The Sun.
London, England, 1864-02-10 00:00:00

At;e44<4

P-e.

which t is supposed the law as iit stands does not
t which, as proposed to b amended, would
have been conferred, he determine d upon instituting
forth(); inquiry. What would he.ve been the step
have I
n ? Townley must
first tak*:it en respited. In
putting 0.0 case argumentatively, we are entitled
to take it th at the certificate couli I not have been
aoq, indeed, a law of thiskind
an inquiry at the eloa euth hour, and
must
c senton t
eema rpl
ae
tr
e;
of necessity, where the Home Secretary entertains
a doubt, the respite of the convict during further
inquiry. In fact, there would have been very little
if any difference in the proceedings. Of course,
under the amended law, Townley would not have
been sent to Pentonville. It cannot be intended
that in cases where the Home Secretary is cm_
pelted to respite a convict to admit of fur her in-
quiry being made, a commutation of the punish-
ment is to follow as of course, t.tiough he be proved
to be perfectly sane. But take another case, and
one that can easily occur uneei- the law es it is
proposed to be amended. Say that the inquiry
ordered and conducted by the vis:ting justices and
registered medical men results in a certificate of
the prisoner's sanity. Does anybody thick that
when a prisoner has money to em ploy an amity
attorney it will not be possible to instil :OMO
doubt into the mind of the) Home Secretary and
obtain a further inquiry? While, on the other
hand, if the prisoner be poor and friendless, v:hat
will there be in the certificate to raise a doubt
which might possibly be the tenons of ectablishing
his insanity ? In practice, it seems but too pro-
bable that the rich criminal would, under the
amended law, maintain, at least, the advantage he
now has over the poor criminal, unless the Home
Secretary were to order a further inquiry in every
case, and, if that is to be understood, these amend- "
ments might be very much simplified.

The Heroic Veteran—Count Flahault.

ONE OF THE LAST OF THE CHIVALROUS FOL-
LOWERS OF THE GREAT NAPOLEON !
For the following singularly interesting account
of the career of the Count Flahault we are indebted
to the pen of the Paris correspondent of our leading
contemporary:—
The appointment of Count Flahault to the post of
Grand Chancellor of the Legion of Honour has
given general satisfaction. It is remembered that
he was a soldier two years before the order of which
he is now the head was founded by the First Con-
sul; and which, though often bestowed prodigally,
the genius of the founder seems to have preserved
in all vicissitudes from degradation or decay. Count
Flahault is the most illustrious survivor of that
wonderful period which comprises the Consulate end
the Empire,under which he held a prominent place.
He witnessed not merely as a spectator, but as an
actor, the tremendous struggles which shook Europe
to its foundations ; and was not the least in those
days when there were giants in the land. There arc
persons who figure as heroes in works of fiction with.
less of the romantic in their career than the Chan-
cellor of the Legion of Honour. He was born in
Paris in 1785, when the first moaning of the
tempest which was to sweep everything before
it was heard. His father was an officer of
rank in the French army and died on the
scaffold during the Reign of Terror, on the
charge of incivism and of being an aristocrat. The
friends of the family succeeded in conveying the
orphan child to England, where he was put to
school. The story goes that he suffered no small
torment from his comrades merely on account of his
nationality; so that whereas the Parisian Terrorists
put the father to death for not being sufficiently
national, the son was persecuted at school for
being too much so. When order was restored by
the strong hand of Bonaparte, M. Flahault returned
to France, but not to lead a life of inactivity. It
was a stirring period. The renown of Marceau,
General at 24, dying the death of a hero at 27, and
over whose grave the enemy as well as his own
army paid military honours; of Hoche, to whose
other well-earned titles was added that of " Pacifi-
cator of La Vendee," and who died, full of glory, at
29; and of others destined to a still loftier flight,
not to speak of the greatest of all, attracted to the
ranks of the army the youth of France. Bonaparte
was then preparing for his Italian campaign and -
for the victory of Marengo, which secured the sub-
mission of Italy, broke iu pieces the second coa-
lition, and ended in the peace of Lunt ills.
Young Flahault enrolled himself in the corps of
volunteers attached to the army under the First
Consul. At such a time, in such an army,
and under such a leader, gallantry in the field
1114 sure not to pass unnoticed or unrewarded -
and as the merits of the young soldier of fortune
were of a high order, be met with rapid promotion.
He was successively appointed to the staff of ll urat,
Berthier, and Napoleon himself, and served with
great distinction in the campaigns of Portugal,
Germany, and Russia. He was named General of
Brigade, General of Division. and Count of the
Empire in 1813. During the desperate struggle
maintained against such fearful odds by Napoleon
on the French territory in 1814, Count Flahault
was selected to conduct the negotiations for an
armistice at Lusigny with the allies, bat the nego-
tiations were broken off the day Troyes was retaken;
the propositions of the negotiator being considered
inadmissible by the Powers. A merit beyond that
of the mere soldier attaches to Count Flahault's
name. He was not one of those to whom could be
applied the sarcasm which the ingratitude of those
who worshipped him while he was all-powerful,
and who abandoned him in his adversity, wrung
from the Emperor. Count Flahault's devotion
to his chief was the same to the last ; it
was pushed even to rashness. Having nobly
borne his part in the final struggle of Water-
loo, he did not yet despair; and after the abdica-
tion of Napoleon he headed, with Lucien and Labe-
doyere, the Imperial party in the Chamber of Peers,
of which he was a member, and made the most des-
perate efforts to sustain the dynasty in the person of
Napoleon's son. What a moment that was when
Ney rushed in while Davoust was reading his
report of the military resources that yet remained
to France in a most favourable point of view, end
announced that it was all illusion ; that it was ab-
surd to suppose that 60,000 men could then be
rallied; that Marshal Grouchy could hardly mus-
ter 10,000 or 15,000; that the Prussians were not
beaten, and that the allies would be at the gates
of the capital in six or seven days !
In the midst of the vehement agitation which
followed these tidings Flahault did not despair ;
and he, Lucien, Joseph, and Labedoyere pro-
claimed Napoleon 11. Their efforts were -vein ; the
Government of France was to be decided otherwise
than by debates in either the Peers or the Depu-
ties.'
When all was over, among those who were
forced to emigrate was Count Flahault. Owing,
I believe, to the influence of Prince Talley-
ilehsissoonnamafeter wthase ssetcrounedk
or af n
edx,
reesatotratei fo
n the
f hi et
Bourbons, and he was enabled
to return to France.
The Revolution of July
restored him to his seat in
the Chamber of Peers and to his rank in the army.
He was subsequently attached to the military
household of the Duke of Orleans, had several dip-
lomatic missions entrusted to him, and held the
post of Ambassador to Vienna from 1842 to the
Revolution of 1848. As General of Division he
was placed on the reserve of the army in 1849.
On the sth May, 1838, he had been named Knight
Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour, of which he
now is Grand Chancellor.
Few have passed through more vicissitudes of
good and adverse fortune than Count Flahault:
As one of the oldest and most faithful followers of
the first Napoleon it was natural that he should be
highly considered by the third of the name, whom
he represented as Ambassador in London, after
having represented Louis Philippe at Vienna.
Count Flahault is so well known in England that
it is superfluous to say his nobleness of character,
distinction of manner, and kindness of disposition
have grined him as much goodwill there as in. bis
native country, and that his friends on boat! sides
of the Channel have learnt with equal sat)y at,„
the honour so appropriately conferred
t entlemen of
nephew on one of the most gallant g
uncle's court and camp.
—see

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