National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1874-03-19
THE CH1sELHURsT CONSPIRACY


The recent assemblage of Bonapartists st
Chiselhurst, on the occasion of the eigh
teenth birthday of the Prince Imperial o
France. probably marked the beginning O
new and important era in the history o.
that country. The attendance was com
posed of prominent Frenchmen, including
n. Olivier and Rouher, the Duke Dc
Grammont and others, whose devotion to
Napoleonism is only second to their loyalty
to France as the country of their birth. In
short. everything seemed to be in readiness
to take up the young Prince and the bones
of his father and carry them to Paris as the
basis for the establishment of the empire.
That this was the object of the assemblage
no one will deny. and that the meeting was
very promising omen of the accomplish
ment of that object is also apparent The
British journals, we are told. generally con-
slider the demonstration success, and it
strikes us that the address Of the young
Prince was shrcwdly calculated to arouse
the pride of the French nation In the men,
cries Of his family name and to inspire the
Bonapartists to new exertions for the resto-
ration Of the throne. He put the question
fairly and squarely before the people, and
pledged himself to abide by the verdict of a
plebtsefte, and threw down the gauntlet to
his opponents to appeal to the people. The
question of the character of the future gov
eminent of France Is thereby forced upon
the people as an issue which demands i'm
mediate solution. With frankness which
compares strangely with the coup detat of
1851, he resorts to mode Of procedure
that may be forced upon him by the peculiar
circumstances of his exile, but which is far
from being .Napoleonic. In fact, he pro-
poses peaceable solution, instead OF either
an appeal to arms or restoration of the
empire by bold stroke of policy, such as
would have been expected from the
Nephew of his Uncle and this boys
father.
If the current Of public opinion in France
Is 80 irresistibly in favor of a plebiseise as
the young Prince asserted, he may rest as
sured that his elevation to the throne is vir-
tually question of very brief time. Of
the nine million of votes cast at the last
ple5iscite, in 1870, his friends claim that at
least five millions will now be cast for him,
and that the remaining four millions will be
about equally divided between the Orlean-
lists and the Republicans They are conf
dent that this calculation is correct, and NJ.
Olivier himself is given as authority for it.
They do not disguise the fact that the youth
full age of the young STRIPPING is an argu-
ment against his immediate promotion, and
it is not impossible that they intend merely
to make beginning now. knowing that
ple6iseite may be invoked again and again
in one or in twenty years. They base their
faith in his success upon the assumption that
the French people are not ready for, per-
haps are not constituted for, and certainly
do not desire, any other than strong and
centralized form Of government. In other
words, they believe that rcpublicanism In
France is 30 liable to communistic tenden-
cics as to provoke decided opposition among
the more intelligent Of the people to re-
public. 1t is related that some one remarked
to the Duke dc Broglie, not long ago. that
he was restoring all the institutions of the
empire, and advised him to take care not to
restore the empire itself. He replied that
he would rather do that than have his
throat cut. This incident seem. to convey
truthful idea of the tendencies of the French
people as appreciated by their leaders.
If this be true ii Is evident that the Govern
ment Of France will naturally gravitate, in
response to the desires of the people, to
extremes, and the extreme which as
sures comparative peace under an empire
is more preferable than that which
entails bloodshed and agrarianism under q
commune. But it seems strange indeed
from an American standpoint that an intel.
ligcnt people arc willing to accept the mere
fiction of name as the head Of their Gov
eminent They cannot expect that this
boy, yet under the control of tutors, d pos
sessed now of the metal required Of Ma
poleonic leader, however much they may
hope that in his maturer years he may de-
velop it. Eapoleonism, it should be under
stood, comprchends something more than
the mere symbol of power. 1t means an
arbitrary exercise Of power ITSELF and the
utter absence of all personal responsibility
The constitutional form Of government
under Napoleon III. was . mere pretence.
The great Napoleon, In whose history the
idea Of Napoleonism found lasting basis,
il sill the man the lustre Of whose name
eiyes strength to that idea. The men who