New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1851-12-27


nation cyer another. Aud we shall mad
the secret Of tbi- fantasti elevation Of Lonis
Napoleon to be III French Institutions, more
than in any inherent we akheas of French
character.
The fundamental principle Of the French
political system is Cen,raiz ition. Paris !.
every thing and the provinces nothing a"u
the man or the party that gets possession Oh
Paris thereby has possession OF the '~hO'e
country. This il SO because the whole coun-
tryis used 70 receiving orders from Paris es-
pecially, ard becuse the government there
is every thing. and the people elsewhere
nothing. Political affairs, education, reil-
eion, all are centralized. There is no such
thing as free local administration, or local
elfgovernment. Not petty village elects
its own mayor; he is named by the govern
ment Not a commune manages It's own
concerns BY itself The Interference of the
GENITAL government is felt everywhere.
Not district school is opened or closed but
by the government. Not church bell rings
except the central governmentpulls the rope.
Accordingly, there is no such thing as true
liberty and true development of the people
All is despotism, as truly as in Russia, no
matter what the name by which it is called.
The fact is essentially the same whether
Louis | or Lamartine be at the head; there
is the same overshadowing central authorl-
ty and the same resistless administrative
mechanism the difference is solely one of
detail or of accident, not of principle. The
French nation, with all its Boosting, is not
of age, politica ly. It's still in its minority
and under tutelage, with this vast machine
of a centralized administration, education
and religious establishment for its leading
strings. Consequently he who can seize
upon the leading strings has the nation In
his power. Let him become master of Pa
ris and of the central government, and his
orders will nowhere meet with serious or
protracted resistance. He is master of the
main spring, and, till it is snatched from his
grasp, or the machine breaks, can make IT
90 to suit his pleasure. Thus Louis Phil
ippe came to rule France in 1890 thus the
Republicans suddenly conquered in 1913;
thus in 1851 Louis Napoleon has become
Dictator; thus in 1852 he will be Emperor
and thus in due time he will be got rid of
and some other party come into possession
of the machine. AS long as such a ma
chine remains, liberty can exist in France
only because the government sees fit to
tolerate it, and no constitution and no sys-
tenn of policy will be safe againt usurpation
There can be no guarantee of liberty, and
no fair chance for the elevation of the peo-
pie save in the abandonment of centraliza-
ton and the establishment of the great
principle of local self. government instead.
Capitalization can produce nothing but
nation of obedient subjects; self-govern-
ment alone can produce a nation of free
citizens capable of approaching the bless
ings of independence and resolute to main.
tain them.
This is the secret of Louis Napoleon's
easy triumph hundred thousand soldiers
made him master of Paris, and the omnipo-
tent governmental machine made him mas
ter of all France. 1t is not the fault of the
nation, ridiculous and shameful as it may
appear; they are in the machine, and to
resist were useless. All that his opponents
can do is to wait till chance and good plot
enable them to seize the main spring, and
then, if wise, they will knock the machine
to pieces, and emancipate the country from
its despotism.
We are well aware that many statesmen
and publicists hold the system of French
Capitalization to be necessary for the pre-
sent crisis in Europe, false as they will admit
it to be in principle. 1t is necessary, they
tell US, as an instrument to destroy old insti-
tutions, prejudices and ideas, and to insure
unity of action against the entertainments
of foreign despotism. There is something
plausible in this, but it will not stand exami-
nation. The cause of freedom in general
cannot be served by keeping thirty odd mill
lions of Frenchmen without liberty and
without political development Nor are-old
ideas destroyed except by new ones. The
real power and influence of France in Eu-
rope would be increased immensely by the
elevation of her people to genuine self-gov-
eminent. Give them the entire manage
ment of their local affairs, restrict the CEN
trail government to be merely business
agency 10 keen the accounts and eXecnte