The Sun.
London, England, 1864-11-29 00:00:00

The Liberty of the Press.

The following correspondence appears in La
Presse, edited by M. Emile de Girardin
With the permission of the Duke de Persigny
we publish a letter from him and our reply to it.
" ' Charamande (Seine et Oise). Nov. 2,1864.
"`My dear M. de Girardin,—l have not restricted
myself to read the two grand passages in the red
markable book which you have had the kindness to
send me, but I have read nearly the whole of it, and
with deep interest. The parent idea, which you
elucidate with so much talent, is worthy of deep
reflection, and I am inclined to think it will finally
obtain. But it does not suffice to be in the right;
public opinion must endorse it. I fancy that, like
many eminent minds which look too far ahead for
the present age, you have anticipated public opinion.
You say in one part that since sorcerers are no
longer burnt they are no longer dangerous. This
is true ; but we do not now believe in sorcerers, but
we believe in the public press, You may endeavour
to state that the press has no influence, and there
is some truth in that, as regards the discussion of
opinions ; but many men fear the scandal which
the press may reveal, and the consequences which
may emanate from it. Moreover, I could not
understand passing at once to the position which
which you propose,

Certainly the day will arrive when the public
press in France will be as free as it is in England,
where such freedom hurts no one and is beneficial
to all; when that day dawns it will inaugurate the
end of our revolutions and confirm a regular system
of Government. But, however boldly I may take
up'the idea. I do not think that public opinion is
sufficiently prepared to accept a system which
would at once cause consternation in many inte-
rests. It is on this point that I differ with you ;
but I candidly own that this question of the press
occupies my thoughts continually, and I feel very
little inclined to support the present system without
great modifications.—l am, &c.,

_
" PERSIGNY.' "
To the above letter M. Emile de Girardin sent
the following reply :

" You write to me :

"Paris, Nov. 15, 1864.

" That it does not suffice to be in the right, but
that public opinion must endorse it. I fancy that,
like many eminent minds which see too tar ahead,
and are too quick for the age, you anticipate public
opinion.'
"Now, certainly, if there is any man in France
who has not the right to suspect those who see too
far ahead, and too quickly for the present age, men
who anticipate public opinion, allow me to tell you
that you so far anticipated public opinion, then but
indifferent, which in 1840 allowed without emotion
Prince Louis to be condemned by the Chamber of
Peers. I was present at the trial and heard the
sentence. Do not speak to me about public opinion.
It is not a word to be quoted now, it has no precise
definition, or, if it has any, it means a bundle of all
sorts of contradictory affirmations—which is equi.
valent to a negation on either side, a negation which
leads to the realms of doubt and ignorance.
" I subvert your sentence, and I say ;
" It :does not suffice that public opinion should
endorse you, you must be in the right.'
"For how long a time did public opinion, that is
to say, ignorance, support, though it was wrong,
Ptolemy who firmly maintained that it was per-
fectly ridiculous to say that the earth revolved ?

