The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1849-11-21
The French Navy.
Conclusion Of the Debate in the Legislative assembly
on Tuesday,, October 80.

on Tuesday, October 80.
The next order of the day was the discussion on
the demand made by the committee on the budget
for Parliamentary inquiry into the state of the
navy in all its qualifications.
M. Denoit D'Azy, the President, said that he
would briefly state the object of the committee in
making the demand now under consideration. II
was to obtain, by the means of men having special
information on the subject, precise intelligence
TO the state OF naval construction in France naval
stores, naval accounts, and in fact every thing that
could tend TO render the naval service more effec-
tive and more economical. The advantage of such
an examination was, he thought, SO manifest that
he could not doubt that the Assembly would give
the demand favorable reception. (Hear, hear
M. Collas assembled the tribune, but was met with
loud cries of "No, no!' Enough enough 20 He
would, he observed, commence by laying before
the Assembly table of the present state of the
French navy. ("No, nor') The subject was a
most important one, and yet there appeared an
evident Discrimination to listen to his statement
(Nose- cries on the left of "Go on, go onn') The
honorable gentleman then dwelt on the necessity of
having powerful navy in France. He declared
that the navy gradually dwindling away, SO
that if burst out it would be found totally
inadequate to the conjuncture. He instanced the
care bestowed by Russia on her navy, consisting Of
43 ships of the line and AS frigatcs, example
well worth being followed. The present inferior
condition Of the navy in France was due, he said,
to the nefilcicncy of the central naval admnistra
ton. Under a monarchy that system might, per-
haps, have been tolerated but, undera republic such
negligence would be most reprehensibe. The
nual cost OF the navy In France was immense, but
if the various branches connected with it were scve
rally examined it would be found that the number
of persons employed, apparently for the mere pur-
pose Of swelling out the budget, went beyond all
imagination. France, he considered, owed debt
of gratitude to the Prince de Joinvile for pointing
out state of things which foreigners knew more
about than was known in France Since 1880 the
navy had cost OBS, 100000; in 1910 France had
powerful fleet, but a victory would have been at
tended with ruinous consequences, as the arscnals
empty. (Cries of Enough, enoughn' s'The
inquiry, the inquiryn) Large sums had been
since expended, and yet, he would ask, what re-
manned of the fine squadrons which had then ex-
listed? In ls49 there only 10 sailing vessels fit
to send to sea and, if the crews were asked for,
they could nowhere be found. Under the republic
it was the assembly, the produce of universal
suffrage, that the responsibility of such state of
things would rest and that fact merited the deep
est attention. The honorable gentleman, then,
passing i'll review the figures Of the budget asserted
that the expense of the navy absorbed sxths of
the total ordinary expenses and three fths Of the
supplementary credits; and yet the French navy,
he said, was now weaker than it had ever been be-
fore. In 1929 the Restoration had 200 vessels
worked by $4,000 seamen, and the Monarchy of
July had $50. After February the greatest want of
foresight manifested in the naval department;
and since then scarcely greater care had been cx-
hbited. General Hoche, at the time of the expedi-
ton to Ireland, had, with truth, declared that the
marine was department which organized disorder.
short time since the Diademe had only 10 men on
board her.
The Minister of Marine.--The Diademc has a
crew of one thousand men. The Assembly must
be aware that all these details are strangely ex-
aggeratcd.s
Nj. Collas said that he spoke of the LIST of April,
lS49, when that vessel had only seventy men on
board. The honorable gentleman then brought
forward details TO the present general state of
the fleet. In cnumcrating the ships, he said that
since February only one vessel had been com
menccd building, which had been called the Barri-
cade (Laughter.) 1t would have been better, he
thought, to have called her the Ordrc (Hcar,
hear) Proceeding then to the personnel of the
navy, the honorable gentleman criticised very
sharply the present organization, compared to
what it had been under Louis XIV. Then arlna-
ments were fitted out rapidly, and our colonies
were protected, whereas now they were every day
threatened. He declared that if the present system
was persisted in, the period could be calculated
with mathematical certainty when France would
no longer possess a navy. He instanced the diff
Guilty which had been experienced lately, when il
was intended TO send squadron 10 Morocco, in
getting the vessels ready for sea, proof Of the
present and future state of things. He then pro-
ceeded TO examine the state Of the steam navy of
France, and pronounced it also to be in most UNI
satisfactory condition. The English government
had, he observed, last year published a statement
of the naval service of the country down to the
most triiing detail, whereas in France every thing
connected with that department was cnveloped in
mystery, and the country slumbcrcd on in false
security, since, as he must again repeat, every
thing remained TO be done. He besought the As
scmby to be jealous of the honor of France, and to
show itself worthy of the high mission confdcd to
il. Louis XIV had account of the state Of the
navy presented several times in a year. and the
National Assembly, which was as sovereign as he,
might surely demand a similar statement once
every twelve months. Let the workmen of the
arscnals be made TO do real work; let not keel be
laid down, except proper plans had been made out,
and under the control Of proper officers, and that
would put end to delays and jobbing. (Hear,
hear) BY adopting such course the grandeur of
France would be increased abroad, and her sccuri-
ty maintained at home. (Approbation)
The Minister of Marine said that far from object
ing TO a Parliamentary inquiry, he earnestly de-
sired it, and he hoped that the Committee Of Inqui-
ry would contain within itself all the clements re-
qusite TO enable it to solve the various questions
which the honorable gentleman had just brought
forward. The conduct Of the English had been
held up as pattern, and yet not year passed
over but the same charges were brought forward
against the English government rs the honorable
gentleman had now brought against the French
one. The object of the inquiry should be TO arrive
at information which was not possessed, and
to make effectual of it, in order to improve the
state Of the navy. II was impossible to have
imposing naval force without demanding great
sacrifices from the country, but he denied that the
expense by any means reached the amount stated
by the honorable gentleman lie could not agree
with him that the navy lonpcr cxistpd. he CON