The Sun.
London, England, 1848-07-06 00:00:00

THE FRENCH REPUBLIC.

DEATH OF CHATEAUBRIANI)—
DISCOVERY OF THE ASSASSIN
OF THE ARCHBISHOP—MORE
ARRESTS RELAXATION OF
RIGOUR. TOWARDS GIRARDIN.
The Paris journals of yesterday have reached us.
They announce the death of the venerable and il-
lustrious CHATEIUBRIAND. He breathed his last at
a quarter past eight o'clock on Tuesday morning,
July the 4th, 1848, and, his birth having occurred on
the 4th of September, 1768, he had consequently at-
tained the ripe age of exactly seventy-nine years and
ten months. Peace to his glorious manes! In the
midst of the political gloom which now envelopes his
native country, while Paris, figuratively speaking, is
strewing her head with the ashes of repentance, while
she is still busy with the ghastly labour of burying
her dead, while her citizens are still lamenting over
the loss of those among theii relations who have
been massacred by the fratricidal hands of
the insurgents—the calm and solemn demise
of such a man RS M. DE CHATEAUBRIAND is an
occurrence which is heard of only with feelings of
awe and sympathy. His was too great a mind to
pass away without exciting some emotions of sorrow
for his loss in the hearts of his brother man. The
Voice which in an infidel age—in an age, the very
atmosphere of which was still vibrating, as it were,
with the deistic eloquence of ROUSSEAU, and the blas-
phemous philosophy of VOLTAIRE—the Voice which,
in such an age as that, could chaunt the glories of
religion, and sing of the Genius of Christianity,
could not be hushed for ever without a thrill
passing over the soul of Christendom. That is
why we listen to the announcement with
sentiments almost like those of incredulity. CHA•
TEAUBRIAND is dead ! The hand which wrote
that most astonishing work of the century La. Genie
du Christiennisme is cold—the eyesithat looked with
awe upon the waters of Babylon and wept with woe
upon the pinnacle of Calvary are cIosed—CHATEATh•
BRIAND is dead!
The melancholy event is announced by the eminent
scholar, the Abbe DEGUERRY, in the following beau-
tiful and touching letter, addressed to the Journal des
Dalats:—

" Paris, July 4.

" Monsieur,—France has lost one of her noblest sons.
M. de Chateaubriand died this morning at a quarter past
eight o'clock. We received his last sigh. He died in
full possession of his faculties. So fine an intelligence
did of right conquer death and preserve in his grasp a
visible liberty. The death of Madame de Chateaubriand,
last year, affected him so much, that laying his hand
o❑ his breast he said—' I feel my life attacked and
dried up in its sources; it is now only a question of
some months.' The death of M. Ballauche, which fol-
lowed immediately after, was the last blow for his illus-
trious old friend. Since that time M. de Chateaubriand
seemed rather to rush than descend to the grave. A few
minutes before his death, M. de Chateaubriand, who had
received the sacrament on Sunday, embraced once more
the cross with the emotion of a lively faith and firm
confidence. One of the expressions which he repeated
most frequently of late years was, that the social ques-
tions which agitated nations at present could not be
solved without the Bible, without the soul of Christ,
whose doctrines and example have denounced selfishness,
this gnawing worm of all concord. Thus M. de Cha-
teaubriand hailed Christ as the Saviour of the world,
even in a social point of view, and he loved to call him
his King as well as his God. A priest and a sister of
chraity knelt at the feet of M. de Chateaubriand at the
moment he expired. It was amidst prayers and tears
that the author of The Genius of Christianity' rendered
his.soul to God.

" I have the honour, &c.,
" DEG UERRY, Curate of St. Eustache."

Speaking of the loss thus experienced by France,
the Journal des Debuts observes :—" It is one misfor-
tune the more, added to those which have already
desolated the country ; but there is at least this conso-
lation left to us, that M. DE CIIATESUBRIAND termi •
nated in peace, and in the midst of the most touching
attentions, one of the most agitated, one of the most
momentous, one of the most brilliant, and one of
the most glorious lives of which there is any men-
tion in the records of modern times." On the same
theme the; Democratic Pacifique writes thus
CIIATEAUDRIAND was a true representative of
French genius; he had all the mobility, the charm,
and the grandeur of the truly chivalrous. Devoted
to monarchical traditions, he was nevertheless a
sincere defender of liberty. Profoundly impressed
with the moral grievances of our age, still he
did not despair of humanity. He has predicted
a new era, a transformation of the Christian world."
Again, there is this sentence in the midst of the
lamentations of the Constitutionnel—" The enti-
ments of honour, of liberty, of patriotic devotion, and
of unaffeted religion which have always inspired M.
DE CHATEAUBRIAND, and which have animated him
even to his last days, form around his name a halo
not the less brilliant than that which surrounds the
memory of the immortal author." The National
regrets his demise, for inasmuch as he was " the
illustrious friend of CARREL, of BERANGER, and
of LAMENNAIS." The Gazette de France appears
in deep mourning ; and the French Academy has
decreed by an unanimous vote that the sittings
shall be closed for an interval in respect for the
fame of the great departed. M. DE CHATEAU.-
BRIAND, although for a long time in a declining state
of health, retained his mental faculties unimpaired to
the last moment. His illness, which has terminated
fatally, was an inflammation of the.lungs. The body
is to be conveyed to St. Malo for interment.
A ruffian named MANCHON, who turns out to be a
grocer's shopman, has been seized by the police in
consequence of his having boasted that :he is the one
who fired the bullet at DENIS, the sainted Archbishop
of Paris, displaying in proof of his share in the assas-
sination, a portion of, the pontifical belt, fastened
with a gold clasp, known to have been worn by the
Archbishop on the day when he was murdered at the
foot of the barricade.
Among the latest arrests of persons supposed to
be implicated in the late insurrection, are the fol-
lowing :
• , .
"Pinnel Grandchana, Mayor of the 12th arrondisse-
ment.
" Guy d'Amour, dentist, belonging to the artillery of
the National Guard.
" Morel, Captain of the Staff in the 12th Legion of
the National Guard. _ _

"Royer,Captain in the 2d Legion.
"Destourbat, Captain in the 25th Battalion of the
Garde Mobile.
" Rasselat, Lieutenant in the National Guard of Gre-
nolle.
" Augeron, Lieutenant in the 3d Legion.
" Bourdelet, Lieutenant in the 12th LegiOD.
" Renaud, Lieutenant in the Bth Legion.
" Fleurry, director of a fire insurance company.
" Wittini, Registrar of the Civil Tribunal of Ajaccio.
" Several arrests have also taken place at Choisy."
The discussion on the draft of the constitution
progresses in the bureaux rather slowly. The sys-
tem of two Chambers has been hotly debated, and as
yet the question has not been determined.
The Pantie states that General BEDEAU has not
accepted the portfolio of Foreign Affairs, and that M.
BASTIDE will remain in that department, leaving
open for some other person the Ministry of Marine.
M. CLEMENT THOMAS was yesterday able to be
present in the National Assembly.
M. TRELAT, ex-Minister of Public Works, is ap-
pointed mayor of the 12th arrondissement.
M. HERMAN has been appointed Secretary of State
in the department of the Interior.
There are 1,542 wounded still in the hospitals of
Paris, of which number 572 are soldiers.
The friends of M. E. DE GIRARDIN have at length
been allowed access to him, and it is thought that he
will be set at liberty to-day. The treatment he has
received bas been disgracefully harsh. No charge of