The Express.
London, England, 1852-03-23 00:00:00

FRANCE.

PARIS, MONDAY Evaxiso.
In consequence of the new engagement of the
Bank to advance money on railway shares, the
council decided on the 20th to iucreuee from 30 to
100 millions the credit for advances on public semi-
rit ice.

Tho Monitemr publishes to-day the text of the
speech addressed by Louis Napoleon at the review
yesterday to the soldiers whom ho decorated with
the medal instituted by the confiscation decree of
January 22. This is, I believe, the first
occasion since the coup claat on which the
President has addressed in person any portion
of the army ; and it Iserres to bo note d that
he N. lug the opportunity to remind the public of cue
of the most important features of his usurpation,
namely, the supreme military rank which the prince
has attributed to him.elf in the new order of things.
Thus he speaks of his love for the great military 'a-
mity of which he is proud to ho the head. In ex-
pressing his regret tor the small resources at the
disposal of the government for recompensing the
services of the army. Louis Napoleon involuntarily
reminds the world of the sacred rights of property
on which he him trampled to filch the means of leed-
ing his preteeiaas with largesses.
Piesident's speech was u follows:
_

Soldie.a.—la giving for the first time this medal, I am
anzious to explain to you the object f .r which I have insti-
tuted it. When anyone pees ices, like use, how much
devotedness, abnegation, and patrio•irm are to he found in
the racks of tie army, a feeling of regret arises to his mind
that the Rosemount li .4 at his disposal such scanty nicaus
of acknowla do:fig so great trials, and rewarding such
milked VelrVl.... The admirable isistitution of the
Legion of llsmour would lose it. prestige were it
net rests ict“l within es rtain limits. Yet, how often
have I regretted to see soldiers and eflte rs return
to their homes without a recompense, although by their
length of serv:cs.,. their wounds, and by actions worth., of
culogium, they had Merited a testimony of satisfaction from
their country ! It is in ord. rto accord them such a mark
of approbation that I have instituted this 'ocelot. It may
be given to such persons as have re-engaged themselvi • in
the anny, after haviug previously conducted themselves
well ; else, to they .110 have mode four campaigns ; or to
peci such as have been wounded or sally named in the orders
of the day of the army. It ensures to them an annuity of 100 fr.
for life. 'shat sum in uudoobtedly but small ; but what is great
is the riblom which you will wear on your breast, and which
wili sognify to your comrades, your families, and your fellow-
citiochs that he who swears it is a brave man. This medal
will not prevent you from pretending to the erne of the
Legion ol Honour. should you Ise worthy of receiving it. On
the contrary, it will be as a first step towards obtain-
ing the cross, since it will in advance poir.t you nut to
the attention of your superiors. You are hot to re-
ceive at the same time two pecuniary allocations,
but you will be able to wear at the same time
the two decorations; in the same w.y as a non-
commissioned officer, corporal, or soldier to whom the
cross of the Legion of Honour has been accorded, may also, if
be should again signalise himself, receive the medal. Soldiers,
this distinction, I repeat, is hut a trilling matter fur the im-
mense services which, both hero and in Africa, you render
to France ; hot receive it as an encouragement to maintain
intact that military spirit which does you so much honour.
Wear it IS s proot of my 'solicitude for your interests, and
of my afiection fur that great military family of which I am
proud to be the head, b ,cause you are its glorious children.
A rumour, sprung I know not from what quarter,
,but bearing internal evidence of its untruth, has
been afloat during a week pest, about considerable
reductions which arc said to no contemplated in the
army. This delusion has been dissipated to-day,
from an official quarter.
The Mosaileur de l.4rmje, alluding to the reported
diminution of 123,000 men, says that so great a
reduction in the active forces of the country would
be at all times wholly irreconcilable with the neces-
sity of maintaining an army of occupation in Algeria
mid the expeditionary corps at Rome. Hut it would
be a strange moment for the adoption of such a
reduction, when several of the departments have just
been agitated by severe troubles.
It is reported that General Canrobert is to take the
command of the expedition against the Kahyles,
instead of General de St. Arnaud, who is to remain
at Paris.

