The Sun.
London, England, 1870-03-23 00:00:00

CONSTITUENT POWER IN FRANCE.

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M. Jules ?avre has submitted a proposition to the
Corps Legislatif to the effect that " the constituent power
ilial in future belong exclusively to the Corps
L6gislatif." The Committee on the Parliamen-
tary Initiative hasi reported strongly against the
motion Which it condemns as unconstitutional. Two
similar drafts of motion have been prepared by senators
themselves, one by the Count de Sartiges,3llM. Michel Che-
valier, and Boujeau ; the other by MM. de Maupas
and de Chasseloup Laubst. These content themselvek
with demanding that the power shqll be equally divided
between the head of the State, the Senate, and the Corps
Ligislatif. They are willing to retain article 5, which
gives the Emperor the right to appeal at any time
to the people, and do not object to the plebiscitum.
The Libert4 reports a rumour which is circulating in
Parisian salons, to the effect that with the sole
exception of the maintenance of Article 5, the Emperor
has entirely renounced constituent power. The
Liberty, highly applauding this intention, observes
that there are losses which are gains, and that in this list
must be classed the surrender of the monopoly of legis-
lative power by the Senate. Henceforward it will be
what the Chamber of Deputies was in France
before 1848, and, with the exception of here'
ditary succession, what the House of Lords
is in England. Republicans, adds the Liberte, will
no doubt say that this progress is in fact a retrogression of
twenty-two years, but if France during a century hak
retrograded while trying to advance, whose fault is it bbi
that of the Republicans, who, having accomplished revo-
lution in favour of liberty, are ignorant how to es ta-
llish it ?

THE DUO D'AUMALE ON THE MONT-

PENSIER DUEL.
Letters seem to be plentiful in respect to the Montpen-
sier duel. The Due d'Aumale has now joined the force
of correspondents and letters which have passed between
friends in Madrid and Paris have been published. A resi-
dent in Madrid sent the Duke an account of the duel in
which his brother was engaged. The RepublicanS,accord-
ing to this account, maintain that the Duke's conduct was
dignified and generous, as well as courageous. The public
would have been better pleased had the Infante been
only wounded. The Due d'Aumale thus comments upon
this passage :
"No doubt it would have been better, but I should
like to know a marksman who could place his bullet where
he chose, when firing without aim. Now in this case we
have a short-sighted man who had never discharged a
pistol in his life."
To a friend in Paris the Duke wrote as follows:
" Woodnorton, Evcsbam, March 17.
"My dear Friend,—l have at last direct news frc,m
Montpensier. He was better, and was awaiting at Madrid
the end of preliminary investigation (instruction). Rubio
was attending him. Rubio is the Republican member for
Seville, who acted as one of the Infante's seconds, and was
very hostile to my brother, but he became his friend
en the ground immediately after the duel. I have
b„. shewn a letter from a Spaniard, who is no friend
of Montpensier's but it describes my brother's bear-
ing during the duel in terms that have drawn tears from
any eyes. . . 11.tontPensier writes :---` Who would have ever
dreamt that I, who never would learn fencing, never
pp.opt'is d with a pistol, and abhor duelling and the penalty
of death. . I have done my duty, and only sought to
avert a calamity. It was the will of Heaven r—ln haste,
yours truly, rs V(I. " HENRY D'ORLF.Are