it were, in the hands of
this ottoman, alio is to day a prisoner, ins resideliCeltras,mted
!by another, his ne moments mapped out by his foes. /II
wife is in Petit; his am a itie Wye ; too hopes of his
! dyna,ty crushed. Surely even ies Ilereest enemies Mist
I adiutt that the bitter' se in the last few weeks—from
Auenet 6, the iv of It tlistuntlrg, to September 2, the day
of Ids Mir:ender—off-re souse expiation tor the Valles and
bleariere natural to be long abd alt rmy career, lii, made
fell from even a greater height to even S lower depth of
Misery at St. ',Ostia, Lilt he fel slowly ; the retreat from
Moscow, a truly terrible warning, premeled Fontainebleau by
nearly two yeats. but N.droleoli 111., all the Ifdla of July,
posteused a power and follo nos a% IMMO aid alreual that
made him can of the wig striking figures of this age ; arid
now, when we talk of future Frebch tiC huroe Win
we leave him riot of the calculatiou of formica, mid Mundy
follow with hderest the final chapter iu the story of the
=IL
Those who symrathised for many years with the character
and career of Louis Nanoleon have not the least reed now to
• abate one jot in the admiration they expressed. Ile was a
great mats—ln most respects an amiable man: suit for years
Ire was one of the ablest rulers that Frauce ever possessed.
to do full justice to him, we must forget the later years .4
his life, when physical maladies bowed his frame and sopped
the energy aids Mind. MIL we esnoin forget that, for more
rhea .00 years lie tin light nod werkeni for Frame, end 1111$ lett
fir patioual inehistry in every ett eactieent nooreved, en-
larged, and winched. Other rink re ef 'entice tout. up °tie
branch of French enerry and petted it with pereoual alien-
lion: he encouraged en The fleet thee Louis Philippe id.
lowed to dwindle down is sectied oily to tan. 0.1. We
flare the testimony of Jules Simon, the most enthusiastic
educationist of France anti a bitter enemy to the Empire, to
show that under no previnna r/giine has there been any-
thing like the aura devoted to education by the Minister,

of the Sovereign. The Due d'Aunnites pamphlet, published
three years ago, speaks with appreciation of the military
reform, introduced by " the head of the State." Now all
this progress, in extended trade, increased industry. developed
agriculture—ln education, le naval armaments, er military
organisation, could not have been stimulated and supervised
by sup slothlul and seminal Sybarite, thinking only of his
Individual luxuries slid of his personal ease. For at least
eighteen years Napoleon 111. was his own Prime
Minister. Out of these eighteen years there were about
three years of war—ln the Crimea, in Italy, lu Mexico.
If the war in the Crimea was a crime, we Englishmen
are participen criminis. It the war In Italy was an
offence, we must share the sin, for we have heartily
applauded the result. The Invasion of Mexico wan a grave
blunder. How, then, does the story read} For eighteen
years Lords Napoleon ruled France, and committed
one mietake. Somewhat hater, es his health declined, he
called in a Parliamentary Ministry to his help, and his dual
and fatal crime and blunder was committed amid the
enthusiasm and applause of Parisian politica., petriotie
journallota, an almost unanimous Chamber, nod a dueled
and deceived France. It in simply fair thus to allatieguish
the enterprises in which Natieleou 111. was aided and advised
by title rs, from those that he mastered alone. Alone he
ruled Franca for eighteen years. Alone, stalest French
opinion, he went to war for Italy. Alone he sent
Maximillen Into Mexico. To men up (Orly, we meat
strike a balance aud set the gaol deeds of years
against the blunders of about us leery menthe. F* the
latter error, of his life he seems doubly inestimable. Pets-
trate in lewdly health, he heel utterly I. nt hts iid power ol
trot ; while the Liberals ln the Chamber had acquired a
strength that forced him toilet Cite to them a large arid
daily increesieg share of lou etude rity. But while they
were wise and strong en high to talk about parliamentary
government, and to adver.ise that popular entertainment as
the political novelty of the tray, they were not edte enough,
though quite strong evough, to :exempt se tittle boasted
t elk, or to aestres peace at the hands of them: owu Meet.