"Between an affirmation and a negation there is
but one judge, and that judge is not public opinion,
because it is itself an affirmation :and a negation,
affirming what it denies, and denying what it
affirms; it is the demonstration of error by fact, of
truth by evidence, of the correctness of theory
elucidated by the success of experience.
" Open the page of history and you will find that
sorcerers were still burnt at the stake though no
one believed in them, but that when they were no
longer burnt people ceased to believe in them
altogether.
" When the Government pays no heed to the
public press, the public soon follow in the wake of
the Government; it reads the new.r.pqrg eimply
for news and advertisements. This is what has
happened in England, in Belgium in the United
States, in Switzerland. Whit you fear, you say,
' is not the discussion of opinions, but the fear of
scandal.' If it is the fear of scandal the whole
French press requires reform. The present system
only imposes restrictions and reserves upon those
journals which hold so high a position that the
publication of scandal is interdicted to them by
that very position which they hold—a position
which they hold, or pretend to hold. There is no
law against publications which live upon scandalous
reports, indiscretions, allusions, anecdotes, squibs,
epigrams, &c. Were any of the men who were
attacked by those journals, insulted, hooted, turned
into ridicule, lauf,,,hed at, one whit the worse on the
31st of December? If they were clever, are they
not clever still? I therefore maintain that I have
the right to state on the grounds of experience I
am perfectly right, while experience has irrevocably
condemned all the successive systems which have
had the pretension of preventing or suppressing
what they call the eloesses of the public press.
"Any modification in the present laws upon the
press would be simply a return to the laws of the
Restoration of 1815 or of the Monarchy of 1830.
Better not touch it than to attempt to modify it,
for to give to the press perfect liberty, minus one
fraction, would suffice for it to declare that minus
that fraction it is not a free press.
" When the public press can declare that it is
not free, what happens ? The public, in great ma-
jority, side with the press against the Government.
If the press was perfectly free—that is to say, not
subject to any fiscal or penal laws, what would
happen ? The public, in a great majority, would
side with the Government against the press, which
it would then accuse of ignorance, inconsistency,
contradiction, exaggeration, and excess.
"The thesis which 1 advocate, because I believe
that it is the last argument of the question which
has been so long pending, is more a governmental
question than a liberal one. If the question under
consideration referred to ironclads or rifled guns,
experiments would be made. I propose
_to submit
the press to the exclusive system of contempt for
attacks of articles, and confusion of opinions. Why
not make the trial P Where is the danger ? Should
experience prove my proposal to be erroneous,
the present system would be justified—should the
result, on the contrary, justify my views, such a
triumph, the elevation of France to the same level
as England, Belgium, the United States, Italy, and
Switzerland, would be the consolidation of the new
dynasty of liberty.

" Is not this problem worthy the attention of
that special men who had studied the press in all
its points with the most carefal attention, and who
in 1863 maintained his own opinion, in which he
was right, against all the other papers, that it was
not possible for a paper only costing 40f instead of
80f to exist,

" Believe me, my dear Duke, there is no lasting
intermediary system between the impossible sup-
pression of the public press and its systematic inn•
punity combined with its fiscal decentralisation.
" All that I could grant you to hasten and ac•
complish such a decentralisation would be that the
French Government, at the same time that it abo-
lished the fiscal and penal laws as regards the
preEs, should renounce the right of forwarding by
post any newspapers except on the same condi
Lions, reserving to itself the right of forwarding its
official journal free of charge—that journal, styled
the Moniteur Tlniversel, and only costing 181 per
annum, which fall to the State, or, on the refusal
of the proprietors to sell it, calling itself the Bulle-
tinFrangais, with a circulation of at least 300,000,
which would be easily done.
" What should such a journal contain, and what
should be its size ? This is what we intend to
examine should you adopt this proposal as a bridge
to cross a river from a centralised press to the banks
of a decentralised and perfectly free press.
" Believe me, my dear Duke, in all confidential
and devoted sentiments of which this letter is the
best proof.

" EMILE DE GIRARDIN."

FAST SAILING.—The General Steam Navigation
Company's new scrow steamship Stork arrived at Granton
on Thursday night at nine o'clock, having made the
lasEage from London in 34 hours.

Naval and Military Intelligence.

