The Sun.
London, England, 1848-09-18 00:00:00

MONDAY EVENING, SEPTEMBER 18, 1848

death in all cases. It arose on the sth Article of the
Constitution :
" Art. 5. Tho punishment of death is abolished in po-
litical matters."
The President—On this article several amendments
have been presented. The most extreme one is that of
M. Coquerel, which says, " the punishment of death is
abolished."
N. Coquerel said that his amendment required hut a
few arguments in its favour. They appeared to be these
—That since capital punishments had been abolished for
offences against the person, such offences had much
declined; that it was to be contested that man had a
right to take away the life of fellow-man; that the
punishment of death did not correct—(Loud laughter)—
did not correct by example; and that it cut man off from
all opportunity of repentance. The Hon. Representative
concluded by declaring that the new constitution could
not bear a more noble mark of high morality than by
adopting the principle which he advocated.
M. Reblon examined the question on the points of its
utility and its legality, and came to the conclusion that
neither the one nor the other could be satisfactorily
established.
M. de Tracy also spoke at some length egainst the
eunishment of death.
M. Lagrange observed that the punishment of death
was quite inefficient, inasmuch as it. was not one which
had any terrors for Frenchmen.
M. Laboulie said, he should heartily support any
amendment which would have the effect of doing away
with the penalty of death. lie was convinced that the
punishment
of transportation, if properly carried into
effect, would tend more to the repression of crime, and
that was the sole object of the laws. Fociety had a
right to defend itself, but not to act with vengeance.
M. Vivien, in the name of the Committee, begged
to explain the bearing of the rote which it had de-
manded from the Assembly. It had never been the in•
tendon of the Committee, to oppose the abolition of
the penalty of death in every CASO, and to place itself
.n opposition to the march of civilization, which evidently
could not halt until it had attained that object. Ile
anly asked the Assembly to confine its vote to what
was proposed by the Committee.until the peed. laws had
been reformed, and the penitentiary system organized,
when the work might be completed. It was with deep
regret he felt himself compelled to oppose the generous
sentiments he had heard expressed, but he believed that
heir adoption would, be at present attended with danger
society, and that by removing that curb the door might
be opened to fresh crimes, and disastrous cons, quences
be produced. It was fur that reason alone he felt com-
pelled to call for the rejection of the proposed amend-
tnents.
M. Victor Hugo said that a constitution made by and
"or, the French people ought to be a forward step in civi •
I'z akin and as the penalty of death was the special and
permanent character of barbarism, it should be effaced
from the code. The eighteenth century had had the
hinour of abolishing torture, let then the nineteenth have
it. at of abolishing the penalty of death. lie should,
,herefore, vote for the pure, simple, and definitive aboli-
tion of that penalty.—(Hear, hear.)
M. Aylies said that it was certainly a painful thing to
be compelled to say that circumstances of public safety
might sometimes render it necessary for society to exact
the sacrifice of life, but those who wished to remove that
o indition of order and security were, in fact, opposed to
inat progress which they wished to defend.—(Murmurs
from the Left.) Ile could not understand those murmurs
against a system of legislation which was accepted by all
nations as a condition of civilization.—(Renewed mur-
murs from the Left, and approbation from the Right.)
the question, he said, was not new ; it had long occu-
pied the attention of the most eminent mere Tho
strongest argument that had been brought forward
against it was the fallibility of bums.n judgment. Those
certainly were very powerful considers:ions, bat let
those who brought them forward be candid, arid say that
it was not without great difficulty that one or two errors
of the eon could be found in the course of a century.
Even those, he admitted, were too many, and could not
be too deeply regretted. Let those men whose profes•
simnel duties brought them in contact with the greatest
itninals be questioned on the subject, and they would
say that amongst the most desperate it was only the
penalty of death which made them hesitate, and that the
dread of any other punishment had no effect on them.
Let, then, the penalty of death be applied, but in par-
ticular cases ; but he must entreat the Assembly not to
vote its entire abolition.
M. Victor Lefranc said he considered the argument of
M. Vivien of deferring the abolition of the penalty of
death until the penitentiary system had been completed,
as a reason why it should not be any longer maintained,
and he should therefore vote for the amendment,
M. Freslon—ln ascending the tribune I yield to an
absolute duty of conscience, for a man must have a very
firm cons iction to demand the maintenance of the terri-
ble punishment of death. But before the question of
humanity comes that of security. We have been told
that, in succession, the said punishment has almost dis-
appeared from our various codes. That is true; and my
opinicn is that eventually, according as civilization ex-
tends and advances, this punishment will disappear alto-
gether. But I deny that the present momeet is favour-
able for the purpose. Remember the dreadful murder
committed some time back at Paris in the higher circles,
and be certain that so strong is the feeling that death was
deserved by the murderer in that case, that if the people
found that death did not -ensue, they would have exe-
cuted justice themselves. I do not believe that the
public feeling in France is sufficiently prepared fur the
total abolition of this punishment; and I am of opinion
that if you tote in that sense you will leave the door
open to numerous crimes.
Loud cries here arose of " Adjourn, adjourn!'—
" Monday, Monday !"
The Assembly, being consulted, decided that the dis-
cussion should be proceeded with on Monday.
The elections commenced in Paris yesterday, and
as there 180 candidates it is almost impossible even
to conjecture on whom success will ultimately fall.
Tire votes of the army and of the Invalides have been
already taken, and they are as follows :
VOTES OF THE ARMY.
Louis Napoleon ...
Adam ••• •••
Fould
Girardin
Bugeaud
Delessert
There ••• •••
Roger (du Nord)
Cabet

