New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1875-03-24
THE LATE CABINET CRISIS IN FRANCE.

THE LATE CABINET CRISIS IN FRANCE.
DIFFICULTY or FORMING NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
| MACNAnoN's sYMPATIIEs SILL WITH THE OLD
MAJORITY.
iron THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIBUNE
PARIS, March l0.-On the Goth of May, 1873 Presi-
dent MacSlahOn sent message to the Assembly
containing these words: The idea by which have
been guided in organizing this Ministry and which
must inspire the Ministry in all its acts, is respect
for your wishes and the desire Of always being their
scrupulous exponent. The righsof the majority is
the law of all parliamentary governments; but the
application of this law is especially necessary with
the institutions that rule us. by virtue of which the
magistrate charged with the executive power Is but
the delegate Of the Assembly" Last September he
made bis famous appeal to moderate men OF all
parties" On the 18th of last month tho Assembly
by majority considerably greater than that which
cast out NJ Theirs and brought Marshal MacMahOn
into power, adopted constitutional scheme, to
which, however unwillingy, hc had lent his saEc
ton. Two months ago his Ministry resigned on
parliamentary grounds. measures proposed by them
having been rejected by the Assembly. Various
subsequent propositions have been rejected. They
remained IN Office for transaction OF business on SUI
ferance to give the President time to look about him
and find = new majority chat of May, 1S'3 being
hopelessly broken by the detection of Bonapartists
and pure Legitimists) from which to form q new
Cabinet. Two weeks ago the majority was found
and still no new Cabinet is formed, and
the old one, despite parliamentary usage,
still remains in office. There is not room here to
present anything like n continuous history OF the
futile attempts at Cabinet-making. Negotiations
hdve been going on with the greatest briskness.
There has been lively whiilng of wheels within
wheels but just at the seeming point of arriving at
the desired end hitch comes; then there is back
ing, unloading some inward swearing n new start,
more brskness than ever, and again sudden n ut.
The fact is that the honest man who signed the
message tho Duke de Broglie wrote it). quoted at
the head IF this letter. who appealed to moderate
men of all parties las the Duke de Broglie advised
him to dol, and constantly urged meantime tho
constitution of his powers" and who finally con-
scented to the WallonDufaure Constitutional laws,
still thinks that the old majority 49, in the main, the
trno majority; that there arc no moderate men to
speak of outside Of the discordant parties of which
it was made Up and that the Wailon-Dufaure laws
are bad in 50 far as they republican, and can be
tolerable only as they administered by persons
who accept them under protest.
When the President charged W. Buffet with tho
task of composing Ministry. thero was some hope
that he would leave the task to NJ. Buffet, not only
because duty and common sense counseled him to
such course THE new law distinctly covering his re-
there was a hope that II. Balfet, who is surely con-
servative enough was gaining That place in his per-
sonal confidence which the Duke de Broglic had so
long and balefully held. Tho event thus far does
not encourage that hope. That "Polignac OF the
President" as the academIcal Duke is styled, seems
ever to be the Marshal's untitled Prime Minister.
strong family influence tof wife and wfcs relations,
all royaliss is also reported to be actively susie
nant Of the mouarchcal Presidents Obstinacy. Be-
fore remarking further on these outside influences,
and this innate quality it will be well enough to
note the composition of the majority from which,
by parliamentary rules OF especially necessary ap-
plicatons. Ministry should be selected 1t is made
No for more than one hafof thoroughly republican old
Republicans, of the Left Center, or newly con-
ycrted Republicans and of the CO )aratively io'
eral fraction of tho late Right Cent This fraction
is again divisbe into two more varieties; there
arc men who like the Duke observation-disclosures and
NJ. Buffet, without being Republicans, have
como so far (by reason of their fear of Imper-
alism or of their despair of early Orleanist
chances or of respect for the national demand for
the establishment of sOmethng) as honestly to mean
to give the new constitution q fair trial-wltbn
| strictly conservative barrers-that is, men who
very unwilngly come in TO make the best OF IL.
There are other men, like the Duke de Broglic vino
come in at quarter past the eleventh hour to make
the most of it, and demand extra wages.
As soon as N. Buffet returned from his mothers
funeral to undertake bis Cabnet-making task, he
Joined to himself for the completion of that work,
| that very hard-shelled and capable conservative.
Dufaure of the Left Center. 1t was understood at
the outset that of the ten eleven Ministers not
more than one at most, and that politically i'm
portant one should be allotted to all the old Repub-
lcans, l. e. to the great majority of the majority.
1t came to be agreed that the Left Center should
have but two or three of the Ministers If it had
but two one of them should be the Minister of the
Interior, which is the eminently political and most
important lin the party seuse) OF them all. Then
it came to be agreed that this Minister should be
given to one of the liberal Right Center. on condi-
ton that his antimperialism was OF sounder quail
ity than his provisional republicanism. The man
designated by these conditions was the Duke
d,Audiffret- Pasquier. He at first very positively
declined the post and rather creditably to himself,
on the ground that his character as an enemy OF
Bonapartists would make him seem q Minister of
combat, and therefore disqualified him. The place
was offered next TO NJ. Bocher. n. Bocher would
be valuable member of the Cabinet of n cOnshtu-
tional king. His abilities, however, have been
mainly exercised in his stew ardshp of the seques-
tered property of the Orleans Princes and in de-
tense of their rights to the large portion OF 1t con-
Gscated by Louis Napoleon 30 that. though doubt
less patriotic Frencbman and capable Of states
manship he is Orleanst personally as well us polt-
ically by affection as by rational conviction, and
he, on the poa OF il-health, declined the proered
honor There was another Ministry, the filing of
| which Wa made difficult Besides insisting that
~Ak ahsrnlA he