The Sun.
London, England, 1856-03-17 00:00:00

LONDON, MONDAY, MARCH 17, 1656.

England rejoices with France at the auspi-
cious birth, yesterday morning at a few minutes
past three o'clock, of an heir to the Imperial
Crown of Napoleon lll.—his infant Majesty the
King of Algeria. So wonderful are the muta-
tions of public opinion, so extraordinary are the
fluctuations of national temperament not less
wonderful or extraordinary ,ndeed than the vicis-
situdes of remarkable historic characters. England
rejoices with France—rejoices with her con amore
with " heart and voice "—at the important event
which, so far as poor human foresight can at all
predicate in a matter of such amazing uncertainty,
appears to have consolidated the NAPOLEONIAN
dynasty once more as in the days of the Great
Man—when at six o'clock on the morning of
March the 20th, in the year of our Lord 1811,
another king—the baby-king of Rome—was
born to an inheritance apparently no less durable
than it was vast in its dimensions, the gigantic
empire carved out of old Europe by the resistless
sword and swayed by the irresponsible
sceptre of the modem SEiOziTRIS, young,er than
O..ESAI, and greater than CEIARLMIAGNE. Ali
that we can hope new in regard to the infant
EMPEROR, born but a few hours since, in the
purple of the new dynasty, is, that a happier des-
tiny may be reserved for him than awaited the
child of its immortal founder. A longer reign
than that vouchsafed to NAPOLEON IL—(a reign,
that, of but a few hours towards the close of the
June of 1815)—is reserved, let us hope for NA-
rs.n.zos IV., when the remarkable career of his
august parent shall have been consummated. The
present EMPEROR, now in the forty-eighth year of
his age, may still cherish the belief (without much
extravagance in the way of such anticipations)
that his life may yet be spared to himself, to
France, and, we will add, to the world at
large, until such tine as the heir just
born to his Imperial Throne may be capable in his
turn, of grasping with a strong hand the sceptre
of those later CIESARS, the NAPOLEONS-in
obedienee to the sovereign will of the People,
and with a view to the advancement of the
supreme interests, not of princes or of dynasties,
but of humanity and of civilisation ! GOD grant
that this hope may prove no idle day-dream. For
otherwise than through it there is seemingly no
escape whatever for France—or, for that matter,
consequently, of course, for Europe—from more dis-
astrous and more appalling political convulsions,
than those which France and Europe have already
of late years so often experienced. With the fulfil-
ment of this not unreasonable, or, at any rate, in
any wayimpossible day-dream, England and France
may yet preserve their intimate alliance with
each other intact, and together secure to the
-world at large the blessings of a sustained and
progressive civilisation.

The great event, so anxiously looked forward
to throughout France and Europe, has daly come
off, and in the most auspicious manner. A child
of France is born, and there is, therefore, ground
for hope that the NAPOLEON dynasty may not
only be prolonged, but that the Imperial Throne
may be occupied by the direct descendants of the
EmrEnon. This is, unquestionably, satisfactory,
but there are attendant circumstances which mate-
rially diminish the gratification which every true-
hearted Englishman must otherwise have felt.
We do not desire to dwell on the many former
disappointments to claimants for the French
Throne—of the cup of promise being so frequently
hurled from Royal lips—Dii avertite omen. We
earnestly hope that the Princely infant may be
spared to become a real blessing to his parents and
to the great country that participates in the fer-
vent rejoicings at his advent. But we cannot ap-
prove of the ridiculous and unmeaning ceremonies
prescribed for the occasion, which savour too
much of the follies of the effete race banished by
indignant France -from its shores.
One of the acts of the EYIPEROR which excited gene-
ral hope and joy was his magnanimous and honour-
able choice of a Consort. He selected the woman
whom he loved, without regard to the royalty of
birth, which has been one of the ridiculous attri-
butes still regarded in many quarters as indispen-
sable. The act of the Imperial Reformer was
hailed with general acclamation. It was hoped
that it might have prevented many sacrifices yet
to come—that the offspring of such a marriage
would be emphatically children of the people,
who would receive that popular support which was
denied to many formerly placed in similar posi-
tions. But, alas ! the promise has not been faith-
fully carried out. The trumpery and almost far-
cical performances indicated assume the aspect of
so many apologies to despotic powers, to make up
for the absence of the divine idler, that ought to
circulate in the infantiue veins—apologies that
may disgust and alienate the People, but cannot
conciliate those to whom they are thus obsequiously
tendered—who will not maintain appearances a
moment longer than it may be convenient to re-
tain the mask.

We greatly fear that it is not merely in these
paltry observances, bett©r suited to the atmo-
sphere of St. Petersburg, or of Thibet, than of
Paris, that conciliation to those who cannot ap-
preciate the term has been carried. Prussia, who
had so long nibbled at its leek in inglorious
obscurity, has been invited to send representa-
tives to the-Conferences. Whether that be merely
to render a formal assent to matters already con-
cluded, or to fling additional weight on disputed
points into the Muscovite scale, seems to us equally
objectionable. Nor can the strongly-expressed
auxiety of the Enperor NAPOLEON to have the
proclamation respecting the final arrangements
for the cessation of hostilities, awl of the birth of
the Imperial heir simultaneous, be regarded as
without extraordinary significance. It is diffi-
cult to say at this moment what concessions may
have been made to forward that object, and to
induce ;the Russian anti German Powers to re.