The Sun.
London, England, 1854-01-10 00:00:00

UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE AND THE BALLOT IN
GENEVA.

(From the Norfolk News.)
SI; —Permit one of the most distant—but, neverthe
less,' one of the most constant—of your readers to ad-
dress, through your journal, a few words to his fellow-
countrymen about what is going on in this place. If
any apology be, needed for occupying their attention with
the affairs of a town not bigger than Yarmouth, and a
thousand miles off, I would allege the social, literary,
political, and religious importance of Geneva. Morally,
as well as physically, it is a city set upon a hill. It
stands, indeed, much higher in the 'former than in the
latter sense; for its site is but a hillock, especially in
the presence of the Jura and Mont Blanc ; whilst its
influence, as one of the chief centres of European civil-
isation; is, perhaps, greater than that of any other city
of its sizp. Early, vigilant, and successful in its efforts
to ignite the lamp of liberty during the dark ages of feu-
dalism, eager to welcome and hold forth the glorious
Word of Life at the era of the Reformation, bearing for
a long period with dignity the well-earned title of "The
Protestant Rome," it still maintains, though somewhat
fallen, a position not altogether unworthy of its ancient
fame.

Be not, however, alarmed. lam not going to write a
treatise upon Geneva, either madimval or modern. My
intention is only to say something about the election
which has just taken place here, and an account of
which I think will be interesting to your readers, for two
reasons ; first, because but little is knownin England
about Swiss institutions, notwithstanding the swarms
of English tourists who visit Swiss scenery, for they see
and describe only the mountains, not the men nor the
manners of the country ; and, secondly, because Geneva
has for some years enjoyed, what we Britons are seeking
to obtain, a perfect representation of the people in the
Legislature.

A. brief preface will explain the situation of affairs.
Everybody knows that Geneva is one of the chief can-
tons of• the Swiss Confederation. But although each
state of the little republic is itself Republican in theory,
only a small number of the cantons are actually such in
practice. Geneva, up to the year 1846, was as aristo-
cratic a city as could well be found. In that year an
absolute democracy was established, the result not of a
reform bill, but of a revolution. A quarrel had arisen
between the oligarchy who occupied the top, and the
populace who dwelt in the bottom of the town : words

14 to blows : a battle ensued, which left the people mas-
ters of the field. Mr. James Fazy, the leader of the Re-
volutionist or " Radical" party—a man of great ambi-
tion, as his opponents assert ; of great talent, as all
parties admit—became the presiding genius of the new
institutions, which he first moulded, and then adminis-
tered until November last—a period of seven years—
notwithstanding the reiterated attempts of the Conserva-
tives to drive him from power. Under the new consti,
tution they have had frequent opportunities of trying
their strength ' • for as the two component parts of the
Government—the " Great Council," or House of Com-
mons ; and the " State Council," or Cabinet of Seven—
are each chosen biennially, and on alternate years, there
is an annual appeal to the constituency, on the result of
which the fate of the Government depends. This con-
stituency is as wide and as free as possible, for the
suffrage is universal, and the voter is protected by the
ballot. Under these circumstances, as might have been
expected,-the many remained for some time faithful to
the chief, whom they regarded as the author of their
enfranchisement, and who, doubtless, calculated on a
lengthened, if not a permanent ascendancy. But lately
the political sky of Geneva has undergone a change.
An important section of the "Radicals" became dis-
satisfied with their leader. Some were disappointed''
with the man, some with his measures. It was dis-
covered that the idol of 1846 was, after all, but human.
He was denounced as an autocrat, as a bad financier, as
a peculator, as, in short, everything which a Republican
ruler ought not to be. Whether these accusations were
true or false, I do not pretend to decide, being, at least
for the present, an historian only, not a critic. But it is
certain that they were made not merely by the Conser-
vatives, who might be supposed to have invented them,
but by many of their opponents, who can hardly have
been otherwise than sincere. Thus the two parties be-
came three by the splitting of the Radicals into the
friends and enemies of the Fazy Government ; and the
Conservatives, seeing tipir antagonists divided, con-
ceived_new hopes of dethroning at all events the revolu-
tionist dictator, if not of seating themselves in his place.
Such was the situation—a situation not unknown in
England, nor even in a certain good old city which shall
be nameless—when I arrived in Geneva. I found a
' state of things wonderfully like that which I had seen at
home on the approach of an election—party spirit very
strong ; Conservatives, who were called Aristocrats ;
Radicals, who were called Revolutionists ; and Demo-
crats, who were called Socialists and Red Republicans—
three journals, each ascribing every possible excellence
to its own section, and every possible demerit to the
others ; 'citizens influenced some by hope, more by fear,
more still by ,indifference, attacks, defences, accusations,
recriminations, insinuations, rumours, intrigues, hand-
bills, squibs in poetry and prose—in short, all the powder
and shot to which we are accustomed in political warfare.
It was to be sure rather alarming to hear all this going on
in French ; but, after awhile, I got accustomed to it—
and the more readily as I was able to detect, amidst the
hubbub, a great deal of that same good sense and pa-
triotic feeling which form the ballast of English society,
and which have so often saved us in stormy periods,
when strangers, who could only perceive the swelling
waves and the roaring wind, have been amazed that we
escaped shipwreck. But if the situation was substan-
tially familiar to me, in one respect it was new. The
coming contest was to be decided by universal suffrage
and vote by ballot. This circumstance led me to watch
the proceedings with curiosity, and to suppose that your
readers might feel an interest in reading an account of
them.

