The Sun.
London, England, 1853-04-22 00:00:00

THE FRENCH EMPIRE.

-
The members of the departmental commission
went yesterday morning to the Prefecture of the
Seine to take part in the extraordinary session for
which they had been convoked by a decree of the
Moniteur, when they were informed that the offi-
cial journal had committed *an error in its an-
nouncement, putting the 20th inst. instead of the
28th.
M. Vauchelet, historical painter, has just re-
ceived orders to decorate with allegorical figures
the carriage which is to serve for the ceremony of
the coronation. These paintings will be executed
on pannels of gilt bronze.
The Bank of Algeria discounted, during the
mouth of March, 1,244 bills of the value of
910,563 f. On the 31st of March it had in hand
1,378,157 f. of discounted bills, and 1,066,909 f. in
specie. These issue of its notes amounted to
1,700,000 f., and the accounts-current to 205,550 f.
The Emperor yesterday received the congratula-
tions of the great dignitaries on the occasion of the
anniversary of his birth, but any public demon-
stration was ordered to be postponed until the
15th of August, the day of St. Napoleon. The
I anniversary of his Majesty's birthday fell this year
on a Wednesday, which was the day of his birth
on the 20th April, 1808.
Yesterday, at half-past eleven o'clock, the new
Bishops of Coutances and Grenoble, Mgrs. Daniel
and Ginoulhiac, came to the Tuileries, and took
the oath of allegiance in presence of the Emperor.
His Majesty was seated on the throne, sur-
rounded by the dignitaries and officers of his
household, the Minister of State, and the Minister
of Public Worship. The bishops having been
introduced, the Minister of Public Worship
pronounced the usual form of oath to be
taken—namely, " I swear obedience to the
Constitution and fidelity to the Emperor."
Each of the two prelates, advancing in succession
to the Emperor, placed his hands in his, and said,
" I swear." They afterwards signed the minutes
that the oath had been duly taken. The Emperor
complimented the two bishops on their promotion,
and expressed his satisfaction at seeing them placed
in a position which would allow them to be of
greater utility to the Church.
The Emperor yesterday visited the works at the
Louvre, and expressed his satisfaction at the ra-
pidity at which they were being executed. His
Majesty first examined the works below, and then
proceeded to the galleries, his visit lasting nearly
two hours.
The Emperor has just had distributed by his
First Almoner the following sums from his privy
purse :-300f. to the Blind School of Nancy ; 100 f.
to found a girls' shool at Bagnois (Puy-de-Dome) ;
60f. to repair a school-house at Bienville, near
Compiegne : 100£ to the Sisters of Nazareth at
Bordeaux ; 100 f. to the schools of Uzerche (Cor-
reze) ; 100 f. for an orphans' establishment at
Etampes (Seine-et Oise) ; 500 f. to the Orphans'
School at Montmorency, near Paris ; 100 f. to a
girls' schgol at Estry (Calvados) ; 100 f. to the Or-
phans' School of St. Gilles (Gard) ; 100 f. to the
Miners' Children's School at Renaissance (Nord) •
80f. to the Dames de Charite (Lozere) ; and 150 f.
to M. de Thayer, for the society for the relief of
children abandoned by their parents.
A convention, destined :to improve the pos-
tal service between France and. Prussia, has
just been signed at Paris by M. Drouyn de
Lhuys, Ministers of Foreign Affairs, and M.
Thayer, the head of the French Post-office, on the
one hand, and Count de Hatzfeldt, the Prussian
Minister, and M. Metzner, of the Prussian Post-
office, on the other.

The Gazette des 11Gpitaux states a circumstance
which we consider in the highest degree impro-
bable, namely, that in the recent accouchement of
the Queen of England, chloroform was adminis-
tered to her Majesty by Dr. Snow, with the appro-
bation of Sir James Clark, Dr. Locock, and Dr.
Ferguson. The effect, it is added, was very ad-
vantageous, and the Queen expressed her satisfac-
tion at it.

The Moniteur contains an article devoted to the
consideration of the improvements that have been
effected in the residences of the working classes.
It is there stated that there are at present 70,000
persons living in furnished apartments in Paris,
exclusive of 15,000 who reside in the suburbs.
The number of buildings required to be abolished
in the embellishment of the city having produced
a temporary risQ in the price of lodgings, the official
journal states that the Government is actively oc-
cupied with the consideration of the subject. A
decree of the Emperor has already placed the sum
of 3,000,000 f. at the disposal of the Minister of the
Interior, to be distributed amongst those pro-
prietors of houses who engage to provide cheap and
salubrious lodgings.
The French funds continue rather heavy, the
1 tendency of prices being downwards, the Three per
Cents. for money having declined 40c., and for the
end of the month, 30e., and the Four-and-a-Half
per Cents. both for the account and for cash 20c.
A fall of sf. occurred in Bauk shares. Closing
prices :—For cash, Three per Cents., 80f. 10c. ;
Four-and-a-Half per Cents., 103 f. 30c. For the
account :—Three per Cents., 80f. 05c.. ; Four-and-
a-Half. per Cents., 103 f. 30c. Bank Stock, 2,730 f.
In the business of the Railway Share Market no
improvement took place, but a decline again oc-
currecLin the shares of the principal lines.