Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1877-10-20
RESULT OF THE FRENCH ELEC
TIONS.

RESULT OF THE FRENCH ELEC-
TIONS.
So far as at present heard from the
French elections seem to have dis
appointed both parties. The Re
publicans, though still holding
large majority in the Chamber Of
Deputies, find it considerably di-
minished; their numbers were 1868
in the late Chamber and only 325 in
the present. On the other hand,
while the Republicans had claimed
before the election that their num-
bers would be raised to 400, the Mon
archists claimed that theirs would
be increased by from so to 100.
Neither expectation has been real
lied; the numbers in the new Cham
Der will be about 3l4 to 201-maiOri-
ty; 1l3.
Now to an American or an Eng
lishman that majority, reduced as it
is, would seem a quite sufficient en-
dOrsement of the Republican cause;
the MacMahOn party, however,
claim that as the majority is less
than that in the former Chamber and
much less than the 400 which Gam
BETA announced before the election
as its probable result it is to be con-
sidered as an endorsement of Mac
Mahon and his reactiOnary cabinet.
To our own minds it constitutes a
triumphant verdict in favor of the
republic. The diminished majority
is only phenomenon to those who
areignOrant Ofthe tremendous press
ure which in Frances determineda adj
ministratiOn can exercise on an cleo
ton through the system Ofcentrifu-
gal force exerted by means of the
MARES (mayOrs) and projects. These
officers areallappOinted by the Presi-
dent and are removable at his pleas
ure, and in their hands are all the
arrangements for the registration of
voters and the actual voting; their
power can be best comprehended in
this country by comparing them to
the supervisors of registration and
commissioners of elections establish
ed under the Ubiquitous electoral
system of Louisiana for the express
purpose of keeping the elections and
their returns in the hands of the eX-
ecutive officers of the carpet-bag
government. But, bad as that was,
no supervisor of registration, no
commissioner of election had half
the power which a French mare or
project has of influencing the votes
of electors. These men are the chief
magistrates of their cities and dis
tricts; they control the police and,
to a great extent, the military quar-
tered within their limits. Licenses
to practice trade or to open thea
ire or circus are absolutely in their
power, and there is scarcely limit
to the amount of favor or annoyance
they can show to a voter according
as he votes for or against the candi-
date nominated by the central gov
eminent at Versailles.
Now, when MacMahon first sue
coed Theirs the D1OireS and projects
were retained who were in office I'M
der MacMahOn, and We're in office
during the election of 1873, but since
MacMahOn's dismissal of Simon and
his Republican cabinet, he has also
dismissed every one of the old m0ireS
and projects and replaced them in
every instance by MOnarchists, gen.
orally BOnapartist. These men have
instructions to favor in every way
the election of the gOvernmentnO mi-
nees, and these are all pronounced
MOnarchists. Marshall MacAIahOn,
like General Grant, goes all lengths
in supporting 1.-the party which l
represent"-only he has greater pow
ers in doing so than even General
Grant. The wonder is that the Re
publicans have a majority at all,
still more a wonder that they have
one of l13, the existence of which
shows an irrepressible determination
on the part of the people in the face
of all pressure brought to bear upon
them.
And now, what will MacMahon
do? or rather what will Fourton
and the Bonapartists wire-pullers,
whose puppet he Is, do next" Wait
a week; let people take breath after
this excitement, and we may have
some means of conjecturing.