So much f r his career. Now for hie character. It I
perhaps, meet too wen to jaege it Lilly. In the presence
of a pee .OLIO grief se keen aa tine, en- eh must now over-
whelm his aeul, one is alueiat fore, iiito silence; for just
and Magee-ire criticism 'en nis almo it too harsh. It has
been said of htm, and we lichees with truth, that one of the
deepest feelings he las es er shown has been his love for his
only eon; and when he rotten:a thet by theta rushing into
wanten war he has accempliiised the tielitical ruin of his hey,
his sulferieg must be keen, his pale bitter—all tee more keen
wad bitter for the startling audeeunea and cempleteness of
the calamity. Yet even Now we should take sr me note of
the personal char.:l:thee:a mocking the man whose story
forms a leading port eit European history for twenty
years. Me Kingleke, who seid many unfeir thiugs
of Louis Napoleon, said one thing that never seemed
to us unfair "Ile carried strategy Into polities." The
accusation may have seemed severe, but, spelled to poli-
ticians, it really is not ; for there is no succesof el statesman
who has not been more or less compelled to use strategy
the management ot political tiff ties noise
more, some less. Laois Nareeon carried it tr excess.
Ills intellect Licked simplicity : he lad a faith in intrigue
which was never ahaken. Streeter, ly ...ugh there !stood side
Icy aide with it a comnrchresien whiee few Fraliallloll have
possessed, of the feelires and Wish., of ether nations. He
understood end inert ciaeol eler error eilbilities. Ile
YmPathised with huh it ivy. o over interfered
with Spain, coca in tile thw... ef a roe ;elem. Ile even en-
,c. melee lesearek to v. ter 10, 'no, y it. But he
cherished the delusion, that, by !UM ruipossiele and Morello=
compromise, he could reconcile his own philosophic
and almost cosmopolitan comprehenalon of Pairearston,
Calmer, Bismarck, alai Prim, with the neceossry
pandering to French veliffy and French pride.
Da favourite ritatiliin was that eta moderator arid mediator
between Blimerek—"a clever trloll wanting too much, and
wanting it too quickly "—mid the eartly provekul and easily
irritated Freed]. He said to Bismarck in eff,t, end almost
In words, " Yes, defeat Auatria, negrandise Freesia, unite
Germany t the provers is Wirral erioueh ; bat if you do,
France will stir. To enable me to kerip her quiot, give her
something—lime slice of territoei —some kind et compen-
station " Ile thus reconciled loance to the unity of Italy ;
hut King William was tot so rimplabant as Victor Em-
manuel, and the Imperial moderator was forced to lead ex-
cited Franco (Moan Insane war. Unite etely we sew the 'strange
slid sad spectacle of a sickly Emperor surreunded by ineern-
petent Generals, leading an unprepared mud unorganised army
of a few hundred thousand Frenchmen agaimt a ruillioe—re-
serves and all—of toweled men, wielded as one machete by
the magnificent mind of 310Itke, inspired to valour by the
presence of their princes, and rowel to Ileeds of aplem Sid
darieg by the spirit of nationality, and, otter the first battle
by the glorious certainty of success. The centr act was deep
In every trey. It was milted Germany sgelest districted
Franca. King William could anti ly leave eerlin without a
aentinel ; the Eusieror bad to genie, Paris with a large
body of troops. King William c. add puts needlo.gun into
the hand of every German : the Emperor was afraii
to arm the el etropolitan (era' Mottle.. 'lto Pruasiau Ad-
milder ration had for 3 ears been ruled by fregal„sevae, aed
honest men ; Fret., bail Leon ruled Mullet lie, latter
years, wheu the Etuporer's "Persia! miverureent "
Was restricted to Lis Eck chaml,er, try a horde
of corrupt officiele illestricus thieves, who
preceded the Prussia. In pl,,Litoring France. And
this, too, was due to the French system,"—which was
no system, but one man. Napoleon withdrawn, the admthire
Dation fell into the hands elan entourage, disgraceful in its
Incompetency and vice: and the able and honest statesman
who might have helped the Emperor to rule France stood
aloof from the author of the coup (aka Teti was the
Nemesis of that unjustidable aut. It wan then his pride to
save France with his single hand; "Moue he dial it." but
with the natural penally: he was left •' for the rest
of his life by some of the best men of France. They have
now their revenge. For us Englishmen we simply follow
the tal of an Illustrious melt with regrets—human and
natural enough ; nor can we forget that his liking for Eug-
land and Englishmen, aed his Um political alliauct with our
country, have preserved for hint sincere end perAtillat sym-
pathy In this the hour of his direst ruisf edema.