The Express.
London, England, 1851-04-15 00:00:00

FRANCE.

PARIS, Momnay EVENING.
The Assembly has already, de./itch', entered on its
vacation, the benches being mostly empty, and the
business of no importance. The prospective pause
has caused a corresponding abatement in the Lien-
mony with which the orhinet des riyorcitx has been
assailed by the legitimists and socialists.
M. Faucher, on taking possession of his post, im-
mcditely issued a manifesto, stimulating the prekets
to be on the alert, and not to spare the iod towards
the demagogic party. The new Minister of the In-
terior was seen at the lust sitting to shake lauds
with Changaruier, an event which, seriously, gave a
lift of seventh centimes to the ltentes.

The ministers of transition seem in general as con-
tented to resign their thorny seats as the country
mouse was to get away from the city feast hack to
his uuiet hole. M. de ltuyer is no sooner reinstated
in his dignity of Pro cureur-general of the Court of
Appeal than his old announcements of reception,
eights reappear in the legal organ, heat. M. de
Crouseilhes, the TICW Minister of Public Instruction,
seems to stand the shock of the severe attacks made
on him by the Opinion Pahlire with firmness; but,.
henceforth, having voted agamst the censure of the
Pith Jan. and for the dotation, and, lastly, accepted
office in the teeth of the violent legitimist oppositior,
he tan no longer be considered as retaining a vestige
of sympathy with his former party.
The liactio de Paris propounds, as a feeler, a
scheme for convoking an extraordinary session of the
municipal councils before May 15 to decide whether
the constitution ought to be revised or not. A plain
" Yes" or " No" on this question, without mention of
the prolongation of the President's powers, is to be
the object of the meetings. The semi-official organ
of the Elysee infers, from the enormous majority
which would decide in the affirmative, that the revi-
sion might then be undertaken without scruple by a
simple majority in the Assembly.
The opening of the holy Week was solemnised
yesterday at Notre Dame with the accustomed pomp,
by the Archbishop of l'aris; and the ancient ?cliques
of the true the crown of thorns. and nails,

cross,
were eurtied in procession. All houses, omnibuses,
and stalk were adorned with sprig* of box, which
replaces in the north the symbolic palm. In the
south the olive is used.

....--
M. de Genniny is reinstalled in his former office
of ltet,eiver-(knend of the Seine Inferieure.

M. Duelere, formerly a republican, and close
friend of the National, now a Bonapartist, is spoken
of as the candidate to be supported by the govern-
ment fur the Landes, in the elections ut• the 11th of
April. General Darrieu will take the field against
him on the parliamentary side.
A census of cattle is ordered in each commune
throughout France, simultaneously with the quin-
quennial census of the population, which falls this
year.
There was a full of 20 centimes in the Fives to-
day, which closed at 93, and of 15e. iu the Threes,
which closed at 57.45.
The bill of the government for completing the
railway from Paris to Lyons, was distributed to-day.
The duration of the concession is fixed at 99 years,
and 4 per cent interest is guaranteed during 50
years. The company undertakes to terminate at its
cost, risk, and peril, the railway comprising the
trarers. c from Lyons to Pcrrache ; to share half the
expenses of the construction of the terminus on the
peninsula of Perraehe, and to build at Vaise, wholly
at its own cost, a roofed station for merchandise and
travellers. Independently of these expenses, valued
at from 80 to 90 millions, the company engages to
reimburse to the state on the works executed one
hundred millions of francs. The periods of payment
are more favourable for the government than in the
proposals hitherto made by other companies. Twenty
millions are to be paid into the treasury before taking
possession ; twenty-two millions before the end of
next year; and the surplus is to be made payable in
ten annuities, by means of negotiable bonds,
bearing four per cent. interest. If the state
concede the prolongation of the Central Railway as
far as Rouanne, the communication by this way be-
tween Paris and Givors cannot be terminated before
the completion of the railway from Paris to Lyons,
and its connection with the railway from Lyons to
Avignon. Barring this stipulation to guarantee the
Lyons Company from the competition of the Centre,
the interests of the latter line are not touched, and
the government is free to grant the prolongation of
the central line Irons Moulins to Itouanne. The line
is divided into four sections : 1. From Paris to
Chalon ; 2. From Chalon to Macon ; 3. From Macon
to Vaise; 4. From Vaise to l'crrache. 'l'he company
undertakes to execute the works in such time that
the second section shall bo opened and working at
the expiration of three years, the third and fourth at
the end of five years from the date of the decree of''
concession. The execution of the section from Vaise
to Pcrrache may be prolonged to the term which
shall be fixed for the completion of the line
frun Lyons to Avignou. Such are briefly
the heads of the cahic•r des charges which
the company of French and English capitalists in-
dicated by Magne has offered to accept, and
which thi: Minister of Public Works recommends
, the Assembly to ratify.
An incident occurred to-day in the Assembly
which shows how the legislature is prepared to deal
with petitions for the immediate revision of the con-
stitution• and the prolongation of the President's
powers. Such a petition having been read in the

report on petitions, the Assembly immediately voted
the order of the day without debate, because the
constitution having fixed the legal period of the
revision of the constitution, and prohibited the
re-election of the present President, the petition was
unconstitutional.
The Assembly adopted by 586 votes against 28 the
bill granting a credit of six millions of francs for the
continuation of the works of fortification at Cher-
bourg.
N.,thing further of consequence occurred before the
sitting broke up.