... 4,760
... 2,717
... 2,710
... 2,319
... 2,220
... 1,922
... 900
... 811
... 671

Raspail ••• ••• ••• 579
HOTEL DES INVALIDEB.—Number of Votcrs, 2,406.
Louis-Nepoleon 2,151
Niy de la Moscowa ... 529
Dumoulin
... 454
Dupetit-Thouars 373
Girardin ... 359
General Piet ••• ... 349
Marshal Bugeaud 327
The Journal des Debats supports the candidature of
M. EDMOND ADAM in opposition to that of Marshal
BUG EA UD, who, notwithstanding he was the gaoler
of the Duchess DE BERRI at Blaye, is now the Legi-
tamist candidate for Paris.
At the meeting of electors of the Cour des Fon-
teines, held on Friday evening, after hearing the re-
ports of ten delegates, who had been sent by it on
Wednesday into all the arrondissements of Paris, to
ascertain, by visiting the committees and clubs, and
the principal
most
of the press, which list of can-
didates was most likely to contend with advantage
with the list of the ultra-democrats, the electors pre-
sent came to a unanimous resolution that they would
support MM. EDMOND ADAM, ACIIILLE FOULD, and
ROGER (Du Nord), and would immediately take all
necessary steps to induce the other candidates of the
moderate Republic to make a sacrifice, for the sake of
unity, of their desire to represent their fellow-citizens
in the National Assembly.
A very numerous meeting of electors of the mo-
derate party was held on Saturday morning in one
of the rooms of the Bourse, for the purpose of decid-
ing as to the candidates to be supported at the present
elections. After considerable discussion the names
of several candidates were proposed and rejected, and
the following were finally adopted, viz , MM. FOULD.
DELESSERT, and Marshal BUGEAUD. At the same
time a meeting of the Socialist and ultra. democratic
party was held in the hall of the Bourse. It was by
no means numerously attended, but great violence
twhaesNexorhdib, as
sd by those who were present.
appears thatas
aLocandidateuis NAPOLEON
for
the
de
B osapra Ar
department
t
has
offeredhimself of
well as for that of the Seine, and that
the walls
of Lille are covered with his placards, an-
nouncing that he will accept the representation if he
should be elected.
The Prefect of the Seine decided that the inscrip-
tion lists for the election should not be closed till
Saturday
night at twelve o'clock throughout the
department ; and that the balloting, instead of being
closed at six o'clock on Monday, should remain open
till nine.
The general scrutiny of the votes to be given at
the present Paris election will be made on Thursday,
at the Hotel de Ville, by a
general and public meet-
ing of all the mayors of arrondissements, having for
president the senior in age. This sitting will be
opened at nine in the morning.
There was some excitement in Paris on Saturday
ig ht, but not more than is usually exhibited in every
great city on the eve of a contested election. There
was an attempt made to tear down a placard, recom-
mending Ti
"Alien' as a candidate, which gave rise to
some little confusion, but the public tranquillity was
not interrupted. The polling went on steadily during
the whole of yesterday, and up to the hour the post
left, Paris was perfectly tranquil.
The conductors of the Legitimatist organ the Memo-
rial Bordelais, having with that delicacy of feeling that
fine sense of Christian charity, and that sacred regard
far truth which has ever characterised the part/ pretre,
thought proper to revive certain false and calumnious
libels on the memory of the father of General

