New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-02-02


ITS INFLUENCE.
IRON THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIBUNE
PARIS, Jan. if-France is divided into 5000 COM
munes, each wit, Mayor for chief If Us municipal
administration and local police Il only by
strengthening tho most strenuous efforts Of elO-
quence with threat of resignation, and for tho
comparativeIy few communes II 20,000 inhabitants
and over, that Theirs secured tho Government
prerogatiye of naming the Mayors. The pre-
lndices and, mp to that time the pnn-
cples Of the Right were opposed to tho
exception. The Duke de Broelic, among Others, had
distinguished himself under the Empire, and was
still distinguished IA an advocate of decentrali'
zation. Last December the Duke de Broglic devised
a municipal law shat gives or aims TO give to Gov
eminent not only the appointment OF Mayors Tor
the large towns, bat the power of reyokng at dis
erection the popularity elected Mayors OF all conf
mUnes and OF arbitrarily substituting creature OK
its OVID, either by direct appointment from tho
central authority OF by the projects in small COM
munes
The pretext for this law is, that unless tho Gov.
eminent can Immediately have greater legal control
over uuruly Mayors, society" viii be endangered.
Two curious facts are here to be observed. One is
that society in the last two years is to all appear
ance, as calm, solid, and safe as it ever was IN
France. The OTHER - that with the old large stock
of laws on hand the Government legally can at any
moment, and a. often once q week. and could
any time since last May dismiss elected Mayors not
only for acts OF formal insuboTdmation but for
spoken words quite apart from official acts, inter-
preted to Indicate a spirit Of insubordnation To
moral order.' But 50 pressing, according to NJ. do
Brogie, is the Government need Of this new arm II
combat. that although municipal law Is a leading
one in the programme Of organic and constitutional
laws, he demanded urgency for his bill. Urgency
! means that the three readings shall be dispensed
with; that the bill COR which it is asked shall bo
urged TO IFS passage with little check Of OInali-
ties and little time for reflection as possible. Tho
Assembly approved the demand for urgency il had
approved the demand by formal vote no less than
three times.
Last Thursday, The 9Th Of January, the Assembly
met again after It's short vacation. The hfst mo-
meus OF the session taken up with brief consid-
Grafton OF two or thee measures. which rapidly
passed into laW-one OF them by a vote Of so Next
IN the order OF the day the provisional bnnci
pal bull. member OF the Extreme Right move, &"
adjourn the discussion to that of the organic munich
pal law supporting bis motion with much abiisy III
a speech OF somo length Other speakers followed,
the Duke dc Bf0glie among them. Tho debate
passed from liyeliaess to animation hom animation
to excitement from excitement to uproar and one OK
those udescribabls peculiar this Versailles
Assembly. FnallJ "a motion for an adjournment
was adopted by vote OF 2t9 to 22J. The tS ont a.
the 49i were made up Of all shades OF tho Left ~
Left Center inclusive, plus half a dozen o. so't
Right Center ard large number Of the r,i mo
Legtimst Right.
This result certainly was a surpnse-an specially
delightful one to tho Left, a not more than half
agreeable one to tic Extreme Right. which Did pro-
cured 1t tlhOngh 20 them and certain OF the mono
moderate Right productive Of malicious plcasnrel
but an especially bitter one to the seif-s, iiocnt
Duke. II was not 70 the Martial DIlAe nor 10 tho
Ministry whole bat to the Duke dc Broglie per-
sonaliy that the IL sht addressed the blow. Tho
academic parliamentary Duke could but resign.
His felio vs. OF no Cabinet Joined their ros.uations
to his, which Nacbialon, with much more Of sol
diers sense of discipline than of perception
ofParamentary principle, Handsomely refused Ia
accept The esembiy met next day onl, 10 feel tho
situation and adjourn Gil Monday to lee IL settle.
The critical phase Of the crisis was yrtualy past
by Friday night. or Saturday at the Latest. II waa
by that time pretty evident that the President
would sustain The Dnzo de Brogo, and tLat tho
Assembly would in f.ae ofthe "Cabnet question"
do as Il did I'm iierss tme-recede from the contest.
Sill there remained quesiion-the solemn qacs.
ton Of the dignity OF the Assembly. That body IL
curiousy susceptible on this score Of corporate dig
mtg. Onthc evening Of Thursday, Jan. s, the ia.
definite adjournment of the discussion o. the Gov.
ernment Municipal bin was voted By clear ma
iority Ofi2. THIS was defeat nccesln, involving
the resignation OF the Duke dc Br0giie The rulo
is that discussion OF bill which is once indei-
nitely adjourned cannot be resumed within six
months from date OF Tho adjournment The clue to
the way out Of this tronble was caught up 80 early
as Friday morning. Parlimentagian social con-
servatiyes began instantly 10 contend that the
Thursdays vote q tricky surprise, carried To
success by disciplined Left, with accidental help
from few auxiiiaIies in thin house Nothing
was more just than appeal from Philip drunk
that is, from Thursday thin to Monday full house.
1t is 4 noteworthy circumstance that the Govern
ment organs here aud the innocent reputable
London papers. insist that there was q thin house
and surprise IL is patent from the official record that
go late as four O'clock Thursday there nearly
900 votes cast for certain measures of party in
tcrest. That vicious custom. against which tho
Left that day efficiently protested, does prevail, by
which, in the usual forms of taking the sense Of tho
House, pr, sent members cast bulletins for absent
friends, is notorious. But il il as notorious that an
hour before, it evident that the adjournment
question woald come TO vote. there must have
been many more than 800 Deputies in Versailles. Less
than 500 voted. Many of the Conservatives took
train for Paris intentionally abstainei from
voting. These are members who are tired ont or
disguised with the arrogant self-suiiciency Of the
Duke de Broglie.
The drummers drnmmed, the alarmists soundesk
alarums the clerical and political bel-ringeS, who
know the ropes rang the tOcsn. rousng all laggard
members. who FASTENED to society and tho
Duke de Broglie They came out IN force at ver-
sailles on Monday last. Thereupon the dlgnined
Assembly passed vote of confidence in the Ministry,
and restored the discussion OF the Municlpa law 10
its order of the day by about 50 clean majority IN
very fall house of about go members; An ten tne