The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-02-19
NapoIeOn,s speech at the Opening OF tn
French Legtslaturo.

ton of the Emperor, so finely illustrates his
amazing dexterity in adapting himself to the
most inauspicious concurrence of circum-
stances" in seizing and presenting the issues
out of the most perplexing complications, and
tits, moreover, of such significant i'm portance
in reference to the domestic and foreign policy
of France, and to her past and future relations
with Europe and the United States that it
demands some special examination.
How adroitly does Napoleon escape from his
recent discomftures in Europe by taking
refuge under the shadow of his unole's mighty
name He does not hesitate to claim that
German and Italian events have lately 'amost
fulfilled the great Napoleon's idea to unite all
the great homogeneous nations hitherto sepa-
rated and which is the only possible balance
of power in Europe" He thus makes 'the
great Napoleon" responsible for what we have
not forgotten was his own programme as set
forth in the famous De Lavalette circular. OF
course he makes no allusion to the first Napo-
Icons habit of absorbing nationalities to the
advantage of imperial France instead of uniting
them. The success of Germany and Italy,
according to the Emperor, "cannot disturb
France" He adds, 81 stood aloof and helped
the peace which Prussia and Italy made with
out dismembering Austria" But he does not
intimate that he was at all influenced in stand
ing aloof by the gigantic proportions which
the war speedily assumed with Russia loom
ing up in the background. Nor does he refer
to his correspondence with Bismarck by which
we learned that he arranged himself the coali-
tion between Prussia and Italy with an eye to
certain Rhenish provinces on the one hand,
and, perhaps, Sardinia on the other, by way
of compensations for connivance in wrestling
Venetia from Austria, and extending the
power of Prussia. If the marvellous and un-
expected growth of Prussian power enabled
Bismarck to snub his imperial ally and disap-
point him of his anticipated compensations,
France might well make virtue Of necessity,
and be ''iust and neutral"
Turning to "another part of the globe" the
Emperor admits that the ''happy results at
first obtained in his ''endeavOrs to redress
legitimate grievances and to raise an ancient
empire were Compromised by an inauspi-
ciOus concurrence of circumstances" He
eXpatiates on the elevated character of ''the
guiding idea of the Mexican expedition" 1t
was ''to regulate a people and implant among
them ideas of order and progress; to open vast
outlets to our commerce, and leave the recog-
milton of services rendered to civilization to
mark our path.' He does not deem it worth
while to allude to the instructions which
Forey received to develope the Emperor's
grand idea of pitting the influence of the Latin
races against that of the Anglo-SaXon race in
the Western Hemisphere; nor does he mention
| that both he and Lord Palmerston agreed
| in thinking that it would be an auspi-
cious moment for establishing a commercial
| and political-partcularly an anti-repub
| lican-balance of power in America while the
| United States were engaged in the midst of a
| civil war. Nothing is said of any idea having
| ever been entertained of absorbing Texas and
| Louisiana and securing the mouths of the Mis-
sissippi as well as converting Mexico into a
| French protectorate. Napoleon declares, how
| ever, that as soon as it appeared to him that
the sacrifices of France were greater than her
| gains in the disinterested Mexican project
| which he had inaugurated, he ''spontane-
| ously'' determined upon the ieturn of the
| French troops, 'in order that the United States
might comprehend that it was only the absence
| of cOnciliation in policy which had embittered
relations which, for the welfare of both coun-
| tries, should remain friendly" We heartily
| appreciate the friendly disposition towards the
| United States which the Emperor manifests in
| this paragraph. But we cannot refrain from
| saying that the word spontaneously suggests
| by a not unnatural association, or rather con-
| trast of ideas, the persistent efforts Of Mr..
Seward during nearly two years, and backed
| by the unanimous sentiment of the American
people, as represented in Congress, in the press,
in public meetings. and in private converse
| ton to urge upon his Imperial Majesty the
| conviction that the Monroe doctrine was an
| insuperabe obstacle to the carrying out of his
| Mexican plans. We had presumed that this
| pressure OF universal OPINION IN the United
| States might have had some slight influence in
convincing Napoleon that at least he must
| spontaneously" withdraw his troops and
abandon his scheme. At all events, it must be
| admitted that as soon as the Emperor was
| convinced that this must be done, he did it
| very gracefully and in true NapoleOnic style.
The opinion expressed by the Emperor that
''the great powers ought to act in concert to
satisfy the Christians in the East, protect the
rights of the Porte and prevent complications" "
probably decides the Eastern question, at least
for the present. His views will, it is likely,
prevail and the Western powers will unite in
sustaining the Porte while longer as a bull
wark against Russian encroachments.
| The Emperor states that the execution ofthe
treaty of Rome has placed the Government OF
the Pope i'll a new phase. The Pope sis sus-
tanned by his own strength and the veneration
| of the great powers for the Head of the Church,
and Europe will sustain his temporal power
against demagogues." We are by no means
| pertinent, who are 'the demagogues ?' Have
none of those thus stigmatized had anything
| to do with the liberation of Italy? Is it moi
likely that they will have something to say, a
! least, on the point in question! We must
still adhere to our own opinion that no definite
settlement can be made with the Pope unit
his Holiness is relieved of the burden of tenn
poral sovereignty. So long as this is no
settled, we shall look for still further complica
tions.
The relations of France with England are
declared "to be intimate, and both Powers
agree on the great questions" SO the ole
entente cordiaIe of which Lord Clarendon boastec
| durinp tho C,iunaon Uar aS existing in bOtl