The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1850-08-08
FOREIGN CORRESPONDENCE.

PARIS, July is, 1850.
To the Editor of the National Era:
II the result of the struggle on the law against
the press had not been certain in advance, IL would
have been looked for with intense interest by the
whole people, instead Of a few publishers and
stockholders Not a sign of agitation among the
people has been visible. The popular ocean has
been in dead calm, which all the tempests Of
Reaction have not been able to disturb,
though aided by the interested furies Of the jour
nails Day after day, the discussion dragged it's
slow length along in the Assembly. Not single
person Of any eminence spoke in favor Of the law.
By common consent, the leaders abstained from
supp Orting it, being sure that 1t would pass the
noses having all been counted before the bill was
put on the order of the day. The only persons
charged with the public advocacy Of the bill, were
the Chairman Of the Reporting Committee, M.
Chasseloub Loubai, and the Minister Of Justice,
M. Rouher-C eushon. these TIVE 5Trt'-rep. we've
A. D-h---~-- p---~I.-,iA"
Nv whose warmth iney were ARNSGsa Ns yunur~s
and crows are sometimes Matched out by unsus-
pecting hens Let us sum up their achievements
during the past week, and compare it with the
object they had in view, which was TO cripple the
press, to put every Journal into the arbitrary
power of the Cabinet, and prevent the circulation
Of political intelligence among the people.
The new law imposes a stamp tax Of cent on
each sheet published in Paris One of the large
dailies which circulates fifty thousand numbers
will pay, if it maintain its circulation, daily
stamp tax of FIVE hundred dollars, and yearly one
Of sls2, 500. You can judge, my dear sir, whether
such sum can be withdrawn from the profits of
daily paper without threatening its ruin This
is not all another provision of the law taxes
with an additional centime, or fifth part Of cent
each number containing part Of a novel, You
are aware Of the practice at Paris of publish
ing all novels in newspapers. All the novels
of Dumas, Eugene Sue, Merry, Montalembert,
Vieullot, and other distinguished French writer's,
have appeared in that form and these have
made the fortunes Of the writer's, and Of the
newspapers. LIE Constitutional would have been
dead long ago, If it had not secured Eugene Sue
as q contributor Dumas has been paid for his
at the rate of cent for each five letters-that is
q centime letter-because they were found to be
profitable to the journal This source of revenue
has been dried up. The additional tax on the
journal Of the aforementioned circulation, sup
posing it to contain every day portion of a
novel, would be $50, 500 year, and the sum total
of all taxes would amount to the sum Of $4,000.
The law, not content with taxing the journals,
provides the Administration with weapon for
killing off any journal it pleases. This is in the
provision compelling every journal against which
more than one prosecution is commenced to deposite
the half, and in certain cases the whole Of the
fine which may be imposed on it. This dsposite
is to be made prior to judgment. That is, the
journal is to be treated as guilty before trial As
prosecution depends only on the order of min
ister the journal may be forced to deposite several
hundred thousand francs. fitrefuses to deposite,
it is ruined at once The Government has, there
fore, reached all its ends. | will not dwell on
the tax on pamphlets, tracts and non-periodical
pablca.ions politics, as they will be suppressed
altogether. The Government journals are now
at their old tactics Of representing the President
as hostile to the law and disposed to veto it, But
you need no caution against confidence in their
assertions. The President snd his friends are
quite aware that their only hope is in covering
their sets with as much obscurity as possible. A
love of darkness is natural to certain birds of i'll
omen, and Louis Bonaparte is no exception to the
general rule.
One of the provisions of the new law is, that
the signature of the author must be affixed u
every article on religion, politics, philosophy, com
merce, trades, or private interests The intention
of members was to force writer's to declare them
selves, SO as to break down that influence which
the press derives from the anonymous, and, in poll
teal articles, to know their opponents. This pro
vision will effect in the newspaper literature o.
France o revolution which will be, in some re-
spects, highly beneficial TWAS dictated, however
by deep-rooted hatred to the press. Things
have come to such pass in France, that If Christ
should appear in Paris, and attempt to preach, hi
would be arrested as oontravening the police reg
ulations; and, if he published his sermon on the
mount, would be prosecuted as a troubler Of
society, and, provoker Of improper hopes in the
laboring classes. And If the new law had existed
in the days of the apostles, they would have been
arrested fined, and imprisoned, for circulating the
different books of the gospel
The Reaction in its war against the press has
committed one serious error-that of letting il
live. 1t is the error Of those enemies Of the
Romans, who, after capturing Roman army
made it pass under the yoke, and harassed it to
the last point, but did not put it to death. The
army had its revenge and q rich one too. Not
only has the Reaction let the press live, but il
has given it two months to conform to the new
law am much mistaken if within that time the
press do not make the Assembly feel its power
This onslaught on the press may be the germ
of another revolution but the development vii
probably be slow. The people look ON calmly
In vain the press assures it, every morning, tina
its best liberties have been struck down. TIL
people answers &C have not felt It. as Trajan die
when told that some enemy had struck his statue
One reason Of the general indifference is, tina
the people are losing faith in politicians Of ever.
color, having been betrayed by them in ever,
revolution. Why make another, TO be again be
trayedl The pleasures and profits are for others
and the tears and chains for them.
have entertained you, from time to time, will
the mutual seedlings of the President and tn
legislative majority, which are Of an intermitten
nature. Instead Of living together in stately in
difference, like Wsipole and his wife, who nsve
descended to the vulgarity Of quarrel, the.
berate each other in homely sort Of way, eI
treme'y refreshing to BY ISLANDERS. The Admin
istration papers are known to act under the inspi
ration Of the Elyfee II there is any fvorite, 1t
IL POup0ir, which is contributed to by the motto
riOus cassagnac, literary msrcenary, paid out o
The Presidents private purse. The attacks o
this paper and TIE foi,ove~s nm IN. .sovnhlv ba vi