CAVAIGNAC, have been thus replied to by the General
himself in the pages of the lionileur :
The Memorial Bortlelais, in commenting on the re-
marks
made by me in the National Assembly on the
2d inst., has considered it useful to the opinions which it
represents to open its columns to an imputation long
since refuted relative to the political life of my father.
Its publication has taken place wilh an eagernes, which
can be readily understood on the part of the, ournals
which du not wish that any one should declare himself
the irreconcilable enemy of those who seek to overthrow
the Republic. My present reply will consist in the
simple publication of the following documents:-
1. Extract of the minutes of the sitting of the Na-
tional Convention on the 13th Prairial, An. 3 (Presider t
Mathieu).
After having communicated the documents relative to
the denunciations made against some members of the
Convention, Citizen Durand Maillanne concluded by
saying—" Cavaignac, who then presided at the popular
society of Audi, is accused of having shared in the sen-
timents of D—, either by replying to his motions, or
by putting them to the vote."
'lardy (Seine Inferieure)—After the reading of thole
documents, I demand the arrest of
Some voices—And of Cavaignac.
Rewlyll—These are only cx!ravagant motions, and
only deserve to be treated with couterept.
Boursault—lt is not only a motion tending to sacri-
fice the lives of a great part of the Convention—it is a
criminal project, which deserves to be punished. I de-
mand the arrest.
Clazel—l shall not de fend D—, because it ap-
pears to me that no one can do so, but it is for
Cavaignac that I shall speak. I know that he pre
sided at the popular society of Auch at the time
when D— made his execrable motions. I know that
if he did not support them, he at least put them to the
vote without opposing them ; but let us call to mind the
time at which this took place ; we then groaned under
the tyranny of Robespierre', and D—, his Lieutenant
in the Gers, would not have hesitated to bring Cavaignac
hither, bound hands and feet, if he had dared to oppoie
his atrocious propositions. It must not be .conclueed,
because Cavaignac put them to the vote that he ep-
proved of them ; for we see every day that our Presi-
dent is compelled by the functions which he fulfils to
put motions to the vote which ho cannot approve of ;
witness our colleague Vernier in the evening of the Ist
Prairial. No doubt can be consequently thrown on the
probity and virtues of that respectable man. The probity
and the hatas of Cavaignac are equally well known ; it
may be remembered that he was on a mission in the de-
partment of Britanny on the 31st May, and as coon as
he learnt the news of that disastrous day, he made a
protest hich was published ; it was not applauding
tyranny, or participating in its Lets to protest against
him who had founded it. It is besides known how Ca-
vaignac conducted himself since the 9th Thermidor, and
latterly with the army of the Rhine.
then, we demand only the arrest of

Rew bell—lf 1) made a motion to have a part of
his colleagues executed, there is no doubt he ought to be
provisionally arrested. But for Cavaignac—
Numer,us Voices—lt is not demanded that he should
be arrested.

allmis—ln the days of the Ist, 2d, and 3d Prairial
Cavaignac evinced the greatest courage; he never left
me, and he perfectly seconded me iu my painful and
delicate functions—
SvveralVoices—There is no questionabGut Cavaignac.
Dumont de Calvados—l wish also to say with regard
to Cavaignac—
Numerous Voices—There is no longer any question
about him. Put the arrest of D— to the lute.
The arrest of D— is decreed, and teals will imme-
diately be placed on his papers.
2. Extract from the minutes of the sitting of the Na-
tional Convention of the 27th Thermidor, An. 3.
Lecomtc—l do not see that the Committee has com-
municated all the denunciations n hich have been made,
and particularly of two very strong ones against out
colleague Cavaiguac, which are common to him with
Pipet, during their mission in the Pyrenees.
At the period when this was published, it required a
certain degree of courage for a person to show himself
just towards a conventionalist.
In 1844 the Quutidienne reproduced the same calltmny;
my brother Godfrey obtabed the following retractation:
"In an article of the Quotidienne of the 21st May (the
retractation was made on the 29th), we noticed the seen-

cation made against a Member of the Convention, M.
Cavaignac, of having in the department of the Landes,
imposed the dishonour of a daughter as the price of the
safety of her father. M. Gedefroy de Cavaignac, son of
the conventionalist, saw in the two last lines of the article
a personal confirmation given by us to the fact alleged.
We confined ourselves to noticing the fact, according to

a publicatio❑ which was unknown to M. Cavaigiute,
jun. M. Cavaignac is right in reckoning our good faith,
and wo declare, with pleasure, that the explanations
which have been given us, shows us in the most complete
manner that the accusation was void of foundation."