The 14th.of November last was the decisive day. • On
that day the Canton of Geneva was to choose the
" State Council" of seven, to whom the Executive Go-
vernment of the Republic is confided for two years.
The constituency is about equally divided into the inha-
tants of the town and the population of the adjoining
country. The former of course, tradesmen, are for the
most part Protestants ; the latter, tillers of the soil, are
for the most part Roman Catholics ; and at this moment
religious rivalry enters largely into the questions which
disturb the State. As with us, the canton is subdivided
into districts,. in each of which lists of the voters were
made out, printed, and publicly exhibited, for.a few days
prior to the election. As with us, two meetings were
held of the different parties ; but, until the eve of the
great day, no certain information of the opposition tac-
tics was allowed to transpire. The Fazy, or " Radical"
party, offered as their candidates, with one exception,
the members of the existing Government ; on the other
side, at the last moment, appeared a list of names which
it was understood would receive the united support of
the Democratic seceders and of the Aristocratic Con-
servatives. In other words, a "coalition," a word well
known amongst us in England was declared. The Ra-
dicals cried " treason ! treason !" The coalition, how-
ever, stood compact and resolute. The town, usually so
sedate, became greatly agitated.
But even the uproar of Geneva was sober when com-
pared to the turmoil of a Norwich election. I was,
therefore, able to anticipate the 14th without much
alarm, although some good Conservative croakers of my
acquaintance foretold riot at least, and bloodshed, if not
civil war. For a moment, indeed, I was startled, when,
on the morning of the eventful day, I heard the loud
rattle of a drum beneath my window. I was reassured,
however, when, on looking out, I saw but half a dozen
children listening very quietly to the town crier, who
was proclaiming the coming election, and who, as is
usual here, preludes all -hia,aunouncements with a rat-
tat-too.• Taking courage, I entered die -city -(nay resi-
dence is in the suburbs), and saw at once that my friends
aforesaid were indeed but croakers, and that there was
nothing to fear. Though a public holiday had been de-
clared, Geneva wore very much its accustomed appear-
ance. Ladies were shopping, coaches and cabs were
plying for hire, hucksters were selling their small wares,
and little boys were going to school or playing in the
streets. The only peculiarity was a greater number of
pedestrians than usual, the majority of whom were mov-
ing towards the top of the town, which is at once the
Capitol and the Vatican of Protestant Rome, for here
stand the Hotel de Ville, or Government palace, and
the cathedral of St. Peter, in which the elections are
held. I approached the scene of action with a caution,
which was due solely to the solemn warnings I had
received, but which was finally dismissed, as I entered
the little square in front of the cathedral. On this
spot, the Forum of Geneva, a place not bigger than
our Orford Hill, stood about three hundred persons
of all classes, not so crowded but that one might circu-
late freely among them, and a large number of whom
had their hands in their pockets, that sure sign of
pacific intentions. They were discussing earnestly,
but with perfect courtesy and good temper, the pros-
pects of the election, which I learned were exceed-
ingly doubtful, for the parties were supposed to be very
nearly balanced. Under the guidance of two friendly
citizens, I entered the cathedral, a Gothic building with
an Italian porticd—like an ancient lady. wearing a flaxen
wig. Here the very heart of Geneva was beating here
—on the very spot, and beneath, as it is said, the very
pulpit—where 300 years ago Calvin established his Pres-
byterian throne. All the church furniture had been re-
moved, the nave boarded in, and the aisles reserved as
passages, the one of entrance, and the other of exit. On
the raised floor, at the east end, sat the Electoral Com- I
mittee appointed by the Government to superintend the
proceedings. Around the upper part of the nave were
arranged a sort of hustings, where were a number of
pigeon-holes, like the delivering boxes of our Post-offices,
each marked with a different letter of the alphabet. In
each box sat an official, whose business it was to deliver
tickets or ``
bulletins" to the voters, the initial letter of
whose names corresponded to that marked on his de-
partment. In the centre, within a small inclosure
guarded by rails, stood two urns, watched by two func-
tionaries in long scarlet cloaks, who sat in the middle
silent and motionless as statues. Such was the machi-
nery. The church was full, but not closely cramnied.
' A small but continuous stream of electors came in by
the door on the left, and about an eq'ual number were
going out on the other side. The fresh comers went up,
L each to his own department, identified his name with
that_m_the_ *tinted list. and received his ticket. on