, 1875-08-07
THE BONAPARTIST CONSPIRACY.
(From the Times.)

|
Nothing can give a better idea Of the
perplexities which bes t France than the
debates in the National Assembly on the
famous election for the Nievre. 1t was
the disclosures after the triumph OF NJ. DE
BoURGoING that frightened the moderate
RoyaIistsand the moderate Republicans into
analliance, andmade them try t give the Re-
public a Constitutional shape. They Joined
hands because they had a common fear of
Bonapartism, and the two heated debates in
The Assembly show the passionate dread
with which most of the Deputies look on
that stealthy foe, In order to see the precise
meaning of the two discussions we must
separate two questions which were mixed
together to suit party purposes. The first
relates to the means by which NJ. DE BOUR-
GOING won the vacant seat for the Ni6vre
on the oath of May, 1874 While frankly
telling the electors that his hopes were
Imperialist, he said that he was the devo-
ted servant. OF the Due DE MAGENTA, aud
that his profession of faith had been APP
proved 10y the Marshal. On Tuesday NJ.
DE BoURGoINa maintained that his state
ment had been substantially true, because,
although he Had not shown his election
address to the PRESIDENT, he had told him
>yhat would be the sense Of it, aud had
received his approval. 1t would be q
waste of time to ask whether t!is tale is
veracious or not. The important fact is
that a s~emi-oficial contradiction was sent
to the Nievre from Versailles, but that it
could not be published until after the cleo
ton. The Protect believes hat the result
was decided by the claim of the Bonapar-
list candidate to be the representative
of the Government. NJ. DE BOURGOING
was also aided by a high-handed act of the
local authorities themselves, who arrested
and roughly treated N. GIRARD, an infuen-
tial Republican, for telling the electors,
after the defeat of the Due DE BROGLIE,
that the President as we'll as the Ministers
had fallen. He explained that he meant
the President Of the Council, which, again,
was a laundering title for the Vice-Presi-
dent; but he was, nevertheless, dragged off
for spreading false news, and his arrest is
said to have frightened some people into
voting for the candidate who was supposed
to have the favour of the Government.
These facts cast an unpleasant light on the
administration of the Due DE BRoGLIE
He had been brought up in the s%traitest
sect Of the Orleanists, at the feet Of his IA
ther and NJ. GUIzoT. During the most
rigorous days of the Empire he had charm
ed Liberals by his essays on Constitution
al freedom. Yet he had no sooner become
the Prime Minister than he made an in
formal alliance with NJ. RoUHER in order
to use the weapons of the Empire for the
destruction of the Republic. The old I'M
perialist Projects and Mayors were taken
out of their enforced retirement and put in
the place of dismissed Republicans. An
able Bonapartist, M. DE FoURToU, became
bis chief colleague. The machinery of
ELECTORAL influence was refurbished, and
the wore, was passed, that the servants of
the State must try to, return Imperialists
rather than Republicans when no. Royalists
were in the field. Hence it was, easy for
the electors. o., the Nievre to believe that
A. DE BouRGoNG had really been sent by
atheMarshal, and it is no wonder that he was
allowed to use the journal which spoke
IL! the name of the Prefecture. The Re-
appblicans still believe that he was sup
ported By the Government, and the attack
on the election has been directed against