Yesterday the floating shears in Chatham harbour
were removed along the entrance to No. 2 dock, in
which the ironplated frigate Bellerophon is under
construction, for the purpose of being employed in
hoisting the massive sternpost for that vessel into
the dock, whieh operation was successfully effected
under the direction of the officials of the establish-
ment. The progress made in the construction of
the Bellerophon during the last few weeks, cense•
quent on the large additional number of mechanics
and other hands placed on her is very marked.
Already nearly the whole of the inside ironplating
has been rivetted to the frames, or what would be
called the timbers in a wooden ship, in readiness
for the 18 inches of teak planking coming between
the inner and outside plating, and to which the 6.
inch armour plates will be bolted. This makes the
total thickness of iron and timber covering her sides
to be rather more than 3ft. Unlike the whole of the
iron ships hitherto completed, the Bellerophon will
be built without any of the bulkheads which form
the principal feature in the Achilles, Warrior,
Minotaur, and other vessels of that class, that system
of construction being, as is now well known, at.
tended with enormous disadvantages. In order,
however, to enable the Bellerophon to surpass in
strength and rigidity the vessels mentioned, and at
the same time to give her additional security, she
is being constructed with a double bottom, and is
thus the first vessel in the Royal Navy built on
this principle. The space between the two bottoms,
which are about 3ft apart, is formed into a number
of calls or divisions, crossing each other transversely
at right angles, the whole binding the hull solidly
together. The inner bottom of the frigate rests on
these ribs or girders, dividing the interior into sepa•
rate compartments, each of which is made watertight,
so that in the event of any accident occurring to the
ship's bottom the space in the immediate vicinity
only would be filled with water and the inner bottom
remain uninjured. In addition to the improvement
described the Bellerophon is also being constructed
with internal water-tight walls, running completely
round the frigate, and these together with the double
bottom make her, in short, a double vessel from end
to end. It will thus be readily seen that with' this
system of construction the necessity for internal
bulkheads is almost entirely done away with, as it
is obvious that no ordinary casualty could jeopardise
the safety of any vessel so built. To render her,
however, still more safe, a few watertight bulk-
heads will be constructed, but in the arrangement of
these care will be taken that they shall interfere as
little as possible with the comfort and convenience
of those destined to serve in the frigate. Beyond
the central portion of the frigate at either end the
lower deck will form an interior bottom, the
space below being rendered available for stowage,
by means of, waterwtight trunks rising above the
water-line. Already the inner plating of the
kind of bower which rises above her fighting deck
some distance is completed, end the sharp projecting
wedge-shaped prow intended to be used for cutting
down an adversary finished in readiness for its steel
covering, The tower at the bow is intended to
mount a couple of 300. pounder guns, which will fire
straight ahead when giving chase to a hostile vessel.
It is also intended to place a rifle tower on the upper
deck, rising to a height of about 12ft., and this will
be rendered shot proof by a covering of 6-inch
armour-plates. From this tower the orders will be
conveyed below by means of the telegraph, while
it will at the same time afford shelter for the steers•
mon. From the rate of progress now making there
is little doubt that the Bellerophon will be com-
pleted and out of hand during the approaching
year.

An examination was yesterday made of her Man
jesty's screw corvette Cadmus, 21, 400• horse power,
which has been placed in the third dock at Chatham,
but:the inspection failed to detect any sorio us injuries
to her screw or rudder.post, and she will accordingly
b. 2 anniatately uuatextu.

His Prussian Majesty's scrow steam corvette Vic.
toria, 14, Capt. Batch, from Gravesend, on Monday
the 21st inst., put into Plymouth Sound yesterday,
through stress of weather. Wind S.W., blowing
strong, with showers occasionally.
Col. G. Lsmbrick, Royal Marines, was yesterday
appointed Aide-de-Camp to the Queen, in the room
of Col. William F. Hopkins, C. 8., resigned.
Rear-Admiral Edward G. Fanshawe is appointed
Conservator of the Thames, vice Rearbadmiral Jas.
Stopford, resigned.
The following appointments were yesterday made
at the Admiralty :—Commander J. E. Bickford to
the Brilliant, vice Commander Skipwith, whose
period of service has expired; George Bellamy,
assistant•surgeon, to the Victory, for Haslar Hospi-
tal; Michael T. R. Rahilly,. assist..surgeon to the
Asia ; Allan C. T: Mann, nominated to a naval
cadetship ; G. Tnaker, assist.-engineer, to the Cum-
berland, as supernumerary ; B. G. Little, of the
Donegal, confirmed as second class assist.-engineer.