The Sun.
London, England, 1840-09-19 00:00:00

PRINCE LOUIS NAPOLEON.

REPORT PRESENTED TO THE COURT OF
PEERS BY M. PERSIL, BY VIRTUE OF
THE ROYAL ORDINANCE OF AUGUST 0,
1840.
This State Paper, which was read to the Peers on
Tuesday by the Procureur du Roi, is of enormous
length, giving full details of the examination of some
fifty persons, together with comments. The following
are the only extracts interesting to the public :
One of the answers of the principal conspirator,
Prince Charles Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, in reply to
the President of the Examining Committee, has thrown
light upon the original idea and first preparations of
the insurrection. His words were, "It is not more
than a year or eighteen months since I recommenced my
correspondence and relations with France. As long as
I thought that honour forbade me from attempting
anything against the Government I remained quiet, but
when I was persecuted in Switzerland, under the pre-
text that I was planning a conspiracy (which was then
false), I from that moment began to renew my former
projects."
You will judge of the truth of this answer on learning
the fact that Louis Napoleon had scarcely arrived in
London from the United States when he published and
distributed (with the aid of his constant accomplice
Persigny) a pamphlet intended as an apology of the
Strasburg insurrection, showing the possibility of its suc-
cess and of its chances at a future period. He had
previously, in the month of February, addressed a letter
to the Commandant Mesonan, whom the Government
had placed on the retired list ; Prince Louis Napoleon
was anxious to take advantage of the discontent which
that officer had expressed in the public journals. At
that period he had not returned to Switzerland, and the
Government could not demand his expulsion, which was
not decided upon until it had full evidence of his guilty
projects in that country. In the prosecution of these
plans he left no effort untried. The preparations made for
this new attempt are the same asthose put in motion for the
Strasburg affair. As a matter of course, he had re-
course to the press, that mighty engine of modern
times for influencing public opinion, the first and most
essential link in the chain of all such enterprise. It
was put under contribution in all forms, Journals large
and small, pamphlets of various sizes, Next came the
emissaries sent into the different departments, with di-
rections to take up their residence in the garrison towns,
the army being the chief support on which Prince Louis
Napoleon counted. His agents were instructed to
watch and turn to advantage every symptom of dis-
coneent ; the soldiery were tempted with promises of
increased pay, decorations and promotion ; and to the
officers still greater allurements were held out ; it was
even proposed to form a sort of depot for, or even to en-
gage as servants, all the old discontented soldiers that
could be found, and who were likely to join their cause,
either through indigence or from having been dismissed
in consequence of misconduct.
In the same interrogatory Prince Louis Napoleon
admitted " that he had expended large sums of money
to establish and support in France certain journals to
advocate his cause ;" he refused to name those prints,
or state the amount paid to them, or the persons with
whom he kept up a correspondence, but his discretion in
this particular was the less to be regretted, as the inquiry
had brought to light important information on this head.
In consequence of the imputation against M. Crony-
Chanel of having received from the Prince 250,000£. for
a criminal purpose, nud the contradiction given to that
injurious report, M. Crouy-Chanel was examined before
the Committee ; he declared that in 1839, at the period
when the journal called the Capitols was established,
he received from Prince Louis Napoleon the sum of
140,000 E, which were expended upon that paper, or for
different. commissions which required no concealment;
that their connexion continued for only three months.
Their attention should he particularly directed to the
Prince's communication with the Commandant Mesos
non. This officer's ambition was not merely to gain over
simple soldiers, but he hoped to be able to seduce a
Field-Marshal. in the person of the Commandant of the
Department of the Nord, and if so, he would consider
himself master of the frontier in the very quarter in
which the landing was to be effected. It was highly
probable that the numerous garrisons under his orders
would folloW the example of their commander:
On being questioned by the President relative to this
project, Mesonan gave the following answer :—" I had
a long conversation on politics with a General ; he
opened his heart to me, having been irritated by certain
promotions which had taken place. He even spoke
with warmth on the subject. I did not conceal from
him that I was going to England, and that I should see
Prince Louis Napoleon there, but I made no proposal
to him on the part of the Prince."
In reply to the President, Alesonan stated that the
officer in question was General igagnan.
The Examining Committee thought it their duty to
cite the General before them, and the following is his
deposition :
" About the end of March, 1849, a person named
Lombard, an ex-surgeon, implicated in the Strasburg
affe.ir, was staying at Lille, and in communication with
some officers of the garrison, whom I shall not name.
