The Sun.
London, England, 1858-07-17 00:00:00

I THAT PRINCE NAPOLEON JEROME.

(Front the Daily News.)

The Prince Napoleon Jerome has just given ut-
terance to some very important truths, indicative
of the independent view which he is known to
take of political and social questions. It was at the
opening of the Central of France Exhibition, got
up chiely by the citizens of Limoge., whom the
Prince congratulated upon conceiving and accom-
plishing a scheme of the kind by their own activity
and resources, without being indebted to Govern-
ment for either suggestions or aid. " What we
ought to fear," observed the Prince, "is the ab-
sorption of individual energies by collective power,
the substitution of the Govermneat for the citizen
in every art of social life, the enfeebling of all per-
sonal initiative under the tutelage of an exaggerated
administrative centralisation."
This is the language, not of Imperialism, but of
sound sense ; it is in direct and pointed variance
with the cuckoo-csy of French G. vermraent jour-
nalism. The most notable fact of the epoch is, that
what the French call the haute commerce—that is,
large commercial speculations which look through
years for a return—have never revived since 1848;
and that no capitalist now thinks of investing
money except on such enterprises as the State sug-
gests and upholds. Thus the French have become
manufacturers of money rather than creators of
wealth. Agriculture pine; foreign trade progresses
in no marked degree. There is but one suurce of
impulse in the country, that of the Government,
which, however equal to the great works of 93dile-
ship, can never direct individual energy in the
creation of wealth.

No person can be in a better position of being
made sensible of this than the man who has under-
taken the administration of the French Colonies.
The colonial failures of our neighbours have been
avowedly owing to the total dependence on the
Home Government, and c rresponding mistrust
and discontinuance of all exertion not prompted
by it. The result of such a system is, that Go-
vernment itself must shrink from adding to
its burdens and desiring new colonies. To render
Algeria, for example, self-subsistent, must be the
first achievement and the principal aim of a pru-
dent French Government. Napoleon Jerome has
undertaken this enterprise. It will, no doubt,
task his utmost energies. But hisspeeeh at Limoges
certainly indicates a knowledge of where the defect,
lies, and whence the remedy should come.'
Much conjecture has been expended to account
for the high functions and position recently be-
stowed upon the Prince. Since he threw up the
Madrid Embassy, rather than carry out certain in-
structions which he deemed unworthy and illiberal,
Princ© Napoleon Jerome has merely held military
command, and that of a subordinate kind, in the
Crimea. Since his return, he has given himself to
dissipation one day, and scientific research the
next, avoiding politics as a sort of forbidden
ground. Several efforts to marry him to the
daughter of some reigning family have failed. Lat-
terly be became embarrassed, and it is probable
that on applying for the means of ridding himself
of these embarrassments, the Emperor offered to
him an occupation and a prisition somewhat aloof
from active politics, but still with sufficient scope
to satisfy an ambitious and original mind.
The motives of the Prince for accepting such a
position are obvious enough. The views of the Em-
peror have been differently interpreted. Some re-
call a famous sreech made t nce in V,e Chamber of
Deputies by M. Thiers. That statee-oian, when
questioned as to the use of Algiers to France, re-
plied that its chief use was the great facility which
it afforded of transporting 50,000 French soldiers
to any point within the Mediterranean before the
rest of Europe could be aware even of their em-
barkation. This notable revelation of M. niers,
accompanied by the circumstance of the new Go-
vernor of Algeria being responsible to the Emperor
alone, and holding communication solely with him,
have lad certain parties to imagine that a great
coup or expedition is meditated some day or other,
however distant.

On the other hand, however, the Prince in ques-
tion has not shown any military geniul, nor is
he a grout favourite with the soldiery. Re is more-
over strongly opposed to Russia and the politics of
the Russian party, in concert with whom alone such
an expedition might be planned. M. Tillers' tastes
are civic and his tendencies liberal, and he does not
swim at all in the same water with M. De Morny.
On these grounds we reject altogether the notion
that the appointment of the Governor of Algeria
has had any connection with any of those schemes
which timidly ingenuous people are fund of attri-
buting to the French Emperor.
We should rather consider his policy to proceed
from a desire to place his rotative in that prominent
and powerful position which would best enable him
to hold a protecting arm over the young son of the
Emperor, should any cataAnphe or untoward event
call that son prematurely to the throne. Nothing
ought to be more unsatisfactory to the Imperial
mind than a survey of the men who now hold high
dignities, offices, and commands in the Imperial
rigilne. Moro than half of them have been professed
and zealous Orleanists or Legitimists. And their
antecedents are net such as to lead any one to sup-
pose that they would make any great sacrifice to
their more recent loyalty. Much comment was
made in Fi ance onthe fact of the Duke of Malakhoff
embracing the Duke D'Aumale and dining with
him. Such conduct was honest and generous on
the part of the old soldier, and by no means neces-
sarily evinced any want of fidelity to the Emperor,
under whose banner he c nquered. Still eueth cir-
cumstances give rise to doubt and. to thought.
People ask, what would be the conduct of the Ba-
roche:i and the Castellanes on certain occasions and
in certain crises. And CO one is surprised to find
that the Emperor thinks fit to put high trust in his
own relative as the most efficient protector and na-
tural guardian of the Prince, should it be his fate
to succeed whilst yet in his minori'y.
The wisdom and liberality of the sentiments de-
livered by the Prince at Limoges; the apparent sin-
gularity of such an enlightened eulogiuin on the vita-
lity and value of local institutions under a system
which is generally regarded as the very climax of
centralisation—ale not, perhaps, unsusceptiblo of
explanation. The expressions are the genuine ex-
pressions of him by whom they were uttered, but
they would hardly have been uttered thus publicly,
without some previous understanding with the
Emperor. It will not be the first time that Louis
Napoleon has sought by indirect Inc:ins to hold up
before his people two separate aspects of his Go-
vernment, and it may easily be that after the recent
epoch of terror and repression he is more than ever
desirous of showing that the Imperial regime is not
absolutely intolerant of philosophio views and
I.beral sentiments.