Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1848-04-20

foot passenger. or the slow, solemn tread OF men
bearing on tters the dead and the wounded. -
That silent magnificence seemed like the work
of some magic spell. The enchantress-her
name is FREEDoM, Yours truly, SIGMA.
No. W.
AFFAIRS IN FRANCE.
PARIS, March 6, 1913.
BY one blow, as sudden as it was signal, France
has overthrow another dynasty, and laid her po-
litica structure in ruins. 1t was daring act
and one involving the most tremendous conse-
quences. Yet no intelligent friend of human
progress can doubt its justice or lament its &C.
currence. The Government of 1880 has utterly
failed TO realize the great ends of its establish
ment. As constitutional system in distinction
from that which it succeeded, it purported to be
based upon popular rights, and TO give effect to
the public will. The Chamber of Deputies was
designed to be the embodiment of that will and
therefore the great controlling power of the
State. The charter of 80 made provision for
the early passage of general electoral law.
That law was matured and adopted the next year,
and has since been standing mockory Of the
representative principle. 1t divided France into
459 electoral colleges, to each of which it gave
single deputy; and admitted none TO the right
of suffrage but those who paid 200 francs a year
indirect taxes. By the operation of this law,
IL
100000 had the elective franchise. Multi
tudes of the most enlightened and vrtuous men
of the nation were excluded. Hundreds of thou
sands, whom the jury law judged capable of pas
sing upon the lives, liberties, and fortunes of
their fellow citizens, were practically pronounced
unqualified to form and express a political opinion.
This statute put at defiance every general prin-
cipe. 1t had respect neither to population, nor
to territory, nor to the sum total of property or
taxes, nor to political knowledge, nor to intelec-
tual ability. Some colleges were ten or fifteen
times as populous as others. Some had 5000
electors, Others not 200. Thus the law realized
this curious anomal y-the will of the body cleo
ting was no test of the will of the majority of
the nation at large, and the will of the body G.
lected was no test of the will of the majority of
the electors themselves. The system was not
only full of inherent defects, but its narrowness
generated a vast amount of intrigue fraud and
corruption. 1t put many Of the colleges under
the entire control Of clique, family or a sin
gle individual, who used their power only to the
promotion of their own selfish ends. 1t afforded
government great facilities for interfering with
the freedom Of elections The amount of min
isteral patronage in France was almost meal
culable. The public officers numbered nearly a
million, and en- annual budget of 100000
francs was expended ia an infinite variety of
Forms. Each minister had the entire control of
Several millions To disbursc at his own dscre-
ion, tor the encouragement Of agriculture, COM
merce manufactures, literature and the fine arts,
and to repair private losses by fire, foundations,
and other similar calamiies. The government
had an almost inexhaustable stock of stars, rib
bons, crosses, salaries, pensions, premiums and
gratuties to tempt the cunidiiy of both the cloc-
ted and the electors. That they did not fail to
exercise this power is best proved by the facts
that in the last Chamber Of Deputies there were
more than 200 public functonaries, and that this
electoral law Of 1881, although almost universal
! ly odious, has survived the assaults of six GEN
eral elections. The Chamber of Deputies has
been thus the worst of all opponents of public
opinions, and the feeblest of all barriers against
ministerial abuses and encroaehments.
The House of Peers instead of being, as il
was designed TO be, an Independent, sef-direc-
ting balance wheel ia the political system, was
in fact a mere tail piece of royalty. It's material
was spoken into existence by the royal fiat its
shape was fashioned by royal hands, and its
movements were made by the royal impulse.
Whatever might have been their original the
DRY as far regards the practical operation Of
the two other branches of government, Louis
Philippe might have said reiat c'es moi, with as
much truth as ever did Louis xiv. The people
themselves had no civil life; and not only this
but their social life in its most intimate and sa-
cred relations was regulated and controlled by
the government. The state was not what a state
should be, mighty living growing body witt
the universal reason Tor its soul, with hear
made of flesh, and with all its organs and lga
ments pervaded by the same vital principle, ant
performing their functions spontaneously ant
harmonlousiy; 1t was stupendous piece of me
chansm, made up of a vast complication o
screws and wires, and wheels, and cranks, AM
levers, and with innume-able sweeps reaching
over the entire land to every family hearth stone
and propelled by the royal arm, and evcrythin.
kept in its place by the weight Of powder ant
bail. The work to be accomplished by this gov
eminent engine was not the social, intellectual
and moral elevation of the French people, bu
the perpetuation and aggrandzement of the Or
, leans dynasty. The financial system, instead O
being adjusted SO as 10 promote industry, ant
facilitate the requirement of the comforts ant
convenences of life, was regulated by purel.
r fiscal considerations. For state purposes, tht
authority of the father over his own offspring
was restricted, the liberty of the press was taxed
, the liberty OF conscience was tethered, the lib
erty of association, whether for study, for in
struction for work, or for charity, was prohibited
, and the liberty of peaceably assembling TO dis
cuss political questions was put down by al
armed force For state purposes, four hundre,
millions were annually expended for the supper
of an army to lntimidate at home, and make con
, quests abroad; eighty millions to surround Pari
with forts, forty millions to maintain splendi
church establishment, million and half t
support the royal theatres, and such paltry SUI
i to the interests Of popular education, that pri
J, mary schools languished and died for want @
b support For state purposes, the goyernmer
r fraternized with Austria, treated Italy with IN
. dignity, assumed to dictate to Switzerland, dena
: tionalized Spain, by preventing her royal line o
c succession; robbed Queen Pomare of her dc
S mlnions, and connved at the preparation by il
G marshals of the most enormous atrocities
!, Algiers. In 1890, lafayette said that Lou
i Philippe was the best of all Republics; in 1885,
d he exclaimed in the tribune, I'VE are returnin
d to the Restoraion!" and by 1913 his homes
h first words had become the most biting of a
g. sarcasms.
h The composition of the last ministry of til
e King was well adapted to the spirit of his go,
l. eminent HILBERT, his minister of Justice wa
e distinguished for nothing except his arbitrar
7. principles and his impious bigotry. The doc
l. trines he advanced in the discussion upon I'll
g banquets were every way worthy of Mort
10 or Jetfreys. 1t required all the skill of his co
ID leagues to allay the universal storm of indign
ID ton which they excited. DUcHATEL the mil
le lister Of the INTERIOR was one of those who b.
Q. lieve political morality chinerd He made III