Boissy d'Anglas President—l demand to be heard ; I
wi,h to oppose the propositions of Thibaut and Lecomte.
That of Lecomte, in the first place, becausethedenun-

ciation against Cavaignac was presented to the Conven-
tion in the first report of the Committee, made by
Durand Maiflute, and that, on that ill-founded denun-
ciation, it passed to the order of the day.
3. Letter of M. Alexis Eymery, director of the lifer-
cure de France, to Mme. Cavaignae (published in the.
Moniteur of 27th September, 1816).
" Paris, 23d September, 1816.
" Madame,--As you have proved to me the falsity of
the imputation relative to M. de Lab:mere and ht
dauAter, published in the article on your husband, is
the small conventional biography of which M. Baptistii
de Moul ices is the author, and as nothing appears to b
more just than y ou demand, I hastened to cause the rec-
tification of that error which was commited in wof ks
printed previously to that of M. de Mouliero'f. If my
letter can he of any service to you I willingly consent to
your making it public by inserting it in the journals.
"A. EYMERY."
It is certain that Mile. Labarrare' who, according t(•
biographies, bail disappeared from Dax some days afro,
the death of her father, and had never afterwards been
seen, had, in fact, never quitted Dux. She there con-
tracted a very honourable marriage, and, •in 1835, hot
son, by this marriage, protesting by his conduct against;
a calumny which had fallen upon his mother as well as
upon my own father, gave spontaneously to my brothet
Godefroy his assistance as advocate in the prose cutioe
before the Chamber of Peers, and founded this offer c
his services upon the necessity of a mutual refutation of
an atrocious imputation.
(Signed) General E. CAVAIGNAC.
We give the above for the purpose of impressing
on the mind of the English public that it is necessary
to receive with the greatest caution the statements tf
the French Legitimatists and Jesuits who have take'
refuge in this country. They make no scruple of
repeating a fifty-times refuted falsehood, if by so do-
ing they can inflict pain or injury on a political
opponent.

The Mond eur announces that M. DE Thom, Chan
cellor of the Austrian Embassy, has sent to M. Bets
TIDE his credentials as Chargé d'Affaires for Austri,
to the Republic

The Moniteur publishes a decree of the Exccutil

Government removing:a duty imposed by a decree oi
the Executive Committee, on the 17th June, 1848, on
iron castings of all kinds and on copper and zinc.

The Mo- niteur also publishes the decree for tht
alterations in the decoration of the Legion of Honour.

According to this, the:crown which surmounts the
star is suppressed ; the centre of the star will present
on one bide the head of BONAPARTE, with the exergut.
—Bonaparte, Premier Consul, 19th Mai, 1862; any
on the other, the two flags, which are now placed on
it, with this exergue—Republique Francaise, and in
the centre—Honneur et Patrie. The star of the
grand officer and grand cross is to bear the c ffigy of
BONAPARTE, with the exergue of Bonaparte, Premier
Consul ; Honneur et Patric.
M. FREDERIC DE RAUNIER on Friday banded to
General CAVAIGNAC a letter from the Archduke Joins
of Austria, announcing to the Government of the
Republic that the Diet of Frankfort had placed
in his hands the central and federative Government of
Germany.
M, DE PONTECOULANT, 55 years of age, was on Friday
brought to trial before the Tribunal of Correctional
Police, on the charge of, whilst acting as a public
functionary, taking away papers from the Tuileries.
On the 24th February, M. DE PONTECOULANT, after
combatting on the Place du Palais Royal, entered
the Tuileries with the people, and found in some of
the apartments, especially those of the Prince DE
JOINVILLE, the most frightful disorder, the floors
being strewed with maps, books, letters, Knd papers
torn to pieces. A large quantity of rum :TA been
found and consumed by the people in the PRINCE'S
apartments. Some days later the prisoner tent to
M. ARAGO, Minister of Marine, and represented to
him the importance of saving the maps, scientific
memoirs, and valuable papers. M. ARAGO accord-
ingly gave him and another persona mission to col-
lect all such papers as concerned the marine depart-
ment, and the Prefect of Police also gave him a mis-
sion to classify the papers. The prisoner sent upwards
of 350 packages of papers to the Marine department, and
a considerable number to the War department. After
his being entrusted with this mission, the Provisional
Government learned that the prisoner had been to
London, and had given up to the Prince de Joinville
the deed relative to the property of the Princess in
Brazil. On this, a search was made in his house, and a
number of letters written to or by members of the
Royal Family, and a book called " Ilistoire de l'Or-
leanais," belonging to the library, were found. Some
time after, a newspaper, called the Drapeau de la Re-
publique, announced that it would publish, under the
title " Portefeuille de Louis PHILIPPE," a series of
letters and documents calculated to excite public cu-
riosity to the highest degree. A search for these
papers was made by. the authorities in the offices of
the newspaper, but without success. The pnatter of
the paper, however, declared that M. DE FONTECOII•