The l'resident of the Republic received M. Dupir
in private audience two lays ago.
M. Berard, inspector-general of police for the di-
vision of Lyons, still remains in Pans; and I am
told that it is now certain that he will not repair to
the post to which he was appointed on the creation
of the new ministry of police. This institution con-
tinues to breed the greatest confusion in the admi-
nistration, and perpetual disputes with the ministry
of the interior, winch are expected to terminate with
the eventual suppression of the inspectorships.
M. !inbuilt has not succeeded in his attempt to
obtain from the President a relaxation of the despo-
tic anachronism, according to which the reports of
the debates in the C'orps Leyialatif are to be limited
ton bare summary of the business without citing the
names of the speakers. The peesirknt of the legis-
lative body had proposed a curtailed form of
stenographic reports, but found it a vain task to
contend with the obstiracy of Louis Napoleon,
whose ideas are as unalterable as the laws
of the Medea and Persians. 'rhis pretension
to prevent the discussions of the people's representa-
tives from reaching the knowledge of the people is
regarded by some as a symptom of mental aberra-
tion.

The general discontent excited by the modification
imposed by the new budget on the tax on wines, is
greatly increased by an article of the Mimi.,
which shows clearly that no class of con-
sumers at l'aris, owing to local circumstances,
will derive any benefit from the change; so that the
pretended morality of the measure, which aimed at
relieving families, while the wine shops were
bnrthcned with an increased duty of retail, is fliers
moonshine. The consumer will only gain the benefit
of a franc on a hundred quarts. Meanwhile the im-
portance of this complicated question will render it
desirable to refer to the article of the lAlbats.
mud premise the extract which follows, by stating,
that in order to evade the difficulties of levying the
excise duty, l'aris and the other leading cities pay
the tax once for all at the barriers, and are thus re-
deemed from the vexatious obstructions of the excise
system.
_ _

In the generality of towns subjected to entrance duties,
not lacluding what arc coiled the cities the en-
trance duty will be reduced one-half, and the retail duty
iscreared tram 10 to Id per cent. In the rules ridimris
the tax (tam soigne) will be revised according to the
bases which served primitively for fixing it. There will
' result a general lowering of duties. At Paris the tax levied
far the advastage of the irate (we do not speak of the
oetroi) will remain at Bfr. (not including the decimo), as
heretofore. The state will abandon none of the duties
which it levies in virtue of the existing legislation.
But these measures are not the only ones which
affect the price of wines and spirits. It is
known that the municipal taxes established on an
article cannot exceed the duties levied by the state on the
same article. The lowering of the entrance ditty, and or the
sole tax iu the ei lea r*lintica will muss a similar fail in
masy town, not in all. as the municipal tax does not every.
where attain the maximum authorised by the law. To this
reduction mud be added that which will arise from the
abandonment by the state of the tenth of the oared
levied for it. Finally, Paris is in this r. sped in an excep-
tional situation. The tax remains fixed, se in the poet, at
Ur., the deathse not included. The semi duty ought not,'
in virtue of the law+ which regulate the subject, to exceed
that figure. Still, the exceptions authorised by special laws
have raised to 101 r. 60c. (the claims not included), or
life. Mc. the oetroi duty which ought not to
have exceeded bfr. The laws which authorised the last
loans of the city, and set apart the proceeds of the oetroi
for the payment of them, sanely permit this duty be
touched—not only now, bat up to the period fixed for the
paytag of the loan authorised seven or eight months ago,
and which is to be contracted for in the first days of the I
month of April ; and this period will not arrive before 1872. '
The sole diminution which will arise from the new decree
will be the abandonment of the tenth on the octroi duty of
Ilfr. ; that is to say, lfr. lac. Thus a hectolitre of
wine, at Paris, will pay at the barrier Bfr. 89c. for the tax
levied for the state, and 10fr. 40e. instead of Ilfr. Mc. levied
for the town—making a total of 196. 20e., instead of
120 fr. 15c.

The movement of the French shipping during the
first two months of 1862 was 1,004 vessels, 116,410
tons arrived, and 1,077 vessels, 116,283 tons sailed.
In the corresponding period of 1851 there were 930
vessels and 100,861 tons arrived, and 1,103 vessels,
116,269 tons sailed; and in 1850, 732 vessels, 91,82:2
tons arrived, and 1,056 vessels, 103,742 tons sailed.
The protracted severity of the weather till within
the last two or three days did considerable injury to
some branches of commerce, and principally to that
of spring dresses and noisivaiiVs. The recent change
to a milder temperature has been favourable to this
branch of industry ; but the retail trifle, and gene-
rally speaking all the manufactories which specially
supply the home demand, find that grave
financial anxiety has been caused by the
decree for the conversion of the renter. f rade,-
men who endeavour to sell their goods, hear every-
where the same exelamal ion ; every one says that, his
revenue being diminished one-tenth, he is obliged
to make savings, and to purchase only what is strictly