The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1866-04-07
Napoleon's Reply to the Legislative
Address.

NapoleOn's Reply to the Legislative
Address.
Tranquility and prosperity" These words
are the burden Of one more utterance from the
French Emperor to the French people. They
are at once Napoleon's boast and his admis-
sion. From the constant use made Of the ideas
they convey we see their authors own view of
his position. He represents tranquility and
prosperity. These are what France wants,
what she must have, and for the possession Of
these she will exchange all doubtful and many
positive advantages-even to political liberty.
For tranquility she will suffer the arguments
Of freedom to be silenced as "vain theories"
Her revolutions, the extremities to which her
struggles for emancipation 60, the way in
which they have all been abused-all this has
made her timid, and the fear Of disorder holds
her still. Assuming this, the Emperor reminds
the people once more that he has given France
"hfteen years Of tranquility and prosperity"
and thus insinuates into the common mind that
his reign is identified with peace and good
order, and that oil who oppose him do
80 only as anarchists and disturbers.
But does the fact of his fifteen years
Of tranquility justify this viewf Are those
years in reality anything more than the
period Of quiet that follows every revolution
Was it not also all tranquility after 1875
after 1s30-after 1S4si Was not each muta-
ton followed by its full fifteen years of repose,
as If that space Of time were the necessary in
cubation of the next? Fifteen years seems 10
be the time of q political generation; and
every generation has its revolution. In this
age Of intellectual activity nations can no
more stand still politically than materially,
and will not permit the political ideas Of the
past to control the present, any more than
they will accept from the past its carrier
pigeons for the telegraph and its distaff and
spinning wheel for the appliances Of the mod
ern loom. This is true of every generation;
and a. France has matured the political devel-
opment Of each generation in period of tran
quillity, SO 1t will not do to assume present
period Of tranquility as an evidence that she
is not still growing in the same way.
This fact Of periodical revolution Is true
wherever there is national intelligence. Eng
land has il no less than France; but II disturbs
her less because its operation is more con-
sistent with the spirit Of her Institutions II is
in full operation now, and Is forcing modi-
fcation Of the suffrage that certain parties in
England denounce as destructive. This revo-
lutionary tendency in England Is stronger to-
day than for many years previously, and part
of this strength II borrows from the great YER
dict rendered on this side Of the Atlantic in
favor Of popular institutions. Because the
failure of these institutions had been assumed
by the aristocratic elements in England, and
because such o failure had been relied upon
to strengthen the repressive powers for these
very reasons the reaction Of sentiment conse-
qucnt upon our success has immensely greater
force, and the popular principle in Britain
advances with q positive tread II never as
sumed before. Upon the principle Of revo-
luton, as embodied in national institutions,
the world must rely for peaceful political
progress; and just in proportion as nations
acknowledge this principle, and provide in
their constitutions for Its action SO win all pro-
gross be possible and peaceful. The Emperor
Of the French, in his reply to the committee
that waited upon him with the address, laid the
stress of his observations upon the words "trau-
guilty and prosperity" BY that--putting him
self on another issue entirely-he begged the
whole question of the political position Of his
government But In the speech from the throne
that called out the address he had offered
defence Of bis position In that speech also no
had rejoiced "in seeing. at the end Of four
teen years, France respected abroad, tranquil
Within he had denounced political discussion
a. the pretext Of unquiet spirits, and he had
sugre sted comparison Of French institutions