The Sun.
London, England, 1870-11-11 00:00:00

IL CRY FOR PEACE.

r From the diary of a besieged resident in Paris, pub-
lished in the Daily News, under date November 5, we
extract the following ; That Paris is prudent to sieze
upon the first loop-hole to get out of the position
into which she has inconsiderately thrust herself
is most certain. Never for a moment did I
believe that the Parisians, indifferent to all but
honour, would perish to the last man rather than give
up one inch of territory, one stone of a fortress. Heroic
constancy and endurance under misfortune are not impro-
vised. A population, enervated by twenty years of slavery,
corruption, and luxury, is not likely to immolate itself
for country, like the Spartans at 'Thermopylae. People
who mean to die do not sign a preliminary round-
robin to do so. Real fighting soldiers do not parade
the streets behind half-a-dozen fantastically dressed
vivanciiires. When in a town of 2,000,000 inhabitants
not above 12,000 can be found ready to submit to military
discipline, and to go outside an inner line of fortifications,
it is ridiculous to expect a defense like that .of Saragossa.
' We are under the impression to-day that an armistice wia
be signed to-morrow. No one affects even to doubt that
the word means peace. The bourgeoisie are heartily
tired of playing at soldiers, the game has lost its
novelty, and the nights are too cold to make an
occasional pic-nic to the fortifications agreeable any
longer. Besides, business is business, and pleasant as it
may be to sit arrayed in uniform behind a counter, in
the long run customers are more remunerative, if not so
glorious. The cry for peace is universal, the
wealthy are lusting after the flesh-pots of Egypt,
the hotel keepers are eagerly waiting for the
rush of sight-seers, as the shopkeepers are anxious to
make up for lost time by plundering friend and foe. The
soldiers, although Trochu is popular with them, have
neither faith nor confidence in his generalship. The
Mobiles and peasants recently from their villages wish
to go home, and openly tell the Parisians that they
have no intention to remain out in the cold long on
salt beef, whilst the heroic citizens are sleeping quietly
iu their houses, or in barracks, and gorging themselves
with fresh provisions. As for the working men, they are
spoiling for a fight in the streets, either with the Prus-
sians, or, if that cannot be, with anyone else. They are,
however, so thoroughly enjoying themselves, doing
nothing, and getting paid for doing it, that
they are in too good a temper to be mis-
chievous. The new Prefect of the Police
has arrested Felix Pyat and other leaders of
the riot of last Monday. Flourens and the venerable
Blanqui are only not in prison because they are in hiding.
The mayors of the different arrondissements are being
elected to day, but no one seems to trouble himself about
the election. The vote of Thursday has somewhat
surprised the bourgeoisie. The one-seventh of the
population should have registered their deliberate
opinion that they prefer no Government to that under
which they are living is by no means a reassuring fact,
more particularly when this seventh consists of " men of
action." armed with muskets, and provided with ammuni-
tion. As long as the Line and the Mobiles remain here,
Trochu will be able, if he only acts with firmness,
to put down all tendencies to disorder ; but were
there to be a fight between the friends of
the Government among the Garde Mobile and its
opponents, I am not certain that the former would have
the upper hand. As it is, the Hotel de Ville and the
Louvre are guarded by Breton battalions of the Mobile,
and Vinoy has announced that if there is a disturbance,
he will at once march to the aid of the Government at
the head of his division. Many complaints are made
about the mode in which the vote was taken on
'Thursday; some of them appear to me to be just.
The fact is, that Frenchmen have not the most
elementary notion of fair play in an election.
No matter what body of • men are in power,
they conceive that they have a perfect right
to use that power to obtain a verdict in their favour
from their fellow-citizens. Tried by our electioneering
code, every French election which I have ever witnessed
would be annulled on the ground of " intimidation" and
"undue influence."

Meat generally is very scarce in Paris. But lamb,
strange to say, was offered cheap and in plenty a few days
ago. It was noticed that live dogs were becoming scarce
just then.

The German sentinels round Paris frequently take up
their positions at night in singular quarters. In the Park
of Malmaison, on the white wall which was so hotly fired
at on the 21st, a patrol recently settled himself on a ladder
with a white sheet round him, so as hardly to be distin-
guished from the wall.
The two Metz papers have suspended publication. At
Versailles the arrival of the Germans caused an immediate
atrike amongst the journals, and the Nouvelliste de
Versailles was started by the invaders to supply the
deficiency. Its circulation has already reached 1,600.
The editor will be Dr. Bamberg, lately German consul at
Paris.

A correspondent of the Cologne Gazette states, on the
authority of a parlementaire. who escorted an American
out of Paris, that the members of the Government were
first informed of the fall of Metz by M. Thiers, and
rumours of this having got abroad threatening crowds
collected before his houst. He was consequently offered
a cavalry escort on his return, but refused it, fearing this