The Express.
London, England, 1863-01-13 00:00:00

EXPRESS FROM PARIS.

THE EMPEROR'S SPEECH.
(nom ova OWN 0011.115PONDIXT.)

PARIS, MONDAT EVIIIING.

The leading feature of the Emperor's speech (as
it strikes me upon a first reading) is the reticence
in regard to the two questions which, with the
exception of the distress in the cotton districts, are,
more than any others, of immediate and palpitating
interest—those of Rome and Mexico. As to
Rome it is only alluded to incidentally, in the
course of a recapitulation of the events of the last
five years. We are simply told that France
defended the independence of Italy without
making any " pact " with the revolution, and
without abandoning the Holy Father, "whom our
honour and our past engagements oblige us to
support." There is a vagueness in these phrases,
which, while the friends of Italian unity will
evidently not be contented with them, afford but
small comfort to the clerical party. Many " solu-
tions " have been ventilated which would satisfy Italy
without doing violence to the words "abandoning"
and " supporting" as here used. The naked
"status quo" is vindicated without a hint of the
course likely to be taken in future, and not a word
of explanation is vouchsafed as to the reasons for
dismissing M. Thouvenel and putting M. Drouyn
de Lhuys in his place. Perhaps, however, any
allusion to a change of ministry would have been
infra dig. in a speech from the throne, and more-
over the omission is supplied, as far as it suite the
government purpose, by*. a paragraph in the
" yellow book" this day furnished to the members
of the Senate and Corps Legialatif, which says that
owing to the " resistance on the one side"
(that of the Pope) and the "exigency" on
the other (that of Italy) " the Emperor had
thought it desirable to call to his assistance men
who, not having been parties to previous discus-
sions, were in a more favourable position to resume
the work of conciliation, the bases of which were
indicated in the imperial letter of May 28." That
is the official explanation of the reason for dismiss-
ing K Thouvenel and K de Lavalette, who had
been made the instruments for making promises
and holding out expectations which the Emperor
either never meant to fulfil and gratify, or, at any
rate, subsequently repented of. It is not wonder-
ful that the proverb, "Least said soonest mended,"
should be thought applicable to this matter now.
The speech as respects Rome amounts, therefore,
to just nothing. The same may be said in regard
to Mexico, which is only spoken of parenthetically
and jointly with China and Cochin China, in a
paragraph vaunting the power of France to punish
insults to her honour even in the uttermost parts
of the world.

The speech begins with an allusion to the fact
that with this session the present Corps Legislatif
will have lived out its utmost legal time. The
Emperor takes credit to himself for not having
dissolved it for two reasons, one by no means de-
mumble, and the other palpably false. In the
first place, he says a dissolution would have been
an act of ingratitude to the present chamber.
That may be admitted to the fullest extent. A
more servile body of men he can never hope to get
together again. But the second reason, i. e.,
that a dissolution would have shown dis-
trust of the country, is so obviously untrue
as to be ridiculous. Ever since the liberal decrees
of 1860 and 1861 it has been constantly pressed
upon the government by the independent press
that the present chamber, nominated as it was in
the early days of the empire, and before the Em-
peror's celebrated confession that his government
"wanted control," was not in harmony with the
new and, as it is fondly hoped, improved order of
things. It is, in point of fact, notorious that the
general elections have been put off to the last pos-
sible moment because of the fear that, in spite of all
the pains taken to " regulate " universal suffrage,
nothing can prevent the present opposition phalanx
of five members from being augmented to twenty or
thirty. However, the speech, ignoring this well-known
fact, pretends that if the govern ment had not dissolved
parliament it was because, confident in the un-
changing support of universal suffrage, it could
afford to wait for the natural end of the chamber
by effluxion of time, and was not forced, like pre-
ceding dynasties, who were so unfortunate as to
have only restricted suffrage to rely upon, to lay
hold of any " happy accident " to dissolve and get
a majority. The argument is, perhaps, after all,
entitled 'to more credit for ingenuity than I am
disposed to attribute to it. Those who are familiar
with the real state of things in France can ill judge
of the effect which a plausible statement, promul-
gated by the highest authority, may have upon the
public mind abroad and upon the ignorant multi-
tude at home.

The Emperor commences his review of the last
five years during which he has had the concurrence
of the present chambers by his favourite complaint,
that " people will not understand him." The
public will seek in the acts of sovereigns " hidden
motives and mysterious combinations." His policy
is, he says, very simple ; it is " to increase the
prosperity of France and her moral ascend-
ancy, without abusing as well as without
weakening the power placed in my hands."
That is a very "simple" definition, no doubt,
but it is too simple to be comprehensive.
In fact it explains no policy at all. It means at
the utmost, "Let me do as I like, and I will pro-
mise to do for the best." Every tyrant is always
ready to say as much. Beyond the barren allusions
to Rome and Mexico (noticed above) there is not
much to remark upon, and little, as it strikes me,
to object to iu the Emperor's review of the last five
years of his government. He very fairly takes
credit to himself for his commercial reforms, the
increase of influence conceded to the Senate and
Corps Legislatif, and the renunciation of his pre-
rogative to surcharge the budget with supplemen-
tary credits. His unsuccessful attempt to induce
Russia and England to joie him in putting a stop
to the American war is alluded to in terms which
add nothing to the knowledge on the subject already
in possession of the public. He announces that a
credit will be demanded for the relief of the cotton
distress. [The amount is rumoured to be
12,000,000fr.1—There is nothing in the speech
which I can construe as confirming the idea that
the senators and deputies are to be prevented from
speaking their minds as freely as they did last year.
One remarkable passage really seems to point
cheeringly towards the much-looked-for "crowning
of the edifice." The Emperor admits that "much
remains to be done to perfect our institutions, to
propagate true ideas, and to accustom the country
to rely upon itself." These are truly golden words
—self-reliance is, according to the testimony of all
enlightened Frenchmen, the quality which France
most wants. But nothing is so conducive to the
growth of this virtue as that liberty of the press,
and liberty of public meetings, which it has
been hitherto the policy of the empire to re-
press. Even now the Emperor exhorts the deputies
to tell their constituents that he will ever be
ready to "accept whatever is for the interest of

