The south-western. [volume] (Shreveport, La.) 1852-1870, 1870-03-30
NJ. 35
Louis Napoleon

we are unable to conjecture what may be the quan
ty or quality of the interest which possesses the
mind OF the general reader in the person or character
! OF the man whose name we have mentioned above 1t
affords harmless diversity, however to describe oc-
cssonaliy; tangent from the narrow circle of our
everyday reflections and take birds eve view Of
the great world. We have allowed ourselves little
recreation in that way, and have been drawn off to
the momentary consideration of the great French
Emperor 1t is recreation; inasmuch as we are free
from all concern speculative one in his fortunes
and we call him great because we believe him to be
We have been led for years into almost unwilling
captivity by the series of the most brilliant strokes
of State that have characterized his government of
mercurial and capricious people strokes that chal
lenged our admiration by the mastery wisdom of their
conception and by the frmness and dignity of their
execution, but that admiration has been heightened
by the recent display of craftsmanship by which he
snatched the French nation from the verge of revo-
luton. We all know what revolution means in France
and knowing this, it is not surprising that common
feeling of humanity should bring relief that she has
passed safely over the gulf Of crime and blood into
which such fools Flourens and Rochefort would have
sunk her.
LOUIS +>atlolcoH served q prOtracteu pupllag6
the school OF adversely down to the period of the
brilliant craftsmanship which placed in his hands the
reins of power. He taught in that school to sup
press within himself the sckly sentimentay of false
repubicanism; and his astute observation discerned
the papabe truth that the reins of government over
the French people should be grasped with frmness
and held with fingers not to be relaxed by every touch
of Jacobna discomfort. In contrasting his character
with that of his great unce, we must claim for him,
so far as regards decision unity of purpose and the
absence of that frvolity which yields to the tickling
of straws, positive superiority. Though that superb
ority is lost in comparison that brings under consid
Grafton the brilancy of genius and the attributes of
the warrior believe the world has been called upon
to witness the achievement of daring acts of State
policy in the nephew. from which the uncle would
have shrunk fearful of the consequences. We be-
lieve that had the upstart Rocheiort, the enemy of
social order aud national liberty owes all his
prominence among Socialists and Red Republicans to
his hatred of the of Bonaparte, and his high
capacity for inditing venomous editorials against the
Imperial fanyhad lived in the days of the first Ma
poleon, the pillow of that wonderful man would have
been planted with thorns Rocheforts career would
have been shortened by the axe of the guiotine; a
revolution would have been precipitated, and the
streets of Paris drenched in blood. We doubt if the
repose of the phegmatc nephew has been seri-
ously disturbed by the buzzings of the gadhy. The
annals of the time afford evidences of the exhi-
bltion of petty resentment. 1t is true Rocheor was
expelled from France, as much in obedience to the
ordinary demands of decency and to disappoint his
dent hopes of martyrdom as from any personal con-
of the Emperor but he was permitted to return
to be elected to the French Legislature and for time
to indulge in his reckless editorial diatbes against the
Emperor and his family. We imagine that Ma
poeon in the sagacity of his nature, yielded
snted supply Of rope that the fellow might hang him
self. lie has been quietly apprehended and lodged in
prison, what his fate will be it is difficult to conjecture
but we may well believe that Napoleon is too shrewd
to pander to the morbid desire of the macontents for
the glories of maryrdom and that Rochefor will be
permitted silently to subside into contempt and OBJ
livion.