The Sun.
London, England, 1870-08-16 00:00:00

German corps are sweeping round in two semi-
circles towards a centre of junction beyond Metz and
Nancy. Part of the Crown Prince's army has, in fact,
already entered Nancy ; poor MacMahon's "chawed-up "
corps having fallen back upon Chalons. Another large
portion of the South German host has advanced per-
pendicularly from the Vosges up to Château Salim. This
place lies between Metz and Nancy, but some leagues
nearer Germany, so that the three towns form a triangle
Metz and Nancy lying at the north and south points,
and Château Salins at the eastern point. Well, the
main body of the Crown Prince's army is supposed
to be (nothing is certainly known of the
Prussians) at Château Salins, and therefore must
be within very easy reach of the other two armies. But
a portion of the army of the Crown Prince is further ad-
vanced into France. Nancy, as already stated, has been
occupied, and squadrons of cavalry have been seen at
Pont-h-Mousson, on the Moselle, directly between
Nancy and Metz. The French commanders seem.to have
decided to fall back and fight further in the interior.
Indeed, 'Bazaine's army must fight or retreat
immediately, or a German advance through
Nancy will cut it off from France.- These backward
movements are, no doubt, the best for the interests of the
nation, but it is not surprising that they render us terribly
gloomy here. Already the army that was to take Berlin
has abandoned more than one-fifth part of France to the
enemy.

More stirring scenes, very clearly presaging what will
happen if the army be beaten again, took place in the
Corps Legislatif at the last sitting or two. In the early
part of the week M. Jules Favre proposed that
a Committee of Defence be appointed to take
measures for the protection of the country from the
dangers which menace it. This was, indeed, a serious
scheme. It meant nothing more nor less than the esta-
blishment of a Directory which would supplant the Em-
peror. The commission (d' initiative parliamentaire) to
which this question was submitted proposed to reject it
by eight votes to seven. On this advice there issued a debate
on a matter of form—the Left wishing to pass more
quickly to the final consideration of the proposition ; and
in the angry conversation which took place M. Gambetta
very plainly laid before the Chamber the real question at
issue, and the true nature of the designs of himself and
his colleagues. " The point is to learn," said he, "whether
we have made our choice between the safety, of the
country, and the safety of a dynasty." The audience
displayed so much feeling at this and other expressions
of the kind that fell from the members of the Left, that
it was decided to resolve the Chamber into a secret com-
mitee to consider the matter. What happened during
this unreported debate has to some extent oozed out, and
it would appear that the Left behaVed with its customary
noisy indiscretion and want of tact, and that it displayed,
as usual, both its want of a leader and its determination
not to submit to the control of one. A. great opportunity
presents itself to the Republicans now. But they do not
go the proper way to utilize it. The War Minister, on
the other hand, conducted himself sagely. He did not
enterinto the meiitiof the question. He contented him-
self_with the constitutiohal aspect of the case, observing
that as a Minister.of the Emperor he could not listen to
a proposition which amounted virtually to dethroning his
master. Nevertheless the result was by no means so favour-
able to Napoleon,' as 'it would have been in happier times.
The proposal for a committee of defence was rejected,
but as many •ai sixty deputies voted in favour of it. As
the Left. proper does not number above thirty, several
membeis of the Left Centre must have joined the Repub-
lican ranks. That such a scheme should receive so much
support is exceedingly significative of the state of public
feeling.

M. Rochefort once more begins to excite attention.
His time was up on the eighth, but he has not yet seen
the outside of his prison. The Government is keeping
him to expiate an old, and, as it was supposed, forgotten
offence. •If , they. similarly exact the penalty of
all his misdeeds, hard will. he the fate, of
the former Paris idol, for at least two years'
imprisonment has gathered up against him at
different times, not to speak of untold sums in fines.
Clearly, however, the Government is doing wrong. As a
deputy, M. Rochefort is inviolable, except against a law
passed by the Chamber. The Chamber did pass a law
sanctioning six months' imprisonment, which has just
expired. But it sanctioned nothing more, and
therefore the retention of the Paris deputy is illegal.
Of course there can be no doubt why he is kept. The
9-overnment does not want such a man in the streets at
this critical time. He might do mischief. Below the Re-
publicans who are attempting by quiet means to get rid
pf the Emperor, there is a lower stratum, a residuum, as
Mr. Disraeli would call it, who would like nothing better
than a fair chance of polishing off the Empire by means
of a street fight.

' If we are to believe the Figaro, this class has already set
kwork to bring about this much wished-for dissolution.
t tells an alarming story of the seizure of arms. About
three o'clock on Friday afternoon, it says, a man was
passing along the Rue Poissonire, apparently
bending under the weight of a box, resembling
a hat-box, which he carried by the handle.
Passers-by noticed his movements with some curi-
osity. A police officer approached, asked him what he
carried, and on his hesitating to reply took him by the
collar. But the man, who was young and vigorous,
shook himself free by a sudden movement, and, dropping
his load, made his escape. A baker, however, threw
himself upon him, and notwithstanding his resistance and
a horrible bite on the cheek which the fugitive gave him,
succeeded in keeping his hold till the arrival of the
police, who took him to the station on the Bonle-
varde Bonne Nouvelle, to which the suspicious box
had already been removed. This was opened
in presence of its bearer, and found to contain
12 daggers, 12 revolvers, and 600 cartridges. On being
questioned, the prisoner stated that his name was Larg
nieu, that he was 23 years of age, and lived at Belleville.
During the interrogatory M. Fouquetol, a peace officer,
remarked that an individual who had slid furtively into
the station was taking down the name of the man who
had been arrested. He was at once asked who he was, and
what he did there. ' You are taking the name of the
man,' the officer said ; ` are you a journalist ? If so, I
shall march you back between four soldiers to the office of
the newspaper.' As he refused to answer, M. Fouquetol
gave orders for his arrest, and it then appeared
that he was a valet de chambre who had been
out of situation for three months ; that was all
that could be extracted from him. He was sent with the
first prisoner to gaol, and meanwhile, upon a report that
other arms were concealed in the same neighbourhood, a
rigid search was instituted. In a few minutes afterwards,
in a courtyard in the 'Rue d'Argent, a second case of arms
was found, and at the moment that it was being carried
off 'a man said that the box had, been brought out of the
house where he lived, 37, Rue d'Abouklr, and there might
be others there still. And, in fact, M. Fouquetol disco-
vered before fong, in a room in this house, belonging to a
lodger who was absent, a third box, filled, likee the two
others, with daggers and revolvers. The revolvers are of
Belgian manufacture, and very good ones. The daggers
are tremendous instruments.