The King, on being informed by the Minister of War
and by me of their wild conduct, was pleased to extend
his indulgence to them. On the 6th of April, 1840, I
informed the Minister of Wear that the ex-Commandant
Parquin, one of the ringleaders in the Strasburg °lien tat,
had arrived at Lille, and that although I had no un-
easiness as to his attempts, 1 thought it prudent to
assemble the officers of the garrison and acquaint them
with the presence of Parquin. The latter remained only
four-and-twenty hours in Lille ; on the evening previous '
to his departure he went to the theatre and entered the
box occupied by a Major of Cuirassiers, Commandant
Granget, who immediately retired, and went tosome other
part of the house. About the same period Commandant
Mesonan arrived at Lille, and called on an old friend
of his, Captain Cabourduche, belonging to the staff,
and also visited the Colonel of the 60th Regiment. The
Colonel told him that he could not ask him to dine, as
he was engaged to dinner at General Magnan's, and
said that if he called on the General, he would no
doubt ask him to dine. The Commandant Mesonan paid
me a visit. I formerly knew him at Brest, in 1829,
and as he was an old friend of Lieutenant-General
Bourck's, I invited him to dine. There were also pre-
sent General Count Corbineau, Viscount St. Algnan,
the Prefect of the Nord, the Colonel of the 60th Re-
a,iment, and several superior officers of the garrison.
After dinner I asked Commandant Alesonan, in the pre-
sence of several, what brought him to Lille, and where
he was going to. He replied that he was proceeding
to Ghent to see some old friends. He then asked me
for some information •relative to some persons in the lat-
ter city. He also said that it was his intention to go
to England, to sec a merchant who had been a priso-
ner with hiin in England. I introdlaced him to the
Lieutenant-General Commander of the division and to
the Prefect,
and a game of whist was got up, and Mc-
sonan retired the vast of the company. He called
on the fo','“owine; morning, and was conducted to
mY s'.,utly by the aide-de,camp. lie spoke of his
leaving been placed on the retired list at the mo-
w.ant 'co expected promotion, and spoke a good deal of
his past services. I saw that he was a discontented
man, but he said nothing of his connexion with Prince
Louis. I told him that I blamed his (Mesonan's) con-
duct in Belgium, and that he ought to consider himself
very fortunate to have been placed on the retired list.
On a subsequent visit he handed me a letter, commenc-
ing, " My dear Commandant Mesonan—You will offer
him, on my part, 100,0001. and 300,300 f. which I will
lodge with any banker in Paris whom he may appoint,
in case he should lose his appointment." I stopped,
my indignation was roused, I turned over the leaf,
and I found the letter was signed " Napoleon Louis."
I returned the letter to the Major, telling him that I
thought he ought to have esteemed me too highly to
have dared to make me such an offer ; that my motto
was, " Do your duty, no matter what results ;" that 1
had never violated nay oath, even in 1815, and that, not
wishing to serve during the first restoration, from hold-
ing the rank of captain in the Imperial Guard, and offi-
cer of the Legion of Honour, I became clerk to a no-
tary ; that my veneration for the memory of the Empe-
ror would not induce me to violate my oath ; that he
(Alcsonan) was a madman to take the nephew's side,
which I considered was ridiculous and desperate.
I added, and if' I were so base as to take the Prince's
400,000 f. it would be a robbery on my part, for if I
were to present myself to-morrow before the garrison of
Lille, and to weak any language but that of fidelity to
our oaths, the most inferior corporal would put his hand
on my throat and arrest me-s-such is the sentiment of
honour which animates the army. I said to Mesonan,
" 1 ought to arrest you, and send your letter to Paris,
but it would be unworthy of me to denounce the man to
whom I offered hospitality, and I will not do it. Make
your escape—you have still time—preserve the esteem
of your comrades by giving up this plan, and let the
army remain ignorant of what you have attempted."
Mesonan wished to reply. I opened the door of the
room and put him out, saying at the same time, " Go
and get yourself hanged somewhere else." In taking
leave of him I said, that if he would quit Lille, and did
not return, that I would not disclose his infamous pro-
posals. . The affair at present regarded me alone ; but
that I 'should act otherwise if' any of the officers under
my orders should complain to me of any attempt on the
part of Mesonan to corrupt them. Mesonan told me
that lie would leave Lille that evening, and would not
return.

After his departure I recollected the book he had
given me the evening before, and on examining it I
found it was called Letters ji•ont London. I banded
it to Colonel Paer, of the Ist Cuirassiers, in order that
he rnfAt examine whether such a book had been dis-
tributed amongst his men, and to make the same in,.
quiry of the other Cotoncls of the garrison. This
work had, in fact, been distributed the evening pre-
ceding in the barracks of the 46th Regiment. Colo-
nel Salleyx, who commanded this regiment, reported so
to me, and I transmitted his report to the Minister of
War.

'Tile same day, the 26th of June, I write 13
nlandors of paces under my orders to warn teem against
Bonapartist agents.
The first communication that I made to the Minister