LANT had communicated to him a letter from the
Duke DE NEMOURS to the Pr: 'we DE JOINVILLE, dated
16th May, 1847, an anonyu taws note recommending
the KING to get rid of certai a -Litutenant-Generals,
a letter from the KING to Gel. *rat SEBASTIAN', rela-
tive to the marriage of Queen VICTORIA, a memoir
addressed to the KING in 18 0 by M. ST. ALBIN,
containing political advice, a a. 1 a letter from the
KING to the Porz on thee latter's refusal to
sanction the promotion of : a clergyman to
the episcopacy. The prisone' admitted that he bad
taken away papers belonging to the Prince DE JOIN-
VILLE, but said it was on the 14th February, before
he was entrusted with
.any 1 mission. A sentinel had
ellowed
.him to pass with t be m without difficulty.
lle also admitted that he had fot and diamonds belong-
ing to the Princess, as also the d eeds of her Brazilian
property. He took the papers a ud objects belonging

to the PRINCE to Brussels, to dt posit them in a place
of safety ; but he insisted thut he did so before he
was officially entrusted with Om tail of arranging
the pipets. He subsequently went to Claremont,
and gave up the deeds and pa,pe rs belonging to the
PRINCE and the PRINCESS. He, took great interest in
the limier.; because his Royal Iliglincss had been
good to him. He denied that Ise had communicated
any documents to the new 'piper, except a letter
written by the PRINCE in 1831 c in which he predicted
w hat happened in 1848. TI to note relative to the

generals he had found on the g round, and as it was
not signed, be saw no improi iety in publishing it.
He had since learned that it hi. i( 1 been drawn up by a
general. The papers he had mc w in his possession

were a letter from the Princes 3 DE JOINVILLE rind

another from Queen VICTORIA to Mme. ADELAIDE,
the latter expressing congratula dons on the birth of
the Count DR PARIS. After a a peech from the pri-
:ioner's counsel, the Tribunal a:An ounce(' that it would
pronounce judgment on Tuesdr.y .
In the Passage of the Opera yea terday a considerable

number of spectators assembled., and a large amount
of business was done below the •closing prices of yes-
terday at the Bourse. At me tine the Five per
Cents. were as low as 681. 50v. , but they closed at
61f. 60c.

The Nouvelliste of Marseilleg says :—" The steamer
Hellespont left Marseilles a few..4-tys ago and touched
at Toulon, where she embarked.. :in the arsenal a quan-
tity of muskets and gunpolvdd!r, which she is to
deposit at Malta. We are a: ss tired that these arms
and ammunition are intended fof • the Sicilians."

3IJSINESS DONE IN FOREIG.% RAILWAYS AT TUE
LONDON STOCK-EXCI ILA .NGE. Sm.'''. 16.

Central of France (Orleans anti. Vierzon), 614 ex div.—
Northern of France, 6%—Paris a ad Lyons, 4A—Paris and
Stras4ourg, OA—Rouen and Havi e,. 71.

SPAINi .

Madrid papers of the 13th have arrived. Their
contents are unimportant. Gemeral CORDOTA had
set out from Madrid for Catalor

PORTUG AL.

We received advices from LLisbon of the 10th, by
the steam-ship Jupiter, which a-,..,.rived at Southampton
on Saturday. An order had Ix en issued on the 7th
to place ships coming from Ex igland under quaran-
tine, in consequence of a rumour that the cholera had
appeared in London ; but it was rescinded on the
following day. Lisbon and Of Kato were tranquil. It
was reported that COSTA CALatk.t. was about to be
sent as ambassador to Madrid.