The Express.
London, England, 1865-08-21 00:00:00

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PARIS, SUNDAY EVIIII3O.
This being Sunday, sad all Paris being at the
seaside or the German watering places, we are re-
duced for political news to the official notifications
of. the Moenteur. The most important is the pro-
mulgation of the new law on bail in criminal cases.
Your readers will remember its leading provi-
sions. It is no doubt an improvement on the
law as it has been up to the promised time, but as
in all questions affecting the administration of jus-
tice, and the bold which the Minister of Police has
out individuals, French legislation shows itself here
ea timid in practice as it is bold in theory and
prestice on all questions when the powers of go-
eurament are to be enlarged at the expense of the
'smite. By the new law the judge of instruction,
or examining magistrate, when he orders a pri-
aoner into solitary confinement must make a note
of the order, which is only valid for ten days, but
which be is at liberty to renew. This law is the
only one of public interest.
The election in the Aisne promises to be hotly con-
tatted, and from the language of the organs of govern.
ment there seems little doubt that it will go against
the administration. The united votes of the Oppo-
sition at the first ballot were 17,000 against 12,000
given to the government candidate. It is amusing
to read, even in the Pattie, which is less officiously
official than the Constitutionnei and Pays, complaints
let the illegal pressure exercised against the defence-
less voters by the candidate of the Opposition. The
fact is that there is growing up in Frames a political
spirit which years of terrorand eompresidon had extin-
guished ; whether the new spirit which thus makes
itself felt will be a really political one, or will be
like its predecessor a mere spirit of faction, remains
to be seen. If the Emperor's declarations be
'sincere —if he has been as successful in this
(respect as he has been in others, and the com-
pression he has exercised has only been with the
object of educating the mums to the use of political
power—the partial elections which vacancies in the
Chamber have occasioned and the recent muni-
cipal elections, must be most gratifying to him,
however annoying to his more short-sighted
ministers.
We suffered long enough in England from the
I abusive use of their side-arms by soldiers
'off duty not to understand the complaints
I which in France the scenes of brutality produced
by the same cause call forth every day. The
Lille beer has • deleterious effect on the sol-
diers of the large garrison which is stationed in that
Itown. When the beer gets into their heads their
'swords and sabres are not long in finding the way
to their hands, and once there they are not long
inactive. On the 15th there was a pitched battle
between the soldiers of the 47th of the line and
the cuirassiers, and at the same time three unfor-
tunate civilians who were quietly wending home-
wards were attacked and beaten by the armed de-
fenders of order. Complaints have been repeatedly
made unheard, as wee long the case in England.
The military authorities cannot make up their minds
to deprive the soldier of the badge of his trade. The
esprit de corps forbids such a concession to civic sus-
ceptibilities. It would seem that, according to the
ideas of these gentlemen, the law which forbids us
non-military, or, as they uncivilly call us, civil,
individuals to carry a pistol or a revolver in our I
pockets, intended to divide society into two
categories, the one entitled to the use of arms, the
other intended to be subjected to their use. It is
the old division of society, bat the great merit of
the French revolution was supposed to be that it
had changed all that, and yet we find in the year
LXXIV. of liberty that there still exists in France'
• class taiiabfe d taerci. The Minister of War
cannot persuade himself that a soldier who has
neither a bayonet nor • sabre at his side can be as
respected or loved—this is put of a soldier's rights
—as one who has no such means of making him-
self feared. He seems to forget that they would
still have belts with buckles.
I have only three lines of gossip to Bend. The
Princess Frederick of Augustenberg, wife of the
Bleswig-Holstein pretender, is said to have been
invited to visit the Queen at Coburg. This
will probably be interpreted into a sort of moral
'support offered by England to the lady's husband,
for on the continent such acts of politeness are
always supposed to indicate a political leaning. In
the present state of the question, when it is still
doubtful whether the liberation of the Duchies
from the Danish yoke may not produce a German
I war, we English know that such an interpretation
is unwarranted. The Queen of England can receive
whom she pleases without giving the public
press the right to pin political importance to her
private reception of distinguished persons. As
next in rank to the Princess, Abd-el-Kader's visit
to Brest to-morrow to be present at the meeting
for the second time of the two squadrons is to be
chronicled. He goes with a suite of some 20

persons.
I have had to send you, if not theatrical news, at I
least gossip connected with the theatre, thanks to
M. de Ginzdin. Until something fresh turns up
I shall be silent on the subject, after mentioning
that be printed in the Pram of last night some
verses written in his own praise. Let him, like
everyone, have his due. The public is much mom
likely to be interested in the announcement that
Offenbach is engaged in writing music for Molihre's
Bourgeois Gentilhornme.
Mr. Russell's account of the voyage of the Great
Eastern with the Atlantic cable has given so great
an interest to the enterprise that most of the French
papers have begun the translation of his log.
In the last week the manufacture of machinery
has received a fresh impulse. Spain, Italy, and
Switzerland have added to the local demand.
The retail houses have done a great business in the
last week, thanks to the crowd of travellers who
have thronged Paris for the rather abortive festivi-
ties of the 15th. All the more and, more generally,
less useful articles which make so tempting a dis-
play in the shop-windows of the boulevards and the
I Palais Royal have been carried off by those good
folk who, of course, could not return to their vil-
lages without some such tangible proof that they
had really visited the capital.
In the wine growing districts the prospect of
abundance is so good that business is at a stand
still. The effect is worth noting ; while in some
districts they boast of the splendid vintage which is
certain, there are others, where there is old wine
for sale, which predict all aorta of calamities as
likely to destroy it entirely.

Mosrozna.--The statistics of carder in gogiand
do not give Ages of the &ohne ol this pottoot of prima.
The another of oonvitions tor minim sus bat 153 in tie I
tee years 1022431 ; it advanced to 172 is the Ma yews
1.83241, to 179 Mie ton yew* 1842451, and to 182 I. the
me veers 1852.81; it rose to 28 in 1862, 29 ia 1863, and 32 I
is 1864, the last three years averaging nook, ar doable
the useego of 40 years ago. The esseations few murder
wont 132 is the tea years 1822-31, 103 in the tea yams
1832.41,166 is the tea years 1842.51,104 is the ten jests
1452.81, lb is 1482 ions committed suiside), 29 is 1863, 19
in 1964. The verdiets of murder fogad hr 014•410 r juries
avenged 209 a year is the six years 185641 ; they yea
In in 1963, 270 in 1963, 246 in 1964. The tune latiooily
of these isquerts were upon infests, whose list year of life
II .Lo their last.