the greatest number," but that they are to avoid
" conflicts " in the new elections, and study "con.
cord." I am afraid this means that the people
must look out for squalls if they do not meekly
return the candidates indicated by the Prefects.
Iu the imperial vocabulary "concord " means sub-
serviency, and " conflict " free action and din.
cussion.

~..........-.
The new Archbishop of Paris may be said to have
been nominated by his predecessor. He is the
executor and universal legatee of Cardinal Morlot.
Ills appointment is, I think, as good a one as
could have been made, and one that will not by
any means please the ultra-catholic party. A
memoir of him says :
Mgr. Darboy, formerly Vicar-General of Paris, a man of
talent.. is probably recommended to the choice of the go.
veroment by marked opposition to Ultramontane theories.
His conduct on the occasion of the Immaculate Conception
is well remembered in governmental circles. It is also
well known that it was he who drew up the famous pastoral
letter of Mgr. Babour, Archbishop of Paris, spinet the doe-
tripes of the Univers.

The Bourse has been very heavy—not, as I appre-
hend, owing to anything in the speech—but on
account of the financial situation. Rents fell 30c.
and 25c., closing at 70tr. 10c. and 70fr. 15c.
The Arab chiefs who were lately guests at Com-
piegne are now making a tour in the south of
France. The Journal des Pyrenhes °lien&les gives
a long account of a ball at which they were "feted"
by General Durrieu, the commandant at Perpignan,
and of their visit to K Durand, the deputy, at the
Masden vineyard, of which he is the proprietor.
They are represented as abounding in admiration of
everything they saw, pointing out to admiring
grooms the merits of horses in the imperial horns,
and declaring that the country which, in this won-
derfully mild season, exhibits a rare show of aloes,
pomegranates, fig-trees, &c., reminds them of their
native deserts. It is not stated whether they so
far forgot the prompts of Mahomet as to taste the
/deaden wine.

M. Sardon's new play, Lea Diable Noire, which
was to have been brought out at the Vaudeville, is
definitively prohibited. Up to the last moment it
was hoped that the Emperor, who on many occa-
sions has loved to show himself more liberal than
his agents, would personally interfere on behalf of
an author one of whose recent pieces, Nos Intinies,
was played before the court at Compiegne. This
expectation has not boen realised. The piece is
said to reflect upon a class of Tartuffes now greatly
patronised by one section of the court, and which has
been severely handled already in Les Pile de Giboyer.
I am told that Count Walewski, in announcing to
the author his irrevocable decision, said, "And
now, if the Emperor orders the performance, I will
be the first to go and him it."
The Daily News of Saturday is seized.

SOCIETY AT CANNES.
We(Galignani) hear from Cannes that the weather
in that favoured spot during the month of December was
such as to satisfy the moss exigeant of it. visitors, there
having been twenty-four consecutive cloudless days. Though
there has been some slight degree of frost at night—it has
not been severe enough to cut off the flowers—many of the
houses being covered with • profusion of the scarlet passion.
flower in full beauty. The number of English visitors in.
messes every year, and though the church hen been enlarged
during the past summer it is still too small for the congre-
gation, end • further enlargement is in contemplation.
Amongst the residents and visitors at Cannes, in
addition to the venerable Lord Brougham, to whom
the French inhabitant' of the place facetiously
ascribe the discovery of Cannes, are the Marquis
sod Marchioness of Easter and Lady Victoria
Gail, the Earl and Countess of Donoughmore Red family,
Lord Kensington and family, Lord Lumley, Lady Creaky
and family, Lady Henrietta Harvey and family, Admiral •
and Lady Mary Saurin and family, and Lady Orford. The
Bishop of Gibraltar has lately paid • visit to Cannes, it
being situated within his jurisdictioe, and confirmed ten
young persons. A collection, in four instalments, is in the
course of being made amongst the English in behalf of the
Lanoishire Belief Fund; two remittances, amounting to
3W., have been already made—the other two instalments
will follow at the beginning of February and March. The
number of visitors would probably have been doubled or
trebled were it not for the utter inadequacy of the house
and hotel accommodation for the requirements of the
numbers who arrived with the intention of speeding the
winter, but were obliged, for this reason, to